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1-18 of 18
- Born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, to an immigrant family from Martinique, Francois Duvalier had always wanted to be a doctor, and after graduation he earned a medical degree and served as a doctor in many rural areas of Haiti, where he gained a reputation for showing the rural poor how to fight typhus and other fatal diseases. In 1946 he was appointed director general of the National Health Service, and four years later was made Minister of Health and Minister of Labor. In 1949 the government was overthrown by a military coup led by Gen. Paul Magloire. Duvalier was a vocal opponent of the coup, resulting in his being forced to go into hiding until 1956, when an amnesty was declared.
Duvalier ran for president in the general election of 1957, and in a portent of things to come, he used armed gangs, paid assassins, racial hatreds (he campaigned as a champion of poor Haitians, who were mostly of dark-skinned African descent, against the lighter-skinned mulatto class which held most of the power in the country) and the army to help him win the election. He also took advantage of the traditions of voodoo, a quasi-religious movement deeply ingrained in Haitian culture, and claimed to be a "houngan", or voodoo priest.
A year after his election he narrowly escaped being overthrown in a military coup, and as a result he purged the army, replacing senior officers who he believed weren't loyal enough to him, and formed a personal militia that was responsible to him and him alone. Technically it was called the Volunteer Militia for National Security, but it became better known by the term "Tonton Macoutes", which was Creole for "Boogeymen" (he unit was modeled on the Blackshirt private militia of Italian fascist dictator Benito Mussolini, whom Duvalier greatly admired). The Macoutes' sole responsibility was to protect Duvalier at all costs, and there were no restraints placed on them. They could beat, rape or murder anyone they thought was or could be a threat to Duvalier, and as a result they gained such a reputation for ruthlessness, savagery and brutality that many Haitians didn't even consider them human but evil spirits and satanic forces, hence their nickname of "Boogeymen". Duvalier organized another private army called the Presidential Guard. Their job was also to watch for threats to Duvalier, and to keep an eye on the Macoutes to be sure they didn't become one.
In 1961 Duvalier rewrote the Haitian constitution and then held an "election" in which he was the only candidate. Officially, more then one million voters cast their ballots for Duvalier. Several years later he declared himself President for Life, and in an area noted for its repressive regimes, his government became infamous as one of the most corrupt and murderous in the region. It's estimated that at least 30,000 Haitians were killed by Duvalier's security forces during his regime, although the actual toll is generally thought to be much higher. Many economists have estimated that at least half of the country's yearly income was stolen by Duvalier and his cronies; while Duvalier's family and friends lived in the lap of luxury, the vast majority of the Haitian people lived on the brink of starvation, suffering from a host of diseases that had been eradicated in many other countries. The unemployment rate was estimated by the UN and other agencies to be at least 50% and as high as 80%, and the infant mortality rate was not only the highest in the Western Hemisphere but was also higher than many of the poorest countries in Africa. It was reported that Duvalier himself wore on a ring around his neck the key that unlocked the room in the National Treasury where the country's gold supply was kept; he didn't want anyone in the country getting their hands on it but him.
The US administration of President John F. Kennedy at first placed political and economic sanctions against Haiti because of its corruption and use of violence against its own citizens, but in 1962 it eased the sanctions to keep Duvalier from cozying up to Cuba's Fidel Castro, as he had threatened to do if the sanctions weren't lifted. In 1963 tensions between Haiti and the neighboring Dominican Republic rose almost to the point of war, but it was prevented by internal political power struggles in the Dominican Republic and mediation by the Organization of American States (OAS).
Although there were several attempted coups by disgruntled or ambitious army officers, they were swiftly crushed--one attempt in 1967 resulted in the execution of more than 20 officers of the Presidential Guard. Duvalier died in 1971, and his 19-year-old son, Jean-Claude Duvalier, succeeded him. - Actor
- Writer
Born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, August 25th 1939 In 1958 he graduated with a degree in chemistry from City College of New York 1959 he studied at the Sorbonne. By 1962, he had obtained a graduate degree in biochemistry 1965, At Cornell Medical Center, he supervised a staff synthesizing metabolic steroids Beauvoir joined an engineering company that had him set up shop in North Jersey, then a digital equipment(DEC)company in Massachusetts. His interest in steroids brought him back to Haiti in January 1973 to experiment with hydrocortisone synthesized from plants. From 1974 until 1994, Beauvoir was one of the most respected voodoo priests on the island, enjoying celebrity, power, and great esteem. Beauvoir is a Western- educated biochemist who has a hecogenin US patent in 1979 When Harvard anthropologist Wade Davis came to Haiti in 1982 to research what would become his acclaimed book on Haiti, voodoo, and zombies. The Serpent and the Rainbow it was Beauvoir to whom he turned for help.- Jean-Claude Duvalier was born on July 3, 1951, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, the son of Haitian president Francois Duvalier. When he was 19 years old his father died, and he took over as president, making him the youngest president in the world. Haiti, which was the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and one of the poorest countries on the planet, had been ruled by the corrupt and murderous Francois since 1957. While Jean-Claude wasn't as brutal as his father, he was just as corrupt--it's been estimated that he stole between $300 million and $800 million from the country during his reign as president, and at one point the US Commerce Department reported that almost 65% of the country's revenues had "disappeared". Shortly after taking office Jean-Claude loosened the vise-like grip on the country that his father had exercised; he freed some political prisoners, eased government censorship of newspapers, TV and magazines and introduced some economic reforms. However, he did not liberalize the country's political situation, and no opposition to or disagreement with his rule was allowed. The country struggled along until 1985, when discontent with economic mismanagement, corruption and lack of political freedom erupted into demonstrations across much of the country. When government troops chasing protesters invaded a schoolyard and shot and killed three schoolchildren, the demonstrations across the country increased and many of them turned into riots. Duvalier's security forces, including the dreaded Tonton Macoutes secret police, were unable to quell the mounting unrest and in 1986, when the army demanded his abdication, he and his family fled to France. He left behind him a country with an 80% illiteracy rate, where almost nine out of ten people are unemployed, an infant mortality rate of more than 33%, a per-capita income of less than $300, a life expectancy of 53 years--the lowest in the Western Hemisphere--and a population racked by diseases that have been eradicated in most other countries. Things unfortunately haven't changed much since then.
- Actor
- Writer
- Composer
Théodore Beaubrun was born on 26 December 1918 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. He was an actor and writer, known for Languichatte in the 20th Century (1978), The New Adventures of Languichatte (1988) and Fournérailles (1985). He died on 30 June 1998 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.- Music Department
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Andre Kostelanetz was born on 22 December 1901 in St. Petersburg, Russia. He was an actor, known for One Fine Day (1996), That Girl from Paris (1936) and Hitting a New High (1937). He was married to Lily Pons. He died on 13 January 1980 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.- Director
- Writer
- Actor
Vladimir Thelisma was born on 2 April 1976 in Haiti. He was a director and writer, known for L'autre frère, Double jeu à Port-au-Prince (2001) and Couloir de l'amitié (2010). He died on 31 July 2022 in Hôpital Universitaire de la Paix, Port-au-Prince, Haïti.- Composer
Herby Widmaier was born on 7 July 1933 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. He was a composer, known for Olivia (1977) and Herby, le jazz et la musique haïtienne (2012). He died on 27 April 2017 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.- Director
- Producer
- Actor
Andre Roosevelt was an entrepreneur and filmmaker who tried to develop the tourist industry in Bali in the 1920s in order to preserve the native culture by turning the island into a national park. As part of his aspirations, he wrote the screenplay for the 1932 film "Goona-Goona, An Authentic Melodrama" (aka Kriss (1931)) that, upon being released in America in 1932, created a Bali craze.
Andre was the first cousin, once-removed, of US President Theodore Roosevelt; his father Cornelius was related to Teddy. After marrying a French actress, Cornelius was living in Paris when Andre was born in 1879. He was first involved with the movies in 1917, when he served as a production manager on director Wesley Ruggles's WWI propaganda picture For France (1917) for Vitagraph Films.
"Goona Goona" was made with Armand Denis, a Belgian documentary filmmaker. The two began shooting footage of Bali on a trip there in 1928. The film combined documentary footage with a fictional romantic story about the love between a native prince and a servant.- Stiven Rusber Gutiérrez was born in 1992 in Bajo Yuna, Arenoso, Duarte, Dominican Republic. He was an actor, known for La Tragedia de Río Verde (2018). He died on 20 April 2022 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
- Jean Dominique was born on 30 July 1930 in Port Au Prince, Haiti. He was a director, known for Et moi je suis belle (1962), The Agronomist (2003) and Charlie Rose (1991). He died on 3 April 2000 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
- Clément Magloire-Saint-Aude was born on 2 April 1912 in Port-au-Prince, Haïti. Clément died on 27 May 1971 in Port-au-Prince, Haïti.
- Walt Ratterman was born on 14 February 1952 in Louisville, Kentucky, USA. Walt was married to Jeanne. Walt died on 12 January 2010 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
- Bernard Diederich was born on 18 July 1926 in Christchurch, New Zealand. He was married to Ginette Dreysfuss. He died on 14 January 2020 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
- René Preval was born on 17 January 1943 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. She was married to Elizabeth "Babette" Delatour, Guerda Benoit and Solange Lafontant. She died on 3 March 2017 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
- Actor
- Music Department
- Writer
Ansy Dérose was born on 3 June 1934 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. He was an actor and writer, known for Destin noir (2005), Ansy Dérose: Femme (1985) and Ansy Dérose: Quo Vadis Terra (1984). He was married to Yole Dérose. He died on 17 January 1998 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.- Pierre-Louis Dieufaite was an emerging actor who made his acting debut in the award-winning film Love Me Haiti. According to sources, he was born in Haiti on October 13, 1983 and known by his friends under the nickname "Jude". His real mother and his real father died of unknown causes, when he was only a child. Dieufaite was adopted and subsequently became a foundling. Despite his disadvantageous circumstances, he went to high school and completed some vocational courses within computer science, bioinformatics, and media technology. His already-unfortunate situation was further worsen by the 2010 Haiti Earthquake. Dieufaite helped the international rescue relief team by driving trucks delivering humanitarian supply to victims and clearing the rubble of Haiti's massive disaster, claimed to be among the deadliest earthquake in the history of mankind.
In 2013, Dieufaite began acting training and joined the production of Love Me Haiti. Per request of Yugy Pictures Entertainment to US Embassy and Department of Homeland Security, Dieufaite was granted special visa to enter the USA to attend the 2014 Haiti Movie Awards, organized by MPAH in Massachusetts, USA. Just before he traveled to Boston, he made a judgement and changed his legal name to Jude Dieuly Pierre-Louis. After the MPAH event, Dieufaite returned to Haiti on October 27, 2014. Then Dieufaite and Frédely Desrosiers were assassinated by gunshot on November 6, 2014 in the Village Solidarité. Ardent supporters were heartbroken and terrified by the news. According to sketchy details by witnesses, the crime was committed by two assassins. Witnesses reported to have seen the murderers in the neighborhood spying on Dieufaite and his entourage. Haitian National Police chief inspector Garry Desrosiers ipse dixit that it was a targeted assassination, not random drive-by shooting.
No clue why Dieufaite was killed. Some claimed that Dieufaite was killed because of Love Me Haiti winning the MPAH best short film prize, greed, jealousy, and hatred. Others postulated that Dieufaite was killed by two guys with whom Dieufaite himself and his entourage had a conflict at a party in the Village Solidarity. Dieufaite and his friends forced the uninvited guests out of the party and did not know that the guys were gangsters. The two perpetrators of this heinous crime, loosely identified by witnesses, escaped and went hiding underground until found and punished to the fullest extent of the law. - Francesco Fantoli was born on 29 July 1955 in Luxembourg. He was an actor, known for Maternale (1978). He died on 6 December 2009 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
- François Latour was an actor, known for Udenrigskorrespondenten (1983), The Man on the Shore (1993) and Map pale nèt (1976). He died on 23 May 2007 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.