Raimu, was the stage name for the French actor Jules Auguste Muraire, born December 17, 1883 - died September 20, 1946.

Born in Toulon-sur-Mer in the Var département, he made his stage debut there in 1899. After coming to the attention of the then great music hall star Félix Mayol who was also from Toulon-sur-Mer, in 1908 he was given a chance to work as a secondary act in the Paris theater scene. Primarily a comedian, in 1916 writer/director Sacha Guitry gave him significant parts in productions at the Folies Bergere and other major venues. In addition to his appearances on stage, Raimu also developed a successful career in films sometimes under the name Jules Raimu.

In 1929, already a leading actor, he gained wide acclaim for his starring role in the stage production of the Marcel Pagnol play Marius. Although reluctant because of his disappointment over his first film role many years before, he agreed to act in Guitry's film Le Blanc et le Noir and then reprised his Marius role on film a year later. By his late forties, Raimu had become one of his country's most respected actors and considered the ultimate actor by luminaries such as Alec Guinness and Orson Welles.

On his passing in 1946 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, he was interred in the cemetery of his birthplace in Toulon-sur-Mer where there is the Cinéma Raimu Toulon named in his honor. In 1961, the government of France honored him with his image on a postage stamp.

Partial filmography:

• Cine-Follies (1977)
• Chantons sous l'Occupation (1976)
• L' Homme au chapeau rond (1946)
• Le Colonel Chabert (1943)
• Les Inconnus dans la maison (1941)
• La Fille du puisatier (1940)
• La Femme du boulanger (1938)
• L' Etrange Monsieur Victor (1937)
• Un carnet de bal (1937)
• Le Fauteuil 47 (1937)
• Faisons un reve (1936)
• Cesar (1936)
• L'Ecole des cocottes (1935)
• Marius (1931)
• Le Blanc et le Noir (1930)
• Le fumiste (1912)