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Michel Romanoff

Biography

Prince Michael Feodorovich Romanoff (4 May 1924 – 22 September 2008) was a French filmmaker. A descendant of the Russian Emperors, he was a great nephew of the last Russian Tsar, Nicholas II.

Prince Michael Feodorovich was born in Paris, the only son of Prince Feodor Alexandrovich of Russia and his wife Princess Irina Pavlovna Paley. He descended from the Romanovs through both his father and his mother. Through his father he was a grandson of Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich of Russia and his wife Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna of Russia. His mother was a daughter of Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich of Russia and his second wife Princess Olga Valerianovna Paley, Countess of Hohenfelsen. Prince Michael Feodorovich was called in France Michel Romanoff de Russie (his civil name in his French identity papers). He was brought up in Paris and Biarritz. As a child he learned to speak French, English and Russian. In his later years he learned Spanish and Catalan.

After the separation of his parents in 1932, Prince Michael Feodorovich went to live with his mother in Neuilly where he attended the École du Montcel school. Following the outbreak of World War II his family moved back to Biarritz. He served in the French infantry between 1945 and 1946 and accompanied the army of General Leclerc into Germany.

For sometime he worked for the Societé des Parfums of Lucien Lelong, who had been married to his aunt Princess Natalie Paley. In 1949, Prince Michael Feodorovich moved into the film industry working as an assistant director, later becoming a director of production. He worked, among others, with René Clair, Julien Duvivier and Henri-Georges Clouzot. Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, Gina Lollobrigida and Marlon Brando were some of the well-known actors who appeared in his films. In the 1950s the prince had an affair with actress Annabella (1907–1996), after the latter had divorced the American actor Tyrone Power. Their love affair lasted ten years, and despite their age difference the French actress would have liked to marry the prince. They later split, but Michael Feodorovich remained very attached to Annabella until her death.

After retiring from the industry in 1985 he spent his retirement living between Biarritz and Neuilly. After his second marriage he brought a house in L'Escala on the Costa Brava. Prince Michael Feodorovich joined the Romanov Family Association on its creation in 1979. ...

Source: Article "Prince Michael Feodorovich of Russia" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.