Alain Delon was born on 8th November 1935 in Sceaux, France. His parents separated when he was four and he was put to the care of foster parents. Going through a stormy childhood, he was a typically rebellious juvenile and was frequently expelled from the school. Before turning to acting, Delon was a butcher apprentice, served in the French marines, worked as a porter and waiter. It was in 1957 that he made his debut in Yves Allégret's Quand la femme s'en mèle. Delon's first major role was in 1958's Christine, but it was his performance in René Clement's popular thriller, Plein Soleil, in 1959 that took him to fame. Without formal training in acting, Delon nevertheless came to embody the ice-cold, angelically handsome yet often morally corrupted man, a stereotypical image he would find very difficult to break away from in future years. In almost 50 years of his career, Alain Delon has made over films under the direction of cinema's most famous directors, from Antonioni to Melville as well as Visconti, Clément, Verneuil, Malle and Losey. He became a rising star in French cinema in the late 60s and early 70s, often cast as tough, taciturn gangsters or detectives in such films as Jean-Pierre Melville's Le Samouraï and Le Cercle Rouge, Verneuil's Le Clan des Siciliens, and Jacques Deray's Borsalino. Acting aside, Delon is also as a director, a producer and a businessman. He directed and acted in two thrillers in the 1980s, Pour la peau d'un flic (1981) and Le Battant (1983). He also formed his own production company and goods company through which he marketed merchandises under the Alain Delon brand. Alain Delon announced his decision to quit films in 1997 and to date his last film is Actors (2000). However he is still actively involved in television and stage performances. A man with breathtaking good looks, a complex personality and juicy romances with his co-stars, Alain Delon is France's most enigmatic and charismatic actor.