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Edwige Fenech was born Edwige Sfenek on December 24, 1948, in Bone, Constantine, France, to a Maltese father and an Italian mother. She began her show-business career as a participant in beauty contests (she won the title of "Miss Mannequin de la Cote d'Azur" at age 16 and even won a Miss France beauty contest) and worked as a photo model prior to making her film debut in the comedy Toutes folles de lui (1967). She appeared in such saucy West German sex farces as Alle Kätzchen naschen gern (1969) and Sexy Susan Sins Again (1968).

With her lustrous and long black hair, lovely and sensuous face, full shapely figure and smoldering screen presence, Edwige soon became a very popular and much sought-after actress in a diverse array of European productions made in Italy, France, Spain and West Germany. She achieved her greatest enduring cult cinema popularity by starring in several superior Italian giallos for director Sergio Martino: The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh (1971), They're Coming to Get You! (1972) and Your Vice Is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key (1972) (she was the onetime girlfriend of Martino's producer brother, Luciano Martino).

Edwige also acted for Martino in a handful of racy Italian sex comedies and the Italian mini-series Delitti privati (1993). Other noted Italian film directors Fenech has worked for are Mario Bava (Five Dolls for an August Moon (1970)), Giuliano Carnimeo (The Case of the Bloody Iris (1972)), Andrea Bianchi (Strip Nude for Your Killer (1975)), Umberto Lenzi (The Biggest Battle (1978)), Steno (Dr. Jekyll Likes Them Hot (1979)), Dino Risi (Sono fotogenico (1980)) and Ruggero Deodato (Phantom of Death (1987)).

She demonstrated her exceptional range and skill as an actress with enjoyably uninhibited performances in such amusingly bawdy Italian comedic romps as Quel gran pezzo della Ubalda tutta nuda e tutta calda (1972) and The School Teacher (1975). Edwige became a television personality in the 1980s and made frequent appearances on an Italian chat show along with fellow giallo goddess Barbara Bouchet. Moreover, Fenech launched her own fashion line and founded her own film production company, Immagine e Cinema S.r.l., with her son Edwin Fenech (she co-produced the 2004 film The Merchant of Venice (2004) as well as various Italian TV mini-series and made-for-TV features).

In the mid-1990s Edwige was engaged to famous Italian industrialist Luca Cordero di Montezemolo. She made a welcome return to acting with a small but funny part as an alluring art class professor in Eli Roth's Hostel: Part II (2007).

Solveig Dommartin was born on 16 May 1961 in Constantine, Algeria. She was an actress and director, known for Wings of Desire (1987), Until the End of the World (1991) and It Would Only Take a Bridge (1998). She died on 11 January 2007 in Paris, France.

Leading French actress and dancer, born Annette Marie Mathilde Gautsch in Constantine, Algeria. Francoise was the daughter of French Artillery General Charles-Lionel-Honoré Arnould (1882-1969), who was stationed in Morocco when she was born. Her family moved to Paris in 1945, where she studied drama under Andrée Bauer-Thérond, and four years later made her motion picture debut. The story goes that the director Willy Rozier saw a photograph of her, was captivated by her face and petite figure and promptly cast her as the female lead in his drama Sin and Desire (1949), often considered his best work. For much of the succeeding decade Francoise enjoyed a pre-Bardot sex symbol status, usually cast as temperamental, brooding or promiscuous heroines or femmes fatale opposite leading popular actors like Jean Gabin, Alain Delon and Charles Boyer. She was directed on five occasions by Henri Verneuil, who, along with Roger Vadim, had a lot to do with establishing her preeminent screen personae. Her best known starring roles were in Forbidden Fruit (1952), Les amants du tage (1955), Jean Renoir's evocative French Cancan (1955) (as Nini, the bakery girl turned dancer), Des gens sans importance (1956), Le chemin des écoliers (1959) and Julien Duvivier's The Devil and the Ten Commandments (1962). Francoise's first exposure to American audiences was Vadim's Companions of the Night (1953), but some of her other films were banned in the U.S. and in Britain she was tagged as the 'X Girl'. Her career went into decline as Brigitte Bardot rose to prominence. Francoise continued to work as a character actress, primarily in television, well into her eighties.

Albert Camus was born on November 7, 1913, in Mondovi, Algeria. His parents were Spanish-French-Algerian (pied noir) colonists. His father, Lucien, died in the Battle of Marne (1914) during WWI. His mother, named Catherine Helene Sintes was of Spanish origin, she was a deaf mute due to a stroke, but she was able to read lips and worked as a cleaning lady, providing for her son, who loved her to tears.

Camus studied at Algiers Lycee from 1923-32, then at the University of Algiers, from where he graduated in 1936 with a degree in philosophy. While a student he joined the French Communist Party in 1934, but in 1936 he joined the 'Le Parti du Peuple Algerien' and was denounced by communists as 'Trotskyite'. He was seriously influenced by the writings of 'Andre Malraux', 'Andre Gide' and Plotinus' theory of the "One", which became Camus' graduation thesis (1936).

He was rejected from the French army because of tuberculosis, which he contracted in the 1930's. His first marriage to Simone Hie, a morphine addict, ended due to infidelity from both of them. In 1940 Camus married a pianist and mathematician Francine Faure, whom he loved and patiently tolerated her affair with the actress María Casares. Camus and Francine Faure had twins born in 1945.

During the Second World War Camus was a writer for 'Paris-Soir' magazine. He was in Paris during the Wermacht occupation, and witnessed the execution of the French communist and anti-fascist activist Gabriel Peri by firearm, which turned Camus' mind against Nazi Germany. He moved to Bordeaux, where he finished his early works, 'The Stranger' and 'The Myth of Sisyphus', which opens with his famous statement about the philosophical question of suicide, and deals with the absurdity of existence in the meaningless struggle.

Camus joined the French Resistance cell 'Combat' and edited the eponymous paper under the pseudonym 'Beauchard'. He reported on the fighting when Allies liberated Paris in 1944. Camus continued his work for 'Combat' until 1947, and through this work he became acquainted with Jean-Paul Sartre. For a couple of years Camus was a member of Sartre's circle at the Cafe de Flore on the Boulevard St. Germain, but Camus' criticism of communist doctrine soon alienated Sartre. He highly regarded Franz Kafka and William Faulkner, whose 'Requiem for a Nun' he adopted into a play.

Camus' lectures about French existentialism brought him on a 3-month tour of the United States and Canada in 1946, where he spoke at several universities. He lectured for 3 months in Brazil, Argentina and Chile in 1949, where he became sick and almost suicidal. The return of his tuberculosis forced Camus into seclusion from 1949-1951. It was during those 2 years that he crystallized his analysis of rebels and revolutions and published 'The Rebel'. The book clearly formulates his rejection of communism as well as any violent activity under various Utopian masks of 'social justice'.

Albert Camus' desire for clarity and meaning in the world that offers nothing, but chaos, resulted in his work on the idea of absurdism. It was incorporated in many of his works from 'The Myth of Sisyphus' (1942), 'The Plaque' (1947), 'The Rebel' (1951), and other works. Camus' ideas resulted from his philosophic analysis of the diverse list of sources from 'Epicurus' to Fyodor Dostoevsky, Friedrich Nietzsche, and 'Andre Breton', as well as his own experiences in the war and his studies.

His greatest work 'The Fall' (1956) presents the monologues of a self-proclaimed 'judge penitent' Clamence, whose character alludes to Zarathustra from Friedrich Nietzsche and Grand Inquisitor from the 'Karamasov Brothers' of Fyodor Dostoevsky. Camus challenges the reader with the dilemma of accepting the absurdity of our existence and/or learning how to deal with it as well as with the unpredictable consequences from doing something about it.

Camus was the proponent of the idea of human rights. He resigned from UNESCO in 1952 in protest of the UN acceptance of Spain under 'Edgar Franco 'El General''. He protested against the Soviet crush upon the East Berlin workers in 1953, and against the Soviet repressions in Hungary in 1956. He was a steady supporter of pacifism and was in opposition to capital punishment. In 1957 Camus was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.

He was killed in a car accident on January 4, 1960, in the small town of Villeblevin, France, in the car driven by his publisher and close friend Michel Gallimard, who also died in the accident.

France Anglade was born on 17 July 1942 in Constantine, France [now Algeria]. She was an actress, known for Caroline chérie (1968), Highlander (1992) and 24 Hours to Kill (1965). She died on 28 August 2014 in La Verrière, Yvelines, France.

Algerian-born French-Jewish singer, born Gaston Ghrenassia to violinist Sylvain Ghrenassia (1914-2004) and his wife Suzanne. Gaston began his career at the age of fifteen as a guitarist in the Cheikh Raymond Leyris Orchestra. In addition to fronting his band, Leyris was also a virtuoso on the oud (Andalusian lute). His assassination during the Algerian War of Independence had a profound effect on Gaston, who departed for France in July 1961, eventually settling in Paris. His opposition to Algeria's independence has resulted in a lifelong exile from the country of his birth.

During initial gigs in cafés and cabarets Gaston developed his own unique repertoire of French songs, influenced by Arabic and Andalusian styles. In 1962, he adopted the stage moniker Enrico Macias, following his debut recording of "Adieu mon pays". Like many of his later songs, this was a tribute to his homeland. Others included "Les filles de mon pays", "Enfant de mon pays", "Notre place au soleil" and "J'ai quitté mon pays". He became immensely popular in France during the 60s and 70s with his up-beat renditions of songs like "Paris, tu m'as pris dans tes bras", "La femme de mon ami", "L'amour c'est pour rien", "Les gens du nord", "L'Orientale", "El Porompompero" and "Solenzara".

Outside of France, he has been particularly successful in Turkey, Greece, Spain and Italy. Macias has performed internationally at Carnegie Hall (1968, 1972), Royal Albert Hall, London (1971) and on Broadway (1974) and has toured Israel and South Korea. In 1980, he donated the proceeds from his single "Malheur à celui qui blesse un enfant" to Unicef. U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan named him Roving Ambassador for Peace and the Defence of Children in 1997.

Pierre Blanchar was born on 30 June 1892 in Philippeville, Constantine, France [now Skikda, Algeria]. He was an actor and director, known for Crime and Punishment (1935), The Man from Nowhere (1937) and Un carnet de bal (1937). He was married to Marthe Vinot. He died on 21 November 1963 in Suresnes, France.

Jean Négroni was born on 4 December 1920 in Constantine, France [now Algeria]. He was an actor, known for La Jetée (1962), La dame de pique (1965) and La caméra explore le temps (1957). He died on 28 May 2005 in L'Île-Rousse, Haute-Corse, France.

Jean-Louis Comolli was born on 30 July 1941 in Philippeville, Constantine, France [now Skikda, Algeria]. He was a director and writer, known for La Cecilia (1975), Buenaventura Durruti, anarquista (2000) and L'ombre rouge (1981). He died on 19 May 2022 in Paris, France.

Smaïn was born on 3 January 1958 in Constantine, France [now Algeria]. He is an actor and writer, known for Le schpountz (1999), Les 2 papas et la maman (1996) and Les portes du soleil: Algérie pour toujours (2014).

Robert Merle was born on 28 August 1908 in Tébessa, Constantine, France [now Algeria]. He was a writer, known for L'île (1987), The Day of the Dolphin (1973) and Death Is My Trade (1977). He died on 27 March 2004 in Grosrouvre, Yvelines, France.

Chafia Boudraa was born on 22 April 1930 in Constantine, Algeria. She was an actress, known for Echebka (1976), L'évasion de Hassan Terro (1976) and Mohamed Bertrand-Duval (1991). She died on 22 May 2022 in Alger, Algeria.

Paul Oettly was born on 25 June 1890 in Constantine, France [now Algeria]. He was an actor, known for Le jugement de minuit (1933), Le Capitaine Fracasse (1943) and Douce (1943). He died on 17 March 1959 in Cliousclat, Drôme, France.

Karim Traïdia was born in 1949 in Besbes, Constantine, France [now Algeria]. He is a director and actor, known for The Polish Bride (1998), Les diseurs de vérité (2000) and Chronique de mon village (2016).

Jean-Luc Azoulay was born on 23 September 1947 in Setif, Constantine, France [now Algeria]. He is a writer and producer, known for Les filles d'à côté (1993), Hélène et les garçons (1992) and Les vacances de l'amour (1996). He is married to Isabelle Bouysse. They have two children.

Paul Amar was born on 11 January 1950 in Constantine, France [now Algeria]. He is an actor and writer, known for Un crime (1993), Jacques Deray: Le cinéma... ma vie (2005) and Lest We Forget (1991).

Jean-Marie Sénia was born in 1947 in Constantine, Algeria. He is a composer and actor, known for Le procès de Bobigny (2006), Border Line (1992) and Elles n'oublient jamais (1994).

Jean-Pierre Sabar was born on 14 September 1933 in Constantine, Algeria. He was a composer and actor, known for The Bodyguard (1984), Loulou (1980) and I Love You All (1980). He died on 16 December 2024 in Issy-les-Moulineaux, Hauts-de-Seine, France.

Tahar Hannache was born on 26 November 1898 in Constantine, Algeria. He was a cinematographer and actor, known for Venus of Paris (1941), La bandera (1935) and The Well-Digger's Daughter (1940). He died on 1 August 1972 in Médéa, Algeria.

Daniel Levi was born on 26 August 1961 in Constantine, Algeria. He was an actor and director, known for Hey Good Looking! (2006), The Ten Commandments (2001) and Warp Vision: The Videos 1989-2004 (2004). He was married to Laure and Sandrine Aboukrat. He died on 6 August 2022 in Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, France.

Steve Kalfa was born on 28 October 1955 in Constantine, Algeria. He is an actor, known for The French Revolution (1989), François Kléber (1995) and Jefferson in Paris (1995).

Hakim Traidia was born on 27 July 1956 in Besbes, Constantine, France [now Algeria]. He is an actor and writer, known for Sesamstraat (1976), Unknown (2024) and The Polish Bride (1998).

Denis Guedj was born on 22 November 1940 in Sétif, Constantine, Algeria, France. He was a writer and director, known for La vie, t'en as qu'une (1978), J'écris dans l'espace (1989) and L'empire des nombres (2001). He died on 24 April 2010 in Paris, France.

Yvonne Sergyl was born on 10 September 1896 in Constantine, France [now Algeria]. She is known for Miracle of the Wolves (1924), La roche aux mouettes (1933) and Le chemineau (1917).

Mohamed Bouamari was born in 1941 in Sétif, Constantine, France [now Algeria]. He was an actor and director, known for First Step (1980), El faham (1973) and L'héritage (1975). He died on 1 December 2006 in Algiers, Algeria.