Josseline Gaël

Biography

When the film Coup de tête (1944) was released in October 1944, its main actress Josseline Gaël was already in prison. Gaël started her career as a child and subsequently appeared in supporting roles, amongst them Cosette in the best adaptation of the Victor Hugo's classic Les Misérables (1935). She matured into a young woman in front of the camera and became a sought-after actress in the late thirties. Following her marriage to Jules Berry , she also combined a successful career as a stage actress. In 1943, she left Berry for Antonin "Tony" Saunier, a member of the French Gestapo. Saunier belonged to the infamous "Bande Rouge" (Red Gang) owing its name more for the amount of blood on the hands of its members than their political affiliation. With him, she led a life of luxury until the Liberation when they were both arrested. Saunier, along with his gang members, was shot in front of a firing squad in March 1946 after being sentenced to death for his crimes and his collaboration with the Gestapo. At her sensational trial on 8th April 1946, Jules Berry, to whom she was still legally married, pleaded clemency for his wife to the judge. Despite a moving plea, Gaël was condemned to "National Degradation" (Deprivation of one's civil rights as a French citizen) for life. She also received a ban that forbade her to work for several years, as well as a hefty fine. She never appeared on screen after that.