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Alexandre-Pierre Georges Guitry (21 February 1885 – 24 July 1957), commonly known as Sacha Guitry, was a French stage and film actor, director, screenwriter, and playwright specializing in boulevard theatre. He was the son of prominent French actor Lucien Guitry and pursued a career in theatre like his father. Guitry gained recognition for his stage roles, especially as a boulevardier, and was a prolific playwright, having written 115 plays over his lifetime. He married five times, each time to emerging actresses whose careers he helped advance. His most famous spouse was Yvonne Printemps, to whom he was married from 1919 to 1932.
Guitry's works ranged from historical dramas to contemporary light comedies, some featuring musical compositions by André Messager and Reynaldo Hahn. He shunned silent films, believing the absence of spoken dialogue undermined dramatic effect. However, from the 1930s until his death, he embraced cinema enthusiastically, sometimes producing up to five films in a single year.
In his later years, Guitry faced allegations of collaborating with the German occupiers during World War II following France's defeat. These accusations were dismissed, but as a deeply patriotic individual, he was disheartened by the criticism from some fellow countrymen. By his death, his popularity had been largely restored, with 12,000 people paying respects as his coffin passed before his burial in Paris.
Born at No. 12 Nevsky Prospect in Saint Petersburg, Russia, Guitry was the third son of French actors Lucien Guitry and Marie-Louise-Renée (née Delmas de Pont-Jest, 1858–1902). The couple had eloped against family wishes and married in 1882 at St Martin in the Fields, London, before relocating to the Russian capital. There, Lucien managed the Théâtre Michel, a French theatre company, from 1882 to 1891. Their marriage was short-lived due to Lucien's repeated infidelities, leading Marie-Louise-Renée to file for divorce in 1888. Two of their children died in infancy (in 1883 and 1887), while their surviving son, Jean (1884–1920), became an actor and journalist. The family's Russian nurse affectionately shortened Alexandre-Pierre’s name to "Sacha," a nickname he used throughout his life. He first appeared on stage with his father’s company at age five.
Lucien Guitry was regarded as the most distinguished French actor since Coquelin, enjoying great critical and commercial success. Upon returning to Paris, he resided in a prestigious apartment overlooking Place Vendôme and Rue de la Paix, where young Sacha lived. For schooling, Sacha initially attended the renowned Lycée Janson de Sailly in the fashionable Sixteenth arrondissement but did not remain long. He moved through various secular and religious schools before leaving formal education entirely at sixteen.
