Michael Sarrazin

Michael Sarrazin was a Canadian actor. His most notable film was They Shoot Horses, Don't They?.

Early life

Sarrazin was born Jacques Michel André Sarrazin in Quebec City, Quebec, and moved to Montreal as a child. After acting in school plays, he landed his first professional role at age 17.

Career

Sarrazin worked on television productions in Toronto such as Festival and Wojeck. He then gained a contract with MCA Universal. His early appearances include episodes of The Virginian and Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre as well as the TV film The Doomsday Flight and the feature Gunfight in Abilene.
20th Century Fox borrowed him for the lead role in The Flim-Flam Man, co-starring George C. Scott and Sue Lyon. Universal then cast him with Anthony Franciosa in A Man Called Gannon and with James Caan in Journey to Shiloh. Fox asked him back to star in The Sweet Ride alongside Jacqueline Bisset, who became his real-life girlfriend for the next several years.
Sarrazin appeared in some thrillers for Universal such as Eye of the Cat with Gayle Hunnicutt and Eleanor Parker and In Search of Gregory with Julie Christie and John Hurt. He was originally cast to play Joe Buck in Midnight Cowboy, but he was unable to gain release from a prior contract and the part went to Jon Voight. He was announced for the male lead in Cover Me Babe, but was replaced by Robert Forster.
Sarrazin's breakthrough role was in the dark Great Depression drama They Shoot Horses, Don't They?. The Sydney Pollack film earned nine Oscar nominations. Sarrazin starred alongside Jane Fonda, Susannah York, Gig Young, Red Buttons, Bonnie Bedelia and Bruce Dern.
He starred in the youth dramas The [Pursuit of Happiness (1971 film)|The Pursuit of Happiness] with Barbara Hershey and Believe in Me with Bisset. He supported Henry Fonda and Paul Newman in Sometimes a Great Notion, then did The Groundstar Conspiracy at Universal.
Sarrazin supported James Coburn in Harry in Your Pocket and received excellent reviews for the television film Frankenstein: The True Story. He appeared as Barbra Streisand's husband in the screwball comedy For Pete's Sake. He then starred with Margot Kidder and Jennifer O'Neill in The Reincarnation of Peter Proud, about a man doomed to die the same kind of death twice.
Sarrazin went to Europe to star opposite Ursula Andress in the sex comedy The Loves and Times of Scaramouche. He starred in The Gumball Rally, then had lead roles in the Iran-shot film Caravans, the Canadian mystery thriller Double Negative, and the vigilante crime drama Fighting Back. He hosted the April 15, 1978 episode of Saturday Night Live.
Sarrazin increasingly shifted to television work. He starred in Beulah Land and The Seduction and had a supporting role in Fighting Back. He also appeared in Joshua Then and Now, the Star Trek: [Deep Space Nine] episode "The Quickening" and The Outer Limits episodes "I Hear You Calling" and "The [Other Side (The Outer Limits)|The Other Side]".

Personal life

For seven years, Sarrazin was in a relationship with actress Jacqueline Bisset, whom he met while making The Sweet Ride. Before that, he had two children by an unknown girlfriend.

Death

Sarrazin died of mesothelioma on April 17, 2011, aged 70, in his hometown of Montreal. According to a family spokesman, his daughters Catherine and Michele were at his side when he died.

Filmography

Film

You're No Good — Eddie
Gunfight in Abilene — Cord Decker
The Flim-Flam Man — Curley
A Man Called Gannon — Jess Washburn
Journey to Shiloh — Miller Nalls
The Sweet Ride — Denny McGuire
Eye of the Cat — Wylie
In Search of Gregory — Gregory Mulvey
They Shoot Horses, Don't They? — Robert
The Pursuit of Happiness — William Popper
Believe in Me — Remy
Sometimes a Great Notion — Leeland Stamper
The [Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean]
The Groundstar Conspiracy — John David Welles / Peter Bellamy
Harry in Your Pocket — Ray Haulihan
For Pete's Sake — Pete Robbins
The Reincarnation of Peter Proud — Peter Proud
The Loves and Times of Scaramouche — Scaramouche
The Gumball Rally — Michael Bannon — Cobra Team
Caravans — Mark Miller
Deadly Companion — Michael Taylor
The Seduction — Brandon
Fighting Back — Vince Morelli
— Szilveszter Matuska
Joshua Then and Now — Kevin Hornby
Keeping Track — Daniel Hawkins
Captive Hearts — Sergeant McManus
Mascara — Bert Sanders
Malarek — Moorcraft
La Florida — Romeo Laflamme
The Peacekeeper — Lt. Colonel Douglas Murphy
Crackerjack 2 — Smith
The Second Arrival — Prof. Nelson Zarcoff
FeardotCom — Frank Bryant
On the Road — Irish Catholic Priest
Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1965	Festival	Frederic / Jeff /	3 episodes
1965	The Virginian	Sam Coates	1 episode
1966	Wojeck	Tony	1 episode
1966	The Doomsday Flight	Army corporal	TV movie
1966–1967	Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre	Pvt. Tompkins / Davey Cooper	2 episodes
1973	Frankenstein: The True Story	The Creature	TV movie
1980	Beulah Land	Casey Troy	TV miniseries
1985	Murder, She Wrote	David Marsh	Episode: "Joshua Peabody Died Here ... Possibly"
1989	Passion and Paradise	Mike Vincent	TV miniseries
1989	The Ray Bradbury Theater	John Colt	Episode: "The Wind"
1991	Murder, She Wrote	Jacob Beiler	Episode: "Murder Plain and Simple"
1991	Counterstrike	Strand	Episode: "Counterstrike (1990 TV series) episodes#ep26\|It's All in the Game]"
1992	The Ray Bradbury Theater	Peter Horne	Episode: "Tomorrow's Child"
1994	Kung Fu: The Legend Continues	Woody Clark	1 episode
1995	Bullet to Beijing	Craig	TV movie
1995	Midnight in Saint Petersburg	Craig	TV movie
1996	Star Trek: Deep Space Nine	Trevean	Episode: "The Quickening"
1996	The Outer Limits	Stranger	Episode: "I Hear You Calling"
1998	Earthquake in New York	Dr. Robert Trask	TV movie
1999	The Outer Limits	Marty Kilgore	Episode: "The Other Side"
1999-2000	The City	Milt	14 episodes
2000	La Femme Nikita	Dr. Lukas	1 episode
2001	Earth: Final Conflict	Dr. Charles Tenzer	1 episode
2002	Nero Wolfe	Thomas Yeager	Episode: "Nero Wolfe Mystery (A&E Network)\|Too Many Clients]"
2008	The Christmas Choir	Irish Catholic Priest	TV movie