Juliette Gréco (; 7 February 1927 – 23 September 2020) was a French singer and actress. Her best known songs are "Paris Canaille" (1962, originally sung by

Léo Ferré Léo Ferré (; 24 August 1916 – 14 July 1993) was a Monégasque poet and composer, and a dynamic and controversial live performer. He released some forty albums over this period, composing the music and the majority of the lyrics. He released ...

), "La Javanaise" (1963, written by

Serge Gainsbourg Serge Gainsbourg (; born Lucien Ginsburg; 2 April 1928 – 2 March 1991) was a French singer-songwriter, actor, composer, and director. Regarded as one of the most important figures in French pop, he was renowned for often provocative rel ...

for Gréco) and "Déshabillez-moi" (1967). She often sang tracks with lyrics written by French poets such as

Jacques Prévert Jacques Prévert (; 4 February 1900 – 11 April 1977) was a French poet and screenwriter. His poems became and remain popular in the French-speaking world, particularly in schools. His best-regarded films formed part of the Poetic realism, poetic ...

and Boris Vian, as well as singers like

Jacques Brel Jacques Romain Georges Brel (; 8 April 1929 – 9 October 1978) was a Belgian singer and actor who composed and performed theatrical songs. He generated a large, devoted following—initially in Belgium and France, but later throughout the world ...

and

Charles Aznavour Charles Aznavour ( ; ; ; born Shahnur Vaghinak Aznavourian; 22 May 1924 – 1 October 2018) was a Armenians in France, French singer and songwriter of Armenian descent. Aznavour was known for his distinctive vibrato tenor voice: clear and ringi ...

. Her 60-year career concluded with her final worldwide tour titled "Merci", which began in 2015. As an actress, Gréco played roles in films by French directors such as

Jean Cocteau Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau ( , ; ; 5 July 1889 11 October 1963) was a French poet, playwright, novelist, designer, film director, visual artist and critic. He was one of the foremost avant-garde artists of the 20th-c ...

and

Jean-Pierre Melville Jean-Pierre Grumbach (20 October 1917 – 2 August 1973), known professionally as Jean-Pierre Melville (), was a French filmmaker. Considered a spiritual godfather of the French New Wave, he was one of the first fully-independent French filmmake ...

Early life

Juliette Gréco was born in

Montpellier Montpellier (; ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of France, department of ...

, France, to an absent Corsican father, Gérard Gréco; her mother Juliette Lafeychine (1899–1978) was from

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

. Her lineage hails in part from Greece. She did not receive love from her mother in her childhood and suffered from her harsh comments due to being an unwanted child, such as "You ain't my daughter. You're the child of rape". She was raised by her maternal grandparents in Bordeaux with her older sister Charlotte. After the death of her grandparents, her mother took them to Paris. In 1938, she became a ballerina at the Opéra Garnier. When World War II began, the family returned to the southwest of France. Gréco was a student at the Institut Royal d'éducation Sainte Jeanne d'Arc in

Montauban Montauban (, ; ) is a commune in the southern French department of Tarn-et-Garonne. It is the capital of the department and lies north of Toulouse. Montauban is the most populated town in Tarn-et-Garonne, and the sixth most populated of Oc ...

. The Gréco family became active in the Resistance and her mother was arrested in 1943. The two sisters decided to move back to Paris but were captured and tortured by the

Gestapo The (, ), Syllabic abbreviation, abbreviated Gestapo (), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of F ...

, then imprisoned in Fresnes Prison in September 1943. Her mother and sister were deported to Ravensbrück while Juliette, being only 16, remained in prison for several months before being released. After her release, she walked the eight miles back to Paris to retrieve her belongings from the Gestapo headquarters. Her former French teacher and her mother's friend, Hélène Duc, decided to take care of her. In 1945, Gréco's mother and sister returned from deportation after the liberation of Ravensbrück by the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

. Gréco moved to Saint-Germain-des-Prés in 1945 after her mother moved to

Indochina Mainland Southeast Asia (historically known as Indochina and the Indochinese Peninsula) is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to th ...

, leaving Gréco and her sister behind.

Bohemian lifestyle

Gréco became a devotee of the bohemian fashion of some intellectuals of post-war France. Duc sent her to attend acting classes given by Solange Sicard. She made her debut in the play ''Victor ou les Enfants au pouvoir'' in November 1946 and began to host a radio show dedicated to poetry. Her friend

Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was a French philosopher, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and literary criticism, literary critic, considered a leading figure in 20th ...

installed her at the

Hotel La Louisiane Hotel La Lousiane is a Parisian hotel located at the heart of Saint-Germain-des-Prés at the intersection of rue de Buci and rue de Seine in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, sixth arrondissement. It has a main entrance on 60, rue de Seine and a ...

and commented that Greco had "millions of poems in her voice". She was known to many of the writers and artists working in Saint-Germain-des-Prés, such as

Albert Camus Albert Camus ( ; ; 7 November 1913 – 4 January 1960) was a French philosopher, author, dramatist, journalist, world federalist, and political activist. He was the recipient of the 1957 Nobel Prize in Literature at the age of 44, the s ...

and Boris Vian, thus gaining the nickname ''la Muse de l'existentialisme''. Gréco spent the post-Liberation years frequenting the Saint-Germain-des-Prés cafes, immersing herself in political and philosophical bohemian culture. As a regular at music and poetry venues like Le Tabou on Rue Dauphine, she was acquainted with

, and was given a role in Cocteau's film '' Orphée'' (1950). She made her debut as a cabaret singer in the Parisian cabaret '' Le Bœuf sur le toit'' in 1949, performing the lyrics of a number of well-known French writers; Raymond Queneau's "Si tu t'imagines" was one of her earliest songs to become popular.

Film career

She made her film debut in ''Les frères Bouquinquant'' (1947) and appeared in several French films. When Darryl F. Zanuck saw her photo in ''Time'', she was offered a role in ''

The Sun Also Rises ''The Sun Also Rises'' is the first novel by the American writer Ernest Hemingway, following his experimental novel-in-fragments '' In Our Time (short story collection)'' (1925). It portrays American and British expatriates who travel from Par ...

'' (1957), and it led to other Hollywood-financed films.

Personal life

Gréco was married three times, to: * actor Philippe Lemaire (1953–1956) * actor

Michel Piccoli Jacques Daniel Michel Piccoli (27 December 1925 – 12 May 2020) was a French actor, producer and film director with a career spanning 70 years. He was lauded as one of the greatest French character actors of his generation who played a wide vari ...

(1966–1977) * pianist Gérard Jouannest (1988–2018; his death) With Lemaire, she had a daughter, Laurence-Marie, born in 1954. Laurence-Marie Lemaire died from cancer in 2016 aged 62. In the year leading up to his death in January 1949, Gréco was the lover of married racing driver

Jean-Pierre Wimille Jean-Pierre Wimille (; 26 February 1908 – 28 January 1949) was a French racing driver and a member of the French Resistance during World War II. He was a two-time victor of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, winning in 1937 and 1939. He is generally re ...

and suffered a miscarriage after his death. According to Spanish writer Manuel Vicent, Juliette Gréco was

's lover. She also was in relationships with French singer

Sacha Distel Alexandre "Sacha" Distel (29 January 1933 – 22 July 2004) was a French musician and singer who had hits with a cover version of "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" in 1970, which reached No 10 in the UK Charts, " Scoubidou", and " The Good Lif ...

and Hollywood producer Darryl F. Zanuck. In 1949, she began an affair with the American jazz musician

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th century music, 20th-century music. Davis ado ...

. In 1957, they decided to always be just lovers because their careers were in different countries and his fear of damaging her career by being in an interracial relationship. They remained lovers and friends until his death in 1991. Gréco also dated U.S. record producer

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was an American record producer, composer, arranger, conductor, trumpeter, and bandleader. Over the course of his seven-decade career, he received List of awards and nominations re ...

. According to Jones' autobiography, Davis was irritated with him for years when he found out. Gréco had three rhinoplasties; in Paris in 1953 and 1956, and in London in 1960. In September 1965, Gréco attempted suicide by an overdose of sleeping pills. She was found unconscious in her bathroom and taken to the hospital by

Françoise Sagan Françoise Sagan (; born Françoise Delphine Quoirez; 21 June 1935 – 24 September 2004) was a French playwright, novelist, and screenwriter. Sagan was known for works with strong romantic themes involving wealthy and disillusioned bourgeois ch ...

. Gréco lived between Paris and

Saint-Tropez Saint-Tropez ( , ; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Var (department), Var departments of France, department and the regions of France, region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, Southern France. It is west of Nice and east of Marseille, o ...

. A leftist, she supported

François Mitterrand François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand (26 October 19168 January 1996) was a French politician and statesman who served as President of France from 1981 to 1995, the longest holder of that position in the history of France. As a former First ...

in the 1974 presidential election, and was an initial investor in ''

Minute A minute is a unit of time defined as equal to 60 seconds. It is not a unit in the International System of Units (SI), but is accepted for use with SI. The SI symbol for minutes is min (without a dot). The prime symbol is also sometimes used i ...

'', when it was mainly non-political and focused on the entertainment world. Gréco died on 23 September 2020 at the age of 93.

Legacy

Gréco was portrayed by actress Anna Mouglalis in the film '' Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life'' (2010).

based the singer in his trilogy '' The Roads to Freedom'' (''Les chemins de la liberté'') on Gréco. An allusion to Gréco is made by English singer

Ray Davies Sir Raymond Douglas Davies ( ; born 21 June 1944) is an English musician. He was the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist and primary songwriter for the Rock music, rock band the Kinks, which he led, with his younger brother Dave Davies, Dave pro ...

in the song "Art School Babe" from his album ''Storyteller.'' " Michelle" by

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

was inspired by Gréco and the Parisian

Left Bank In geography, a bank is the land alongside a body of water. Different structures are referred to as ''banks'' in different fields of geography. In limnology (the study of inland waters), a stream bank or river bank is the terrain alongsid ...

culture.

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...

said of the song: "We'd tag along to these parties, and it was at the time of people like Juliette Greco, the French bohemian thing. They'd all wear black turtleneck sweaters, it's kind of where we got all that from, and we fancied Juliette like mad. Have you ever seen her? Dark hair, real chanteuse, really happening. So I used to pretend to be French, and I had this song that turned out later to be 'Michelle'."

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...

wrote in '' Skywriting by Word of Mouth'': "I'd always had a fantasy about a woman who would be a beautiful, intelligent, dark-haired, high-cheek-boned, free-spirited artist à la Juliette Gréco."

Marianne Faithfull Marianne Evelyn Gabriel Faithfull (29 December 1946 – 30 January 2025) was an English singer and actress who achieved popularity in the 1960s with the release of her UK top 10 single " As Tears Go By". She became one of the leading female art ...

said of Gréco: "When I was a young girl, Juliette Gréco was my absolute idol...She’s my role model for life. If I want to be anybody, I want to be Juliette Gréco." In 1999, a rose was named after her by Georges Delbard under the name of "Juliette Gréco". On 23 September 2021, "Place Juliette Gréco" was inaugurated in Paris. It can be found beside the Church of Saint-Germain-des-Pres, in the

6th arrondissement of Paris The 6th arrondissement of Paris (''VIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 Arrondissements of Paris, arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, it is referred to as ''le sixième''. The arrondissement, called Luxembourg in ...

. For the Dior Fall/Winter 2023-2024 collection, Maria Grazia Chiuri paid tribute to Gréco.

Decorations

Commander of the Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and civil. Currently consisting of five classes, it was ...

(2012): Officer (2002); Knight (1984) * National Order of Merit (2015): Commander (2006); Officer (1999) * Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters (2016)

Autobiographies

* 1982: ''Jujube'' (published in French), Stock * 2012: ''Je suis faite comme ça'', Flammarion

Notable songs

*1950: ''La Rue des Blancs-Manteaux'' written by Jean-Paul Sartre and composed by Joseph Kosma. *1950: ''Si tu t'imagines'': written by Raymond Queneau and composed by Joseph Kosma. *1950: ''La Fourmi'' : written by Robert Desnos and composed by Joseph Kosma. *1951: ''Je suis comme je suis'' : written by Jacques Prévert and composed by Joseph Kosma. *1951: ''Les Feuilles mortes'': from the movie ''Les Portes de la nuit'', written by Jacques Prévert and composed by Joseph Kosma. *1951: ''Sous le ciel de Paris'': from the movie ''Sous le ciel de Paris'' : written by Jean Dréjac and composed by Hubert Giraud. *1951: ''Je hais les dimanches'': written by Charles Aznavour and composed by Florence Véran. *1953: ''La Fiancée du pirate'': extract from ''L'Opéra de quat'sous''. *1954: ''Coin de rue'': written and composed by Charles Trenet. *1955: ''Chanson pour l'Auvergnat'': written and composed by Georges Brassens. *1957: ''Musique Mécanique'': written by Boris Vian and composed by André Popp. *1957: ''La Complainte du téléphone'': written by François Billetdoux and composed by André Popp. *1959: ''De Pantin à Pékin'' : written by Pierre Delanoë and composed by André Popp. *1959: ''Il était une oie'' : written and composed by Serge Gainsbourg. *1960: ''Il n'y a plus d’après'' : written and composed by Guy Béart. *1961: ''On n'oublie rien'' : written by Jacques Brel. *1961: ''Jolie Môme'': written and composed by Léo Ferré. *1961: ''C'était bien'' (''Le P'tit bal perdu''): written by Robert Nyel and composed by Gaby Verlor. *1961: ''Le Temps passé'' : written and composed by Georges Brassens. *1961: ''Chandernagor'' : written and composed by Guy Béart. *1962: ''Accordéon'' : written and composed by Serge Gainsbourg. *1962: ''Paris Canaille '' : written and composed by Léo Ferré. *1963: ''La Javanaise'' : written and composed by Serge Gainsbourg. *1966: ''Un petit poisson, un petit oiseau'' : written by Jean-Max Rivière and composed by Gérard Bourgeois. *1967: ''Déshabillez-moi '': written by Robert Nyel and composed by Gaby Verlor. *1970: ''Les Pingouins'' : written and composed by Frédéric Botton. *1971: ''La Chanson des vieux amants'' : written by Jacques Brel and composed by Gérard Jouannest. *1971: ''J'arrive'' : written by Jacques Brel and composed by Gérard Jouannest. *1972: ''Mon fils chante'' : written by Maurice Fanon and composed by Gérard Jouannest. *1977: ''Non monsieur je n'ai pas vingt ans'': written by Henri Gougaud and composed by Gérard Jouannest. *1983: ''Le Temps des cerises'' : written by Jean Baptiste Clément and composed by Antoine Renard. *1988: ''Ne me quitte pas'' : written and composed by Jacques Brel. *2006: ''La Chanson de Prévert'' : written and composed by Serge Gainsbourg. *2009: ''Le Déserteur'': written and composed by Boris Vian.

Filmography

*1947: '' The Bouquinquant Brothers'' (by Louis Daquin) – Une religieuse *1948: ''Ulysse ou les mauvaises rencontres'' (Short, by Alexandre Astruc) *1949: '' The Sinners'' (by Julien Duvivier) – Rachel *1950: '' Orphée'' (by Jean Cocteau) – Aglaonice *1951: '' Sans laisser d'adresse'' (by Jean-Paul Le Chanois) – La chanteuse *1952: '' The Green Glove'' (by Rudolph Maté) – Singer *1953: ''

When You Read This Letter ''When You Read This Letter'' (French: ''Quand tu liras cette lettre'') is a 1953 French-Italian drama film directed by Jean-Pierre Melville and starring Philippe Lemaire, Juliette Gréco and Yvonne Sanson. It was shot at the Billancourt Stu ...

'' (by Jean-Pierre Melville) – Thérèse Voise *1953: '' Saluti e baci'' (by Maurice Labro and Giorgio Simonelli) – Herself *1953: '' Boum sur Paris'' (by Maurice de Canonge) – Juliette Gréco *1956: '' Elena and Her Men'' (by Jean Renoir) – Miarka, la gitane *1956: '' La Châtelaine du Liban'' (by Richard Pottier) – Maroussia *1956: '' Man and Child'' (by Raoul André) – Nicky Nistakos *1957: ''

'' (by Henry King) – Georgette Aubin *1957: '' C'est arrivé à 36 chandelles'' (by Henri Diamant-Berger) – Herself *1957: ''Œil pour œil'' (by André Cayatte) *1958: '' The Naked Earth'' (by Vincent Sherman) – Maria *1958: '' The Roots of Heaven'' (by John Huston) – Minna *1958: '' Bonjour tristesse'' (by Otto Preminger) – Herself *1959: ''

Whirlpool A whirlpool is a body of rotating water produced by opposing currents or a current running into an obstacle. Small whirlpools form when a bath or a sink is draining. More powerful ones formed in seas or oceans may be called maelstroms ( ). ''Vo ...

'' (by Lewis Allen) – Lora *1960: '' Crack in the Mirror'' (by Richard Fleischer) – Eponine / Florence *1961: '' The Big Gamble'' (by Richard Fleischer) – Marie *1962: '' Where the Truth Lies'' (by Henri Decoin) – Myriam Heller *1963: ''Canzoni nel mondo'' (by Vittorio Sala) – Herself *1964: '' The Chase'' (by Michel Boisrond) – Une invitée au spectacle de Sylvie Vartan *1964: '' Love at Sea'' (by Guy Gilles) – L'actrice du film *1965: ''

Uncle Tom's Cabin ''Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly'' is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. Published in two Volume (bibliography), volumes in 1852, the novel had a profound effect on attitudes toward African Americans ...

'' (by Géza von Radványi) – Dinah *1967: '' The Night of the Generals'' (by Anatole Litvak) – Juliette *1967: ''Le Désordre à vingt ans'' (Documentary, by Jacques Baratier) – Herself *1973: '' Le Far West'' (by Jacques Brel) *1975: '' Lily aime-moi'' (by Maurice Dugowson) – Flo *1999: ''Lettre à mon frère Guy Gilles, cinéaste trop tôt disparu'' (Documentary, by Luc Bernard) – Herself *2001: ''Paris à tout prix'' (Documentary, by Yves Jeuland) – Herself *2001: '' Belphégor, le fantôme du Louvre'' (by Jean-Paul Salomé) – Woman in the cemetery *2002: '' Jedermanns Fest'' (by Fritz Lehner) – Yvonne Becker

TV show

*1965: '' Belphegor, or Phantom of the Louvre''

Theatre

*1946: ''Victor ou les Enfants au pouvoir'' (by Roger Vitrac at the Théâtre de la Gaîté-Montparnasse) *1955: ''Anastasia'' (by Marcelle Maurette at the Théâtre Antoine) *1964: ''Bonheur, impair et passe'' (by

at the Théâtre Édouard VII)

References

Sources

* Antony Beevor and Artemis Cooper. ''Paris After the Liberation, 1944–1949''. London: Penguin, 1994. pp. 315–320. * Boggio, Philippe. '' Boris Vian'' (pp. 152–154) * Davis, Miles, ''Miles'' (pp. 126–127)

External links

*

(English) *
Biography of Juliette Gréco
{{DEFAULTSORT:Greco, Juliette 1927 births 2020 deaths 20th-century French actresses 20th-century French women singers 21st-century French actresses 21st-century French women singers Actors from Montpellier Actresses from Occitania (administrative region) Audiobook narrators Commandeurs of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres French expatriate actresses in the United States French film actresses French people of Corsican descent French people of Greek descent Musicians from Montpellier