France makes Eastwood's day

President Nicolas Sarkozy has awarded US actor and director Clint Eastwood one of France's top honours, hailing him as a cinema legend and a symbol of the type of America that the French adore.

It is unusual for a foreigner to be elevated to the rank of commander of the French Legion of Honour but Eastwood, who went from playing tough-guy roles such as Dirty Harry to directing films, said he saw France as his second home.

"My wife chastised me saying if that was true why don't I speak French," he told those gathered at the Elysee Palace for the ceremony.

He jokingly referred to Sarkozy as "my president" after receiving the red-ribboned medal. Eastwood, 79, had been making a thriller in France, Hereafter.

Sarkozy said French admiration for US cinema helped transcend any problems the countries might have had - a veiled reference to France's fierce opposition to the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.

He called Eastwood, whose line "Go ahead, make my day" became a global catchphrase, "a myth, a giant, an example of the admiration we have for American culture". He added that problems between the countries had arisen "when America was not as big as we would have liked ".