Louis Dega (born 1890, Marseilles , France – died 1945, French Guiana ) was a prisoner in the French Guiana Penitentiary of Devil’s Island . He was convicted of fraud and counterfeiting and sentenced to fifteen years’ imprisonment by France, where he became a companion of Henri Charrière (also known as Papillon ) for thirteen years. The two were first sentenced to a prison in Caen , France , until they embarked for South America in 1932. He had a younger brother namedBarranquilla prison in Colombia . Dega and Papillon had previously met before embarking to South America, and made a deal in which Dega paid Butterfly for protection. The two became best friends during their sentence.
Over thirty years after his escape, Charrière included Dega in his autobiography . Director Franklin J. Schaffner adapted the book to a movie in 1973, with Steve McQueen playing Butterfly, and Dustin Hoffman playing Dega. Their exploits were greatly dramatized in the film. [1] In 2016, it was announced that a remake of the movie was to be produced, with actor Rami Malek portraying Dega.
References
- Jump up^ Butterfly at theAmerican Film Institute Catalog