Disappeared this Sunday at the age of 91, Jacques Collard was a king of Parisian life in the 1970s/2000s.
His departure marks the end of a time that those under 20 will probably never know, that of a time when people celebrated, sometimes until dawn, without worrying about the future.
For three decades, he managed and hosted restaurants and cabarets where he welcomed all of Paris from the world of entertainment, fashion and the media.
There was the Orangerie, with Jean-Claude Brialy le Chamarré, decorated by Jean Marais and above all the Espace Cardin where, every evening, around the buffets, you could meet Alain Delon, Robert Hirsch, Yves Mourousi, Jacques Chazot, Alice Sapritch and Thierry le Luron, of whom he became the inseparable friend, the privileged confidant.
Read also“A difficult end of life” for the theater man Jacques Collard
In 1973, he was one of the columnists for the
Sunday program Le Luron
, watched by 20 million viewers.
On April 2, 1974, the imitator who chose to celebrate his 22nd birthday at Chamarré, in Saint-Germain-des-Prés, learned, before the whole world, of the disappearance of Georges Pompidou.
Jacques Collard rushes to the Brasserie Lipp, a few hundred meters away, and gives the information to Roger Cazes.
The master of the place goes to François Mitterrand, having dinner and whispers a few words in his ear.
The future candidate immediately leaves the room.
Collard liked to evoke this memory and that of Marlène Dietrich who telephoned around 8 p.m. to the Espace Cardin, to ask that they bring her to her avenue Montaigne “large shrimps”, that is to say a lobster.
Of course, no one gave him the slightest note.
Small roles in big movies
Also an actor, Jacques Collard obtained, thanks to Alfred Hitchcock, a “trainee actor” contract in Hollywood.
In the 1950s, he played small roles in major films.
Following the advice given to him by Gérard Philipe, his idol, he wrote plays and adapted musicals, starting with
Hello Dolly
, of which Annie Cordy was the headliner.
On this occasion, he won a standoff against Michaël Stewart, the author of the original libretto who wanted the French version to be renamed
Salut Suzanne
.
With Jean Dalric, he won a Molière for Best Theatrical Adaptation with
Les enfants du silence
.
The piece revealed Emmanuelle Laborit, also awarded with a Molière.
His biggest hit, however, is
Ladies Night
, which tells the story of a group of unemployed people who decide to create a male striptease show.
The few seconds when they find themselves naked in the dark have delighted countless spectators.
This "social comedy", which also earned him a Molière, has toured the world.
In the former USSR, it has appeared regularly for thirty years, played by famous actors.
“The authors' societies do not intervene in this country, that did not bring me the slightest penny”
, he sighed, without complaining for all that.
Only the future interested him, starting with a cover of
Hello Dolly
in 2024 with Chantal Ladesou.
A project that was his last dream.