Jean-Pierre Melville

Jean-Pierre Melville (born October 20, 1917 Paris, FranceAugust 2, 1973) was a noted French director born Jean-Pierre Grumbach. He later adopted the pseudonym 'Melville' as a tribute to his favorite American author Herman Melville. Melville, who was Jewish, served in World War II and fought in Operation Dragoon. When he returned from the war he applied for a license to become an assistant director, but was refused. Without this support, he decided to direct his movies by his own means.

1 Quotes

At birth man is offered only one choice --the choice of his death. But if this choice is governed by distaste for his own existence, his life will never have been more than meaningless.
— Jean-Pierre Melville