As a child marked by war legend of French song, which was once the muse of Saint-Germain-des-Prés had a life "
out of the ordinary
."
Between an impossible love affair with the jazz genius Miles Davis, the dedication to the Olympia in 1954 or the success on television with
Belphégor
, relive the eventful life of the "
pretty kid
" in 11 dates.
February 7, 1927
: Birth in Montpellier.
Marie-Juliette Gréco spent her childhood between Bordeaux and Paris, where she became a little rat of the opera.
It joined the Dordogne at the start of the war.
Read also: Juliette Gréco, free singer and champion of freedom, died at 93
1943
: Her mother and sister, resistance fighters, are deported to Ravensbrück, from where they will be released in 1945. She herself is imprisoned in Fresnes for ten days, then released because of her young age.
“
This drama will make of her a free and committed woman who, in 1981, during a show in Chile in front of the notables of the
Augusto Pinochet
regime
, will only perform forbidden songs.
It will be taken back to the manu militari airport as soon as the concert is over,
”wrote
Le Figaro
in 2015.
1949
: She performs on the stage of the cabaret "
Le bœuf sur le toit
", where she sings texts by Jean-Paul Sartre, Jacques Prévert, Boris Vian ... Thanks to the latter's wife, she will meet Miles the same year Davis with whom she will have a brief romantic relationship.
But the two young lovers will separate, because of the social context of the time in the United States.
The trumpeter and the singer will keep in touch all their lives, keeping the flame of an impossible love alive, until the death of the jazzman in 1991.
Juliette Gréco at 24 in 1951 in Nice AFP
1953
: Juliette marries the actor Philippe Lemaire.
The couple meet on the set of
Quand Tu Liras Ce Lettre
by Jean-Pierre Melville.
“
The blond, lovely, laughing Philippe Lemaire.
The very good actor who is too handsome
”, wrote Juliette Gréco in her book of memories“
Jujube
”.
The two would give birth to a daughter, Laurence-Marie, before separating two years later in 1956.
Philippe Lemaire, Juliette Gréco and their daughter Laurence-Marie on May 3, 1954 Keystone / Zuma / Leemage
1954
: First visit to the Olympia.
The consecration for the young artist, muse of the existentialists of Saint-Germain-des-Prés.
To read also: Juliette Gréco: the greatest songs of the muse of Saint-Germain-des-Prés
1965
: Turns "
Belphégor or the Phantom of the Louvre
" for television.
The soap opera, in which she played the main role, that of a “
ghost
” wandering in the Louvre, was a huge success on the small screen when it was broadcast the same year.
1966
: The catwoman marries Michel Piccoli.
The marriage will last nearly ten years, before a separation in 1977. Witnesses of the beginning of their relationship, Catherine Deneuve recently mentioned in
Les Inrocks
the complicity between Piccoli and Juliette Gréco.
“I really enjoyed watching them,
” she explained.
I remember that Michel was very careful with her, and at the same time there was an extremely joking atmosphere between them, a perpetual contest.
They were constantly pitting themselves against each other on the ground of irony, of derision.
It was very charming ”.
In a book published in 2015, the actor, who died last May, had meanwhile evoked love at first sight with the elusive
“
pretty kid”: “
I said to myself: what's going on?
Astonishing!
Wonderful!
".
“
One day she said to me, 'Go away
,'
almost that way.
It was painful, on my side anyway
”.
Juliette Gréco and Michel Piccoli in 1969 Agip / Bridgeman Images
1988
: Juliette marries Gérard Jouannest.
Jacques Brel's regular pianist and composer since 1958, Jouannest put himself at the service of Juliette in 1968, to accompany her on a tour of Canada.
After 20 years of fruitful professional collaboration, they get married in Ramatuelle.
They will stay together until the musician's death in 2018.
2015
: It's time for the farewell tour.
Reluctantly, the singer decides to abandon the stage and the audience.
"
It's very hard, it's very complicated for me, it's very painful: you have to know how to start nicely
", she confided on
RTL
before starting her final series of concerts.
"
I will be 88 years old in ten days, I would not like to give the spectacle of an old woman who clings, I would not like to be ashamed, to go too far
", she added.
Entitled "
Thank you
", the tour will finally last more than a year before the singer's health does not allow her to continue.
Juliette Gréco and Michel Jouannest during a concert at Louvres on February 6, 2016 FRANCOIS GUILLOT / AFP
2016
: Death of his daughter Laurence-Marie.
After a 5-year fight against cancer, the child from Juliette Gréco's first marriage, who became a film scriptwriter, breathed his last at the age of 62.
The same year, the "
pretty kid
" suffered a stroke.
2020
: Juliette Gréco dies with her family in her residence in Ramatuelle, in the Var.
Dozens of artists and personalities from all walks of life have paid tribute to one of the last symbols of post-war French song.
