Born: April 26, 1941
Age: 83
Birthplace: Paris, France
Claudine Auger (born Claudine Oger on 26 April 1941) is a French actress best known for her role as Bond girl Dominique "Domino" Derval in the James Bond film Thunderball (1965). She earned the title of Miss France Monde and was also the first runner-up in the 1958 Miss World contest.
Auger was born in Paris, France. She attended St. Joan of Arc College and later the Conservatoire de Paris, where she performed dramatic roles. She made her film debut when she was still in school.
Jean Cocteau cast her in an uncredited role as a tall ballerina in Testament of Orpheus (1960). When she was 18, she married the 43-year-old writer-director Pierre Gaspard-Huit, and he cast her in several films, including Le Masque de fer (1962) and Kali Yug: Goddess of Vengeance (1963).
When she was on holiday in Nassau, writer-producer Kevin McClory saw her and recommended that she audition for his film Thunderball (1965). The role of Domino was originally to be an Italian woman, Dominetta Petacchi. Auger impressed the producers so much that they rewrote the part to that of a French woman, to better suit Auger. Although she took lessons to perfect her English, her voice was eventually dubbed by Nikki van der Zyl. Auger would claim that she related to her character Domino, as she and Domino were involved with older men. The most immediate byproduct of Claudine's stardom was a semi-nude Playboy spread.
Thunderball launched Auger into a successful European movie career, but did little for her otherwise in the United States. She did however star in a Danny Thomas Special called ‘The Road to Lebanon’ with Bing Crosby which was shown on NBC on April 20, 1966.
In 1968, she co-starred with another Bond girl Ursula Andress in the Italian comedy Anyone Can Play. In 1971, she starred with two other Bond girls, Barbara Bach and Barbara Bouchet, in Black Belly of the Tarantula, a giallo mystery. She had some roles in European films as Triple Cross (1966) (reuniting her with her James Bond director Terence Young) and The Killing Game (1967).
At age 18 she married writer-director Pierre Gaspard-Huit. They would later divorce.
She married British businessman Peter Brent in the 1980s. Brent died in August 2008.
Year | Title | Role | Director |
---|---|---|---|
1958 | Christine | uncredited | Pierre Gaspard-Huit |
1960 | Testament of Orpheus | Minerva | Jean Cocteau |
Terrain vague | the salesgirl | Marcel Carné | |
1961 | Les Moutons de Panurge | uncredited | Jean Girault |
The Seven Deadly Sins (episode L'Envie) | the new waitress | Edouard Molinaro | |
1962 | Le Masque de fer | Isabelle de Saint-Marc | Henri Decoin |
1963 | In the French Style | Clio Andropolous | Robert Parrish |
1964 | Die Lady (de) | Elektra Tzanou | Hans Albin, Peter Berneis |
1965 | Yo Yo | Isolina | Pierre Etaix |
Thunderball | Dominique Derval ("Domino") | Terence Young | |
1966 | That Man George | Lila | Jacques Deray |
Treasure of San Gennaro | Concettina | Dino Risi | |
Triple Cross | Paulette | Terence Young | |
The Devil in Love | Maddalena de' Medici | Ettore Scola | |
1967 | Jeu de massacre | Jacqueline Meyrand | Alain Jessua |
The Head of the Family | Adriana | Nanni Loy | |
1968 | Escalation | Carla Maria Manini | Roberto Faenza |
Flammes sur l'Adriatique (fr) | Mirjana | Alexandre Astruc and Stjepan Cikes | |
Listen, Let's Make Love | Ida Bernasconi | Vittorio Caprioli | |
Sons of Satan | Barbara | Duccio Tessari | |
1969 | Love Birds (de) | Marina | Mario Caiano |
1971 | Un peu de soleil dans l'eau froide | Nathalie Silvener | Jacques Deray |
Twitch of the Death Nerve | Renata Donati | Mario Bava | |
1975 | Flic Story | Catherine | Jacques Deray |
L'Intrépide | Sophie | Jean Girault | |
1977 | Pane, burro e marmellata | Betty | Giorgio Capitani |
1978 | Butterfly on the Shoulder | The coat's Woman | Jacques Deray |
The Bermuda Triangle | Sybill | René Cardona Jr. | |
1979 | Lobster for Breakfast | Carla Spinosi | Giorgio Capitani |
Lovers and Liars | Elisa Massacesi | Mario Monicelli | |
Fantastica | Johanna MacPherson | Gilles Carle | |
1981 | Black Jack (aka Asalto al casino) | Jill Stradford | Max H. Boulois |
1986 | Exploits of a Young Don Juan | the mother | Gianfranco Mingozzi |
1988 | Il frullo del passero | Dino's widow | Gianfranco Mingozzi |
1992 | Salt on Our Skin | Mrs. McEwan | Andrew Birkin |