The piece of news came suddenly this Wednesday, August 13: Jacques Martial has died at the age of 70.
Born to Guadeloupean parents in 1955 in Saint-Mandé (mainland France), the actor, director, and politician was appointed President of the Mémorial ACTe (MACTe) in 2015, until 2020. In his welcome message, Jacques Martial wrote about the Caribbean Center for Expression and Memory of the Slave Trade and Slavery, located in Pointe-à-Pitre (Guadeloupe): “It sheds light on the history of one of the most significant traumatic human and social events in modern history. Those events inspire us for the future to create the conditions for reconciliation among people and to promote a new humanism”.
Under his presidency, on December 9, 2016, the Council of Europe awarded the Memorial ACTe the 2017 Museum Prize.
Before holding this position on his home island, Jacques Martial was president of the Parc and Grande Halle de la Villette in Paris between 2006 and 2015.
Jacques Martial was an actor who played various roles in French cinema films: “Le Maître d’école” (1981) by Claude Berri, “Jean Galmot, aventurier” (1990) by Alain Maline, and “Antilles sur Seine” (2000) by Pascal Légitimus.
He also appeared in numerous television films in France, but he became very popular for his role as “Bain-Marie” in the French police series “Navarro” alongside Roger Hanin, from 1989 to 2007.
He was also a voice actor, notably providing the French voice for Wesley Snipes and Denzel Washington in several films.
A man of the theater, Jacques Martial worked on plays by great authors such as Aimé Césaire, William Shakespeare, Maryse Condé, Jean Giraudoux, Jacques Roumain, Athol Fugard, and others.
Jacques Martial was made a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor in 2006 and an Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters in 2015.
A left-wing politician, the actor was a member of the Paris City Council.
He was the younger brother of actor Jean-Michel Martial, who died in 2019.
