- Vincent Scotto, Jofroi/Ways of Love, France, 1933. Writer-director Marcel Pagnol never dared offer it to Raimu, feeling the film was too short for his celebrated César. Then, Scot to the composer of the family Pagnol, offered himself.
- Gabriel Gabrio. Regain/Harvest, France, 1937. Michel Simon, Harry Baur also passed. Enter: Gabrio, the first Jean Valjean in 1913. New York’s critics voted Regain the year’s best foreign film. Pagnol, however, was dissatisfied with Gabrio and never used him again.
- Michel Simon, La fin du jour, France, 1938. Raimu caused a big switcheroo when quitting his role of Cabrissade.Simon took over – and his original role of Saint-Clair went to…but of course… Louis Jouvet. And his role of Marny was handed to Victor Franchen.
- Lucien Baroux, Derrière la façade, France, 1938. Sam Spiegel’s French production was a star-packed whodunnit: Carette, Jules Berry, Gaby Morlay, Michel Simon, Gabrielle Dorziat, Marguerite Moreno, Erich Von Stroheim. But not Raimu and Pierre Fresnasy (Marcel Pagnol’s immortal César and Marius) as the investigating flics. Baroux delivered a solid Raimu impression as Inspector Boucheron, who solved the murder in 90 minutes and 48 seconds…
- Harry Baur, Volpone, France, 1940. When a Paris version of the Ben Johnson classic was first promulgated in 1937, realisateur Marcel L’Herbier’s cast – Raimu, Louis Jouvet, Marion Dorian, Madeleine Ozeray – never left the drawingboard. The following year, Jacques de Baroncelli’s version – Baur andf Jacqueline Delubac replacing Raimu and Dorian – was cancelled for lack of cash after two weeks’ shooting – some of which wound up in the final attempt, helmed by Maurice Tourneur, with Baur. Jouvet, Delubac and Dorian.
- Maurice Chevalier, Le silence est d’or, France, 1947. A month before his death, he had been proudly showing Pagnol his various offers – including Réné Clair’s comeback after four years in Hollywood.
- Bernard Blier, Dédée d’Anvers, France, 1947. The first film of Henri La Barthe’s novel was planned in 1939 by realisateur Pierre Chenal. He chose – obviously! – Raimu as Dédée’s saddest client, Monsieur René.
- Marco, La belle meunière, France, 1948. The(musical) life of Schubert – by director Marcel Pagnol. For his sole film in colour (the first and last in Rouxcolor), he had wanted Raimu as the miller-father of the beautiful miller – played by Marcel’s wife, Jacqueline Pagnol.
- Bernard Blier, La Maison Bonnadieu, France,1951. Auteur Carlo Rim even crossed the WWII Demarcation Line – between Occupied France and Vichy France – to sell this idea to Raimu. After his death, Rim gave the role, inevitably,tothe far more agreeable Blier.
- Paul Meurisse, L’Affaire des poisons, France, 1955. Due for “the greatest actor who ever lived” (said Orson Welles), in 1944. But Raimu fell ill before shooting.
Birth year: 1883Death year: 1946Other name: Jules August César MuraireCasting Calls: 10