He was known for his suave roles in several Hollywood films, including Alfred Hitchcock's The Paradine Case (1947), Letter from an Unknown Woman (1948), Gigi (1958), The Best of Everything (1959), The V.I.P.s (1963) and Octopussy (1983).

While there, he began acting on the professional stage, where he was brought to the attention of director Marc Allégret, who hired him to work as an assistant camera operator on Entrée des Artistes (The Curtain Rises).

[4] Jourdan was ordered to make German propaganda films, which he refused to do, and fled to join his family in unoccupied France.

[4] They included several for Allegret: Parade en sept nuits (1941); L'Arlésienne (1942) with Raimu, The Beautiful Adventure (1942); Les Petites du quai aux fleurs (1944); Twilight (1944).

Cited by author James McKay as the "epitome of the suave Continental",[5] Jourdan was spotted in a French film by a talent scout working for 1946 David O. Selznick, who offered the actor a contract in March 1946.

[9] Jourdan frequently argued with Selznick, who put him on suspension a number of times for refusing roles.

David Thomson in 2010 observed how his performance as Stefan Brand altered as the character aged over the extended period of the film's narrative: "I notice how his way of talking has changed.

He was announced for the romantic male lead in the Fox remake of Les Misérables[20] but ended up not appearing in the film.

He was reunited with Joan Fontaine for Decameron Nights (1953) then returned home to France to make Rue de l'Estrapade (1953).

After appearing in Three Coins in the Fountain (1954), Jourdan made his Broadway début in the lead role in the Billy Rose stage adaptation of André Gide's novel, The Immoralist.

In 1956, he appeared in the film The Swan playing the role of "Dr Nicholas Agi" along with Grace Kelly and Alec Guinness for MGM.

Jourdan appeared in his biggest hit playing the romantic lead alongside Leslie Caron and Maurice Chevalier in the film version of the novella by Colette, Gigi (1958).

Jourdan also sang in the Alan Jay Lerner/Barton Lane stage musical, On a Clear Day You Can See Forever (1965), at least during its out-of-town tryout at the Colonial Theatre in Boston.

He supported Ann-Margret in Made in Paris (1966) for MGM, then returned to Europe: The Sultans (1967), To Commit a Murder (1967), Cervantes (1967).

[citation needed] In 1983, Jourdan played the villainous Kamal Khan in the James Bond movie Octopussy.

He said at the time he earned most of his money over the past ten years doing commercials: I take them so seriously that I participate in the original concept and the actual writing.

[29] Louis Henry Jourdan died of a narcotics overdose at the age of 29 on 12 May 1981;[30] his body was buried at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles.

In July 2010 he was made a Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur, an honor that he received accompanied by friends, including Sidney Poitier and Kirk Douglas.