Jean Mattéoli (December 20, 1922 in Montchanin, Saône-et-Loire – January 27, 2008 in Paris) was a French politician. He was the Minister of Social Affairs during the Raymond Barre administration from 1979 to 1981 and also served as president of the French Economic and Social Council from April 1987 to September 1999.
Jean Markale (May 23, 1928 in Paris – November 23, 2008) was the pen name of Jean Bertrand, a French writer, poet, radio show host, lecturer and high school French teacher who lived in Brittany. As a former specialist in Celtic studies at the Sorbonne, he researched pre-Christian and medieval culture and spirituality. He published numerous books about Celtic civilization, particularly the place of women in Celtic culture, and Arthurian literature.
Lucien Léger, born in Paris on March 30, 1937, and died in Laon in July 2008, was a French criminal, sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of a child in 1964. He was the oldest detainee in France before being released on October 3, 2005, after 41 years of imprisonment, which constitutes one of the longest detentions in Europe (it does not, however, equal that of serial killer John Straffen who was detained for 55 years in the United Kingdom).He was nicknamed the Strangler by the press because of the signature "Strangler No. 1" affixed to the bottom of anonymous letters sent to the police.
Jean Marie Laurain (1 January 1921 – 7 March 2008) was a French politician. He served as Minister of Veteran Affairs from 1981 to 1983, under former President François Mitterrand.
Philippe Khorsand (February 17, 1948 – January 29, 2008) was a French actor. His father was Iranian and his mother was French. He first appeared in a number of small roles in the 1970s. One of his most memorable roles as husband and father in Tableau d'honneur (1992).
Khorsand died of a hemorrhage at the age of 59 in Paris.
Dominique Frémy (5 May 1931 – 2 October 2008) was the creator of the Quid encyclopedia. His spouse Michèle and son Fabrice participated in writing it as well.
Frémy attended the Cours Hattemer, a private school. He was a diplomaed student of the Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris (English: Paris Institute of Political Studies) and of the Faculté des lettres de Paris. He was employed by Shell in London, but quit his job to produce a new encyclopedia with his wife, Dominique. It began in 1963, named Quid.
Christian Fechner (26 July 1944 – 25 November 2008) was a French film producer, screenwriter and director.After starting off as an illusionist, he became a music producer with French singer Antoine. He transformed Antoine’s musicians, les Problems, into a band named Les Charlots.Fechner produced such films as Les bidasses en folie, Les fous du stade, Bons baisers de Hong Kong, Viens chez moi, j'habite chez une copine, Papy fait de la résistance, Les Spécialistes, Marche à l'ombre, The Children of the Marshland, La Tour Montparnasse Infernale, Chouchou.
In 2005, he produced Les Bronzés 3: Amis pour la vie (and marked his last great success making nearly $151,211,264 at the box office.Christian Fechner died of cancer on 25 November 2008.
Fechner had two children: film producer Alexandra Fechner and Maxime Fechner, owner of the fashion brand Kymerah.
Claude Faraldo (March 23, 1936 – January 30, 2008) was a French actor, screenwriter and film director. He was born to Italian immigrants. He directed the French cult film classic Themroc (1973).
Françoise Demulder (9 June 1947 – 3 September 2008) was a French war photographer who in 1976 became the first woman to win the World Press Photo of the Year award. The winning image was a black and white photo of a Palestinian woman raising her hands at a masked militiaman in Beirut's war-ravaged La Quarantaine district.
Jean-Marie Demange (23 July 1943 in Toulouse – 17 November 2008) was a French member of Parliament. A member of the UMP he was Mayor of Thionville for 13 years, serving in that capacity from 25 June 1995 to 21 March 2008. He had been distraught after losing the 2008 election to a Socialist and committed suicide by gunshot after he killed his mistress following a heated argument.