A new page is turning in the history of “Plus belle la vie”. After the end of the series, one of its emblematic actors disappears. According to information from Free lunchconfirmed by The Parisian And France Infothe actor Michel Cordes, alias Roland Marci the owner of the bar Le Mistral, was found dead at his home in Grabels (Hérault) this Friday.
He was said to have been shot dead. An investigation, led by the gendarmerie of Castelnau-le-Lez, is underway to determine the circumstances of his death. The Parisian adds that a letter was found near his body.
Nearly 4,500 episodes
The actor was 77 years old and mainly known for having played Roland Marci, the owner of the bar Le Mistral in the hit series of France 3, and this, during the 18 seasons, or the equivalent of 4,500 episodes.
“Plus belle la vie” is the longest soap opera ever produced in France. The series, shot in the fictional Marseille district of Mistral, was stopped by France Télévisions at the end of 2022. It was able to attract up to six million spectators per evening. Before his fictitious death in the series, on the Place du Mistral, the actors of Plus Belle la vie had sent him public messages, praising “a very handsome actor but above all a simple and sincere man” as well as his “benevolence”.
Michel Cordes had also played secondary roles in films such as Jean-Paul Rappenau’s “The Hussar is on the Roof”, alongside Juliette Binoche and Olivier Martinez (1995), or in A Matter of Taste (2000) at the alongside Bernard Giraudeau. He had also had a long career in the theater, as an actor but also as a director. A fervent defender of Occitan, he had suffered from the contempt of some for his accent.