Léo Joannon

Léo Joannon (August 21, 1904-March 28, 1969) was a French writer and film director. Born in Aix-en-Provence, [ [http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/participant/participant.jsp?spid=95320&apid=0 Turner Classic Movies profile] ] Joannon was originally a law student who became a novelist and journalist before entering the film industry in the 1920s as a cameraman. [http://movies.nytimes.com/person/96102/Leo-Joannon New York Times/All Movie Guide profile] ]

Joannon first attracted international attention in early 1939 during the production of "S.O.S. Mediterranean," when his attempts to include shots of a German naval ship docked in the port of Tangier created a diplomatic incident between the pre-World War II French and German governments. The film later won the Grand Prix du Cinema Français. [ [http://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F20A1EFD385A177A93C3AA1789D95F4D8385F9 New York Times review, December 31, 1939 (fee required for access)] ]

Joannon is best known to international audiences as the director of the 1951 comedy film "Atoll K", which was the final motion picture starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. Among his other films were "Le Defroque" (1954) and "Outpost in Indochina" (1969).

References

External link

* [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0423329/ Léo Joannon in the Internet Movie Database]