Mistinguett

Lore & Background

Mistinguett began her career as a flower seller in a restaurant, singing ballads while selling blossoms. At age 10 she worked raising and lowering curtains at the Casino de Paris. After theatre and singing classes, she met Saint-Marcel on a train, who engaged her as a stage-hand. She experimented with stage names—Miss Helyett, Miss Tinguette, Mistinguette—before settling on Mistinguett. Her first major musical appearance was at the Casino de Paris in 1893, and she later performed at the Folies Bergère, Moulin Rouge, and Eldorado. By 1919 she toured internationally in Russia, England, and the Americas. Her legs were insured for 500,000 Francs in 1919. She recorded 'Mon Homme' in 1920, later popularized in English as 'My Man' by Fanny Brice. One of her best revues was 1938's Féerie de Paris, where she wore a 7-foot headdress, 20-foot train, and 40 pounds of feathers. At age 65 she made a grand entrance down a silver staircase; her opening number 'Je Cherche un Millionaire' sold 5 million copies before World War II. She performed into her 70s despite a knee ailment, two minor heart attacks, an appendectomy, and a hysterectomy.

Reader's Guide

Mistinguett's significance lies in her long career as a defining figure of French music-hall entertainment. She was the highest-paid female entertainer in the world, known for flamboyance and theatrical zest. Her risqué routines captivated Paris, and she toured internationally. Her signature song 'Mon Homme' became a standard. She also acted in silent films from 1908 and talkies from 1936. Her personal life included a long relationship with Maurice Chevalier, whom she helped free from German captivity during World War I through espionage. She never married but had a son, Leopoldo, with a Brazilian diplomat. Her legacy includes a street named after her in Montpellier, a plaque on her Paris home, a festival in her hometown in 2006, documentaries, a musical, and continued use of her songs in media. Jean Cocteau's obituary described her voice as that of Parisian street hawkers, saying she 'incarnated herself' and flattered a French patriotism.

Did You Know?

• Mistinguett's legs were insured for 500,000 Francs in 1919.
• She helped free Maurice Chevalier from German captivity by acting as a double spy during World War I.
• Her signature song 'Mon Homme' (1920) was popularized in English as 'My Man' by Fanny Brice.
• At age 65 she performed in a 7-foot headdress, 20-foot train, and 40 pounds of feathers.

Notable Quotes (Wikiquote)

"Mistinguett (5 April 1875 – 5 January 1956) was a French actress and singer, whose birth name was Jeanne Florentine Bourgeois. She was at one time the best-paid female entertainer in the world." — Mistinguett "A kiss can be a comma, a question mark, or an exclamation point." — Mistinguett