Frédéric Beigbeder

A true Renaissance man, Frédéric Beigbeder was an internationally celebrated writer, director, journalist and personality. Born Sept. 21, 1965 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Hauts-de-Seine, France, Frédéric Beigbeder hailed from a literary, highly intelligent family who pushed him to scale the heights of both art and commerce. After graduating from the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris, he founded the Prix de Flore Award, traditionally bestowed upon an up-and-coming French author. Notching success in a variety of venues, the sometimes-journalist Beigbeder wrote a string of novels, including 2000's 99 francs, which became a 2007 film in which he appeared, and 2003's 9/11-themed Windows on the World, which won the Prix Interaillié and was also optioned as a potential film. While continuing his literary success with such works as 2009's Un roman français, he also won a Best Screenplay Jury Award from the Paris Cinema Festival for "The Day All Women Loved Me" (2006) and adapted and acted in "Les infortunes de la beauté" (1999). He made appearances in such other projects as "Hey Good Looking!" (2006), "Me Two" (2008), "Beur sur la ville" (2011) and "La chanson du dimanche" (Comédie+, 2011), and wrote, directed and acted in "Love Lasts Three Year" (2011). A larger-than-life character, he was arrested for cocaine use in 2008, notched a long-running stint as a host-reporter on "Le grand journal" (Canal+, 2004- ), and became a highly recognizable personality through a series of international media appearances.