A classic stage actor (Racine's "Brittanicus") and then star and
supporting actor in European and American film adventures, he turned to
comedy as a director and helmed a string of successful comedies
featuring his country's top actors (Bourvil, Louis de Funès, Jean-Paul Belmondo, etc.)
His La grande vadrouille (1966) retains the record for attendance by a French movie, and
was only dethroned as the top ticket-seller ever in France by
टाइटैनिक (1997).