Eugénie Buffet | |
|---|---|
 Eugénie Buffet in 1933 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | 1866 |
| Origin | Paris, France |
| Died | 1934 (aged 67–68) |
| Genres | chanson réaliste torch songs |
| Occupations | singer, actress |
Eugénie Buffet (French pronunciation:[øʒenibyfɛ]; 1866–1934) was a French singer who rose to fame in France just prior to World War I. She has been called one of the first,[1] if notthe first,[2] performer of thechanson réaliste (realist song) genre. She became a national sensation in France, performing in the fashionablecafés-concerts of Paris as well as embarking on both national and international tours.[1][2][3] Her biggest success is said to be her performance of the song "La Sérénade du Pavé" (Sidewalk Serenade), written by Jean Varney in 1895.[2] She was also known to perform in the street for charity in the poorer areas of Paris – work for which she was awarded theLégion d'honneur.[1][2][4]
Born asMarie Buffet inTlemcen,Algeria to aFrench family in 1866[5][6] (in an area that was then known asFrench Algeria), Eugénie Buffet was the daughter of aseamstress and a soldier.[2] When she was six months old, her father died in a military hospital inOran; as a result her family was quitepoor.[2]
At the age of 17, Buffet started acting.[2] She struggled in her early years and was living in near poverty; she had moved toMarseille in order to perform, but she was not very successful at first and was said to have been "booed and hissed off of the stage".[2] She worked mainly in thecafés-concerts of Marseille, until 1886 when she became themistress of comte Guillaume d'Oilliamson.[3][7][8] The wealthy Frenchcount brought Buffet with him to Paris to show off to his friends.[2] Buffet went from "near starvation" to living a fashionable Parisian life.[3][8]
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While in Paris, Buffet became involved inright-wing politics; she attended one of the founding rallies of theLigue des Patriotes and sang "La Marseillaise" for the nationalists. As a result, she became the darling of such anti-Dreyfusards asPaul Déroulède.[3]
In 1892 Buffet attended a performance atLe Chat Noir (the Black Cat) by thecabaret singerAristide Bruant; Buffet found herself moved by his performance and approached him with the idea of her portraying one of the poor and unfortunate girls of whom Bruant would often sing.[2] Buffet had spent a short time in thePrison Saint-Lazare which had put her into direct contact with women of such description,[1][9] and she was also said to have followed prostitutes on their rounds at night in order to better emulate their dress and demeanor in her own performances.[2]
Buffet would combine these experiences to create her famous performances asla pierreuse (thestreetwalker) and she debuted her character in an 1882 performance atLa Cigale, a famous nightclub in theQuartier Pigalle of Paris.[2][3][9] During performances Buffet wore a tattered apron and red scarf, a common costume of prostitutes at the time.[2]
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Soon Buffet became a national celebrity – she performed at such famouscafés-concerts as theThéâtre de la Gaîté-Montparnasse, theThéâtre de la Gaîté-Rochechouart, and theCafé des Ambassadeurs.[1][2] She also sang in less conventional locations such as the streets of the poorer neighbourhoods of Paris, and even at coal mines, in order to raise money for the poor and homeless.[1][2][3] Buffet also performed daily at theExposition Universelle of 1900, aworld's fair held in Paris.[3]
In the early 1900s Buffet tried her hand at managing her own cafés-concerts: From 1902–1903 Buffet ran acabaret inMontmartre called theCabaret de la Purée (Down-on-Your-Luck Cabaret) and later in 1903 she ran an establishment calledFolies-Pigalle (Pigalle Follies) which was closed down that same year by the police because it was "a meeting-place for right-wing enemies of the regime."[2][3][10]
In addition to performing in Paris, Buffet toured and performed for soldiers during World War I,[2] she performed at theRoyal Palace of Brussels and in the early 1920s she toured the United States, Morocco and theAntilles.[2][3][4][11]
Thefilm score of the 1931Jean Renoir filmLa Chienne included a turn-of-the-century recording of Buffet singing "Sois bonne ô ma belle inconnue" (Be good oh my beautiful unknown).[12][13]
In 1927 Buffet appeared in thesilent filmNapoléon directed by French filmmakerAbel Gance; she played the role ofLaetizia Bonaparte, Napoleon's mother.[1][14]
In 1930 Buffet published herghostwrittenmemoir titled:Ma Vie, Mes Amours, Mes Aventures: Confidences recueillies par Maurice Hamel (My Life, My Loves, My Adventures: Confessions obtained by Maurice Hamel), published by writer, poet, journalist and editorEugène Figuière.[2][8]
Suffering from illness as early as the late 1920s, Eugénie Buffet fell into poverty by the end of her life. She died in Paris in 1934.[1][2]
Eugénie Buffet was said to have inspired the character of Mademoiselle Amy Jolly,Marlene Dietrich's role in the 1930 filmMorocco.[5][15] French signing iconÉdith Piaf also portrayed Eugénie Buffet in the 1954 French musical filmFrench Cancan.[16][17]
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