10 “the perfect couple”: Edmonde Charles-Roux interview with the author, June 12, 2008.
11 “best propaganda for France”: Pierre de Gaulle quoted in Grimault and Mahé, p. 148.
12 “Easy on the sex”: Lucien Roupp quoted in ibid., p. 146.
13 “The only thing”: EP to JB, Aug. 31, 1948.
14 “Voici M’sieur Cerdan”: Herbert Mitgang, “Moroccan Bombardier,” New York Times, Sept. 12, 1948.
15 “Come on, Tony”: EP quoted in Grimault and Mahé, pp. 165–66. See also “Cerdan Captures World Middleweight Title by Knocking Out Zale in Twelfth,” New York Times, Sept. 22, 1948, Sports, p. 41.
16 “Marcel had never felt”: Grimault and Mahé, pp. 170–71.
17 “Hello champ!”: Ibid., p. 174.
18 “Like Marcel she wore”: Gaston Firnin-Guyon quoted in “Edith et Marcel aux ‘States’: La Fête,” Les Nouvelles littéraires, April 7–13, 1983, p. 20.
19 “the happiest moment”: EP, Ma vie, p. 59.
20 “I love him”: EP to JB, Oct. 1, 1948.
21 “there are times”: EP to JB, Oct. 8, 1948.
22 “literally obsessed”: EP to JB, Oct. 12, 1948.
23 “dark thoughts”: EP to JB, Nov. 1, 1948.
24 “I’m going to have him”: EP to JB, Nov. 15, 1948.
25 “I had to send Momone”: EP to JB, Dec. 2, 1948.
26 “Edith is known”: Jacqueline Michel, “La Vie parisienne,” Parisien libéré, Dec. 21, 1949, p. 2, in Grimault and Mahé, p. 193.
27 “We never tired”: François de Roux, “ ‘La Môme Piaf’ se métamorphose en princesse,” Figaro littéraire, Jan. 29, 1949.
28 “violence and illegal detention”: “French Boxer Is Sued,” New York Times, Jan. 21, 1949. Cf. the account in Grimault and Mahé, pp. 204–8.
29 “She’s like a sister”: EP quoted in Duclos and Martin, pp. 291–92.
30 “I’ve been made to see”: Lucien Roupp quoted in Marchand, “L’Affaire Cerdan.”
31 “superior to the circumstances”: EP to Geneviève Lévitan, in Grimault and Mahé, p. 185.
32 “Cerdan got up”: Tino Rossi quoted in Emmanuel Bonini, Piaf, p. 291.
33 “Words are too poor”: Journal d’Egypte Le Caire, Feb. 25, 1949, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 53.
34 “I’ll be in your gloves”: EP to MC, June 13, 1949, in EP and MC, Moi pour toi, p. 141.
35 “God’s way of letting”: EP to MC, July 23, 1949, in ibid., p. 148.
36 “Edith Piaf made her debut”: Critics quoted in Félix Lévitan, “Edith Piaf est applaudi chaque soir par les grandes vedettes américaines,” Le Figaro, Oct. 7, 1949, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 53.
37 “I’m terribly disappointed”: EP to JB [c. Oct. 1949], in Bonini, p. 296.
38 “Does that woman”: EP to JB [c. Oct. 1949], in ibid., p. 299.
39 “I have to beat La Motta”: Quoted in France-Soir and on the radio, in Grimault and Mahé, pp. 253, 260.
CHAPTER ELEVEN • 1949–1952
1 “Why are you hiding?”: Quotations and information on EP’s reaction to MC’s death in Bonel and Bonel, pp. 79–80; cf. Grimault and Mahé, pp. 267–69.
2 “I can think of only one thing”: EP to JB [Oct. 31, 1949], in Bonini, p. 302.
3 “I try in vain”: EP to “Cel,” Nov. 23, 1949, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 64.
4 “You can take me”: EP to Robert Delban, in Duclos and Martin, p. 303.
5 “I would have expected”: Philippe-Gérard quoted in Brierre, p. 92.
6 she wanted desperately to believe: Piaf’s friend Phillipe-Gérard was of the opinion that Piaf was to some extent a willing dupe; see Brierre, p. 95.
7 “I’ll wait a few months”: EP to “Cel,” Nov. 23, 1949, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 64.
8 “I know that death”: EP, Ma vie, p 88.
9 “Our lives do not belong”: Ibid., p. 54.
10 “If it had gone on”: Simone Berteaut, “Simone Berteaut parle de Piaf,” Dim, Dam, Don (radio broadcast), 1969, quoted in Brierre, p. 94.
11 “Had he lived”: Monique Lange, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 54. This passage was omitted from the English edition of Lange, pp. 133–34.
12 “She brought to life”: Jean Antoine, “Edith Piaf de retour d’Amérique,” Paris-Presse, March 16, 1950, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 65.
13 “Piaf is a fallen angel”: Jean-François Noêl, “Edith Piaf lance face à Dieu le cri même de la terre,” Combat, March 15, 1950, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 66.
14 “I need to feel”: EP to Tony Frank, May 1, 1950, in Springer, p. 82.
15 “Marinette and I”: EP, Ma vie, p. 54.
16 “I don’t know”: EP to Tony Frank, May 4 and May 3, in Springer, pp. 94, 91.
17 “Playing with”: Klein, Florilège, p. 216.
18 “When she knows”: EP to Tony Frank, May 8, 1950, in Springer, pp. 106, 109.
19 “We live in a time”: EP to Tony Frank, May 15, 1950, in ibid., p. 114.
20 “I will never”: EP to Tony Frank, May 26, 1950, in ibid., pp. 118, 121.
21 her first American album: In July 1950, Piaf recorded “La Vie en rose,” “Hymn to Love,” “The Three Bells,” and “Simply a Waltz” at Columbia’s Paris studio.
22 “Edith always needed”: Aznavour, pp. 170–71. After sizing up Constantine at the nightclub, Chez Carrère, Aznavour urged the American to introduce himself to Piaf.
23 “Edith Piaf’s summer tour”: “La Randonée d’Edith Piaf se terminera par un mariage,” L’Aurore, Aug. 21, 1950, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 66.
24 “When she turned on”: Eddie Constantine quoted in France-Soir, Oct. 6, 1969, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 66.
25 “I should have dealt”: EP to JB, Oct. 23, 1950.
26 “Like a Mary Magdalene”: JB poem quoted in Catherine Dutheil-Pessin, La Chanson réaliste, pp. 299–300.
27 “He’s a good dancer”: Conversation quoted in Duclos and Martin, p. 313.
28 “[She] is a fine”: Roger Nimier, “Triomphe d’Achard,” in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, pp. 67–68.
29 “She proved that she”: Georges Ravon, in C’est la vie, no. 75, 1951, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 67.
30 “to console her”: Henri Spade, in France-Soir, Aug. 5, 1977, in Bonini, p. 323.
31 “Edith never knew”: Anon., quoted in ibid., p. 322.
32 “Edith liked to laugh”: Micheline Dax interview with the author, July 4, 2008.
33 “Edith outdid herself”: Micheline Dax, Je suis gugusse, voilà ma gloire, p. 53.
34 “It was essential”: EP, Ma vie, pp. 61–62.
35 Another new song: While continuing to write for Piaf (a total of six songs), Glanzberg also composed the score for Jacques Tati’s Mon Oncle and several classical pieces, including Yiddish Suite and Holocaust Lieder.
36 “Edith has found”: “Pa-Dam,” Samedi Soir, Nov. 24, 1951, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 68.
37 “the George Sand”: Maurice Fleury, “Edith Gassion (dite ‘Piaf’) est-elle la George Sand du XX siècle?,” Photo-Journal, Dec. 11, 1952, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, pp. 69–70.
38 “ange bleu”: EP letters to Louis “Toto” Gérardin dated Jan. 16, 1952, c. Jan. 26 1952, and June 19, 1952, quoted in Christie’s (Paris) press release, communication to the author by Patricia de Fougerolle, June 1, 2009.
39 “extraordinary”: René Rouzaud, in Marchois, Edith Piaf: Opinions, p. 232. Rouzaud wrote the lyrics for a number of Piaf’s songs, including “La Goualante du pauvre Jean.”
CHAPTER TWELVE • 1952–1956
1 “especially now”: “ ’Il n’y a que Paris … surtout maintenant!,” L’Aurore, March 22, 1952, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 68. EP’s unpublished letters to Gérardin reveal that she was on intimate terms with the cyclist during the spring of 1952, despite their concern about his wife’s jealousy.
2 their latest song: Although “Je t’ai dans la peau” translates as “I�
�ve Got You Under My Skin,” it is not the Cole Porter song of the same title.
3 “Jacques came back”: EP, Au bal, p. 155.
4 “Mlle. Heartbreak”: Life, Oct. 6, 1952, pp. 109–10.
5 “I’m truly happy”: EP to JB, Sept. 23, 1952. In this letter Piaf asks Bourgeat for copies of her favorite books, including Erasmus’s In Praise of Folly and Bergson’s Laughter.
6 “I don’t think she”: Philippe-Gérard, in Brierre, p. 114.
7 “In America”: EP to JB, Nov. 5, 1952.
8 “Her face was puffy”: Gassion, p. 136.
9 “I never thought”: Ibid., p. 141.
10 “What a joy”: EP to JC, Feb. 28, 1953, in Jean Cocteau, Le Passé défini, vol. 2, pp. 64–65.
11 “It was too big”: Simone Pills, in Marchois, Edith Piaf: Opinions, pp. 199–223, the source for subsequent quotations and information in this section.
12 “I was happy”: EP, Ma vie, pp. 77–78.
13 “good citizens”: Emile Vuillermoz, in Paris-Presse, April 24, 1953, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 70.
14 “conjugated and conjugal”: France-Soir, n.d., quoted in Duclos and Martin, p. 335.
15 “like a real lady”: Simone Pills, in Marchois, Edith Piaf: Opinions, p. 211.
16 “Last time I asked”: Simone Pills quoted in “Edith Piaf a reçu deux mains d’or,” in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 71.
17 “It was easy”: Rouzaud, in Marchois, Edith Piaf: Opinions, p. 231.
18 “Thank you for helping”: La Joie de vivre, broadcast Sept. 16, 1955, quoted in Notes, p. 62.
19 “After applauding”: “Spectacles,” L’Avenir de Bernay, May 1954.
20 “She’s fortunate”: Reported by EP in Radar, July 1954, in Duclos and Martin, p. 344.
21 “Nothing special”: Bonel and Bonel, p. 202.
22 Her new show: Critical tributes in this paragraph are from Edith Piaf and Her Continental Revue souvenir program. Angel issued two albums at this time, Bravo pour le clown and Piaf of Paris.
23 “I was so exhausted”: EP to JB, April 20, 1955.
24 “a deeply expressive soul”: “Au Her Majesty’s Piaf et sa revue continentale,” La Patrie, May 10, 1955, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 94.
25 “One needs a heart”: EP to JB, June 10, 1955. She added, “I have your friendship, the best of all, as I love you like my father, you’re my family, and with Loulou and Marguerite I have no complaints.”
26 “because I am passionately”: EP, “Demande d’affiliation à l’AMORC,” April 12, 1955, AMORC.
27 “a joie de vivre”: Anon., 1955, quoted in Bonel and Bonel, p. 249.
28 “When I come back”: EP to JB, Aug. 23, 1955.
29 “It was a time”: Bonel and Bonel, pp. 66–67.
30 “peace that is profound”: “profound peace” is a form of greeting and the aim of life for Rosicrucians.
31 Piaf’s repertoire: Piaf recorded both “Soudain, une vallée” and “L’Homme à la moto” on January 3, 1956, at the Capitol Studios in New York.
32 “She’s a moving bundle”: Maurice Chevalier, Ma Route et mes chansons, vol. 7, 1957, in Duclos and Martin, p. 354.
33 “I’ll come home”: EP to JB, Nov. 17, 1955.
34 “a stark mood”: Howard Taubman, “Music,” New York Times, Jan. 5, 1956, p. 25.
35 “Edith had already noticed”: Bonel and Bonel, p. 67.
36 “She always needed someone”: Barrier quoted in Duclos and Martin, p. 351.
37 “I’m caught”: EP to JB, Feb. 12, 1956.
38 “so I can listen”: EP to Jacques Pills, Feb. 21, 1956, BMD.
39 “I found a marvelous country”: EP interviewed on Music-Hall, June 1956, in Duclos and Martin, p. 359.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN • 1956–1959
1 “I was scared”: EP quoted in France Dimanche, July 1956, in Duclos and Martin, p. 361.
2 “It was galvanizing”: Guillaume Biro quoted in Bonini, p. 387.
3 “the image of a separation”: L’Aurore, June 7, 1956, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 95.
4 “We reached this decision”: Quoted in Duclos and Martin, p. 362.
5 “to show that existentialist”: Aznavour quoted in Duclos and Martin, p. 323.
6 “in which the slightest exaggeration”: Gilles Ravon, in Figaro littéraire [1956], quoted in Bonini, p. 389.
7 “She had that effect”: Marc Bonel quoted in ibid.
8 “something I’ve never had”: EP to JB, Oct. 5, 1956.
9 “It helped her”: Bonel and Bonel, p. 218. See also Bourgeat’s reply to Piaf’s request and account of Rosicrucianism (pp. 219–23).
10 “a sort of confusion”: EP to JB, Jan. 3, 1957.
11 “I didn’t bring”: EP quoted by Danielle Bonel, in Duclos and Martin, p. 365.
12 her best songs: English versions of “Les Amants d’un jour,” “Miséricorde,” “Heureuse,” and Asso’s “Un Jeune Homme chantait.”
13 “I had the worst”: EP quoted in Duclos and Martin, p. 366.
14 science of Spiritism: Kardec, the pseudonym of the French teacher Hippolyte Rivail (1804–69), was known for such works as The Spirits’ Book, The Book on Mediums, and The Gospel According to Spiritism.
15 “study spiritual science”: EP to JB, Feb. 16, 1957.
16 “Paname”: EP to JB, May 29, 1957.
17 “She was seeking”: Bonel and Bonel, p. 224. Bonel alludes to the “profound peace” of Rosicrucianism.
18 “After Jacques”: EP, Ma vie, p. 81.
19 “you’re in charge”: EP, March 19, 1958, quoted in Duclos and Martin, p. 373.
20 “an ear-splitting sound”: Claude Sarraute, in Le Monde, Feb. 8, 1958, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 97.
21 “the triumph of art”: Ibid.
22 “He should sing”: EP, radio program, Feb. 16, 1958, in Duclos and Martin, p. 378.
23 “Like so many”: Danielle Bonel quoted in Bonini, p. 410.
24 “She was a healthy woman”: André Schoeller quoted in ibid., pp. 415–16.
25 “Thanks to this”: Hugues Vassal, Dans les pas d’Edith Piaf, pp. 57–58.
26 “the Sunday crowd”: EP quoted in Paris-Presse [April 1958], in Bonini, p. 406.
27 “She wasn’t an addict”: Barrier quoted in ibid., pp. 407–8.
28 “I was fascinated”: Georges Moustaki, Les Filles de la mémoire, p. 67.
29 “Edith Piaf Gravement Malade?”: Noir et blanc, June 13, 1958. A reference on the cover to an article about a nun who left her order because she fell in love underscores the Piaf photo’s “spiritual” side, an aspect of her persona emphasized by the weekly, which also ran an article on her career entitled “Trente ans de succès ont épuisés les forces d’Edith Piaf” (pp. 384–85).
30 “It was not exactly”: Richer, p. 66.
31 “If one day”: EP quoted in France Dimanche [June 6, 1958], in Duclos and Martin, p. 385.
32 “ ‘Milord’ was typical”: Moustaki, in Notes, no. 153, 1998, pp. 69–70.
33 “of knowing how”: Moustaki interview with the author, June 29, 2008.
34 “You have to give”: Piaf and Moustaki quoted in Brierre, p. 132.
35 “a miracle”: EP quoted in France Dimanche, Jan. 6, 1958, in Duclos and Martin, p. 390.
36 “She’s made a marvelous comeback”: Barrier to JB, Jan. 23, 1959.
37 “She could breathe”: Georges Moustaki, “Madame Edith Piaf,” Humanité, Jan. 24, 1978.
38 “It’s over”: EP to Schoeller, Feb. 2, 1959, in Duclos and Martin, p. 396.
39 “Loulou, trouve-moi”: Barrier quoted in ibid.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN • 1959–1960
1 “Edith Piaf never lets you down”: Anon., “Edith Piaf, Queen of Hearts,” in Waldorf-Astoria Daily Bulletin, Feb. 24, 1959, MBA.
2 “it was as if homosexuality”: Danielle Bonel quoted in Bonini, p. 447.
3 “She’s indomitable”: Barrier to JB, Feb. 25, 1959.
4 Noir et blanc, March 6, 1959.
6 “The greater”: “Devenue philosophe en convalescence Edith Piaf chantera à nouveau,” Libération, March 13, 1959, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 99.
7 “Edith Piaf’s recent”: Jack Gould, “TV: ‘Springtime in Paris,’ ” New York Times, May 13, 1959, p. 71.
8 “She was very frail”: Darlene Davis Baker telephone interview with the author, May 29, 2009.
9 “There was so much love”: EP to Monnot, quoted in Paris-Journal, June 5, 1959, in Duclos and Martin, p. 401.
10 “What have you brought”: Paris-Journal, June 23, 1959, in Marchois, Piaf: Emportée, p. 100.
11 “that a man”: EP quoted in “Elle dit toujours: Ce n’est pas pour cette fois,” clipping [Dec. 1959], in ibid.
12 “exactly the kind”: EP to Georges Moustaki, read by Moustaki in Les Hommes de Piaf, film.
13 “fell literally”: Jean-Loup Dariel, in Le Figaro, July 12–13, 1959.
14 “It was unbearable”: Douglas Davis quoted in France Dimanche, Dec. 24, 1959, in Duclos and Martin, p. 404.
15 “a series of deaths”: EP quoted by Jean Noli, in France Dimanche, July 16, 1959, in ibid., p. 403.
16 “Her laughter”: “Elle dit toujours,” p. 100.
17 “This is how”: Hugues Vassal, interview with the author, March 1, 2008.
18 “abject beings”: Michel Rivgauche, in “Jean-Claude Brialy Raconte Edith Piaf,” Europe, vol. 1 (Aug. 1996), quoted in Brierre, p. 139.
19 “If I can’t keep singing”: EP quoted in Détective, Dec. 10, 1959, in Duclos and Martin, p. 407.
20 imagine not singing: Cinq colonnes à la une, broadcast Jan. 15, 1960.
21 “the novel of a life”: “Edith Piaf, le roman d’une vie,” Paris Match, Jan. 9, 1960, n.p.
22 “No more injections!”: EP’s notebooks are reproduced in Bonel and Bonel, pp. 178–80.
23 “There was a pas de deux”: Rivgauche, in Jean-Claude Labrecque’s film, 67 bis, boulevard Lannes, 1991, in Brierre, pp. 140–41.
24 “You gave me such joy”: Rivgauche to EP [c. May 1960], in Bonini, p. 459.
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