Signoret was born Simone Henriette Charlotte Kaminker inWiesbaden, Germany, to Georgette (née Signoret) and André Kaminker. She was the eldest of three children, with two younger brothers. Her father, a pioneering interpreter who worked in theLeague of Nations, was a French-born army officer from an assimilated and middle-class Polish-Jewish and Hungarian-Jewish family,[1][2] who brought the family toNeuilly-sur-Seine on the outskirts of Paris. Her mother, Georgette, from whom she acquired her stage name, was a French Catholic.[3]
Signoret grew up in Paris in an intellectual atmosphere and studied English, German and Latin. After completing secondary school during theNazi occupation, Simone was responsible for supporting her family and forced to take work as a typist for a French collaborationist newspaperLes nouveaux temps, run byJean Luchaire.[4][5]
During the occupation of France, Signoret mixed with an artistic group of writers and actors who met at theCafé de Flore in theSaint-Germain-des-Prés quarter.[6] By this time, she had developed an interest in acting and was encouraged by her friends, including her loverDaniel Gélin to follow her ambition.[citation needed] In 1942, she began appearing in bit parts and was able to earn enough money to support her mother and two brothers as her father, who was a French patriot, had fled the country in 1940 to join GeneralDe Gaulle in England. She took her mother's maiden name for the screen to help hide her Jewish roots.[7]
In November 1960, Signoret was interviewed byJohn Freeman, about her career and life for BBC television seriesFace to Face.[29] Signoret was one of only two women to be interviewed as part of the first iteration of the series, the other being renowned poet DameEdith Sitwell.
In 1962, Signoret translatedLillian Hellman's playThe Little Foxes into French for a production in Paris that ran for six months at theThéâtre Sarah-Bernhardt. She played the Regina role as well. Hellman was displeased with the production, although the translation was approved by scholars selected by Hellman.[30] Signoret's one attempt at Shakespeare, performingLady Macbeth withAlec Guinness at theRoyal Court Theatre in London in 1966 proved to be ill-advised, with some harsh critics; one referred to her English as "impossibly Gallic".[31]
Signoret won acclaim for her portrayal of a weary madam inMadame Rosa (1977)[32][33][34] and as an unmarried sister who unknowingly falls in love with her paralyzed brother via anonymous correspondence inI Sent a Letter to my Love [fr] (1980).[35][36] She continued to act until her death, working on theminiseriesMusic-Hall while terminally ill.[27][37]
Signoret's memoirs,Nostalgia Isn't What It Used to Be, were published in 1976.[9] She also wrote the novelAdieu Volodya, published in 1985, the year of her death: this was autobiographical in its depiction of Jewish immigrants in France between the wars.[27] Both books were best-sellers in France.[27]
Signoret first married filmmakerYves Allégret (1944–1949), with whom she had a son (Patrick) and a daughterCatherine Allégret. Patrick died nine days after his birth. Privately, Signoret blamed the hospital for his death as they had taken Patrick to a chapel for baptism and he shortly thereafter caught a cold and died. Signoret never spoke publicly about his death.[38]
Her second marriage was to the Italian-born French actorYves Montand in 1951, a union which lasted until her death; the couple had no children.[8][39] They were both active in left-wing and humanitarian causes, although as they grew older she gravitated towards the political centre and he to the right.[9][27][40]
Signoret identified as Jewish. She was a supporter of a variety of Jewish causes, including theZionist movement and theSoviet Jewry movement. She maintained relationships with many Israeli leaders and was critical of antisemitism in theFrench Communist Party. Because she was ofpatrilineal Jewish ancestry and was therefore not considered Jewish under traditionalhalakha, there was no religious ceremony at her funeral.[43]
A BBC TV film,Madame Montand and Mrs Miller (1992), depicted the relationship between Signoret andMarilyn Monroe during the filming ofLet's Make Love, when Monroe had an affair with Yves Montand.Sue Glover wrote the script and Pauline Larrieu played Signoret.[58]
Glover's subsequent stage-play on the same subject,Marilyn, premiered at theCitizens' Theatre,Glasgow in 2011, with Dominique Hollier playing Signoret.[59][60]
SingerNina Simone (born Eunice Waymon) took her last name from Simone Signoret.[61][62]
^"Nostalgia Isn't What It Used to Be (Paperback)".The Guardian. 7 August 2000.Signoret was descended from Polish/Hungarian Jews
^Hayward, Susan (November–December 2000). "Simone Signoret (1921–1985) — The body political".Women's Studies International Forum.23 (6):739–747.doi:10.1016/S0277-5395(00)00147-3.
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