On September 12, 2020, Elie Semoun announced a very sad news on his Instagram account. On that day, her father Paul Semhoun died at the age of 88. A terrible ordeal for the comedian, who lived for months away from him. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the elderly are particularly vulnerable. During confinement, Elie Semoun was therefore very worried for his dad who lived in EHPAD. Suffered from Alzheimer's disease, Paul Semhoun “Continued to lose his head”. But his son had finally been able to see him in April, a very moving moment despite the plexiglass partition. Elie Semoun's followers had followed the long-awaited reunion, which brought a smile back to the comedian. Over the past two years, the octogenarian has indeed become a regular guest on his son's Instagram account.
"Old age killed him, Alzheimer's killed him, but confinement hastened his fall"
It is these appearances, much appreciated by Internet users, that gave birth to Elie Semoun the idea of a documentary in tribute to his deceased father. Wednesday December 9, 2020, LCP will therefore broadcast the film My pal, co-produced with assistance from director Marjory Dejardin. The day before, Elie Semoun was invited on the set of Daily, sure TMC. Between two extracts from his documentary, filmed for a year before his father entered EHPAD, the comedian made some moving confidences. “He was extremely touching”, he confides, as a few tears can be seen in his eyes. The actor also returned to the “terrible" period of the first confinement: “We didn't see him for a month and a half. But for him, I think it counted double or triple. He felt like he had been abandoned. Old age killed him, Alzheimer's killed him, but confinement hastened his fall. ” Evoking the personality of his late dad, Elie Semoun could not hide the emotion in his voice: "He was funny, he was touching, he was… ”he says, before stopping to see a photo of himself in the background.
While he obviously does not forget the most difficult periods of the disease, the actor of Ducobu 3 prefers today to remember the moments of joy: "It’s okay, they were good times. Just for that, you have to be near them, tell them that you love them. ” He says in particular that at the end of his life, Paul Semhoun's only beautiful moments were those spent with his children. “I wonder if it's not a real chasm when you have this disease to have flashes of lucidity. It disturbed me a lot”, says Elie Semoun. He finally ends with a sweet message for all those who have loved ones with Alzheimer's: "Live in the moment. The last times I went to see dad, we spent afternoons together walking, he took my hand and said, I’m happy my son. ’ And that’s why the ban on seeing him during the lockdown was absolutely cruel ", concludes the one who had raised a rant against the government after the death of his father.
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