Louis Alphonse Gassion (10 May 1881 – 3 March 1944) is best-known as the father of

Édith Piaf Édith Piaf (, , ; born Édith Giovanna Gassion, ; December 19, 1915– October 10, 1963) was a French singer, lyricist and actress. Noted as France's national chanteuse, she was one of the country's most widely known international stars. Pia ...

, the legendary singer-songwriter who was known as France's national

chanteuse Many words in the English vocabulary are of French origin, most coming from the Anglo-Norman language, Anglo-Norman spoken by the upper classes in England for several hundred years after the Norman conquest of England, Norman Conquest, before ...

and was internationally famous, but he was himself an entertainer, as a circus performer and theatre actor.

Biography

Gassion was born on 10 May 1881 in

Falaise, Calvados Falaise () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. Geography Falaise lies on the river Ante, a tributary of the river Dives, about southeast of Caen. History The area around Falaise has been ...

to Victor Alphonse Gassion, was a horseman in the circus, and Louise Léontine ( Deschamps), the

madam Madam (), or madame ( or ), is a polite and formal form of address for Woman, women in the English language, often contracted to ma'am (pronounced in American English and this way but also in British English). The term derives from the French ...

of a

brothel A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub par ...

in Bernay,

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

. He had seven sisters, two of whom died at a young age. He began his career in the circus with the 'Ciotti' circus, and became a contortionist. At first, he performed with family, then, on his own. On 4 September 1914, he married Annetta Giovanna Maillard, an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

-born café singer known under the

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

Line Marsa Annetta Giovanna Gassion (née Maillard; 4 August 1895 in Livorno – 6 February 1945 in Paris) was best known as the mother of internationally renowned singer Édith Piaf, considered France's national chanteuse. Gassion, was professionally bil ...

. On 19 December 1915, she gave birth to their first child, a daughter- Édith Giovanna, who would go on to become Édith Piaf. He left Édith in the care of his mother when she was two years old, after Annetta and her mother Emma had been neglecting her care. They also had a second child, Herbert (1918-1997). In 1922, Louis was going to take an engagement in the Caroli circus, but decided to become an independent act, touring with various itinerant circuses. Often, Louis would have Édith sing for the crowds after he performed. This was when she first realised her talent for singing. On 4 June 1929, Louis divorced Annetta, due to her substance abuse. In 1932, when Édith left to live with her boyfriend Louis Dupont and friend Simone Bertaut, he married Jeanne Georgette L'Hôte, with whom he had a third child, Dénise, born in 1931.

Death

Gassion died of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

on 3 March 1944 in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, aged 62. He is buried alongside his daughter (Piaf),

son-in-law Son-in-Law (22 April 1911 – 15 May 1941) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and an influential sire, especially for sport horses. The National Horseracing Museum says Son-in-Law is "probably the best and most distinguished stayer this count ...

, and granddaughter at

Père Lachaise Cemetery Père Lachaise Cemetery (french: Cimetière du Père-Lachaise ; formerly , "East Cemetery") is the largest cemetery in Paris, France (). With more than 3.5 million visitors annually, it is the most visited necropolis in the world. Notable figures ...

In popular culture

In 2007, Louis Gassion was portrayed by

Jean-Paul Rouve Jean-Paul Rouve (born 26 January 1967) is a French actor, film director, screenwriter and producer. He is a member of the troupe "Les Robins des Bois". He has appeared in more than thirty film and television productions since 1993. Personal li ...

Olivier Dahan Olivier Dahan (born 26 June 1967) is a French film director and screenwriter. His third directed film, ''La Vie en rose'', was one of the only French cinema films to win two Academy Awards, including the first acting Oscar in the French language. ...

's biopic of Édith Piaf's life, ''

La Vie en rose "La Vie en rose" (; ) is the signature song of popular French singer Édith Piaf, written in 1945, popularized in 1946, and released as a single in 1947. The song became very popular in the US in 1950, when seven versions reached the ''Billboard ...

''.Louis Gassion dans ''La Môme''
on IMDb (in French)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gassion, Louis Alphonse 1881 births 1944 deaths French circus performers Deaths from lung cancer in France Édith Piaf People from Falaise, Calvados