My kind of Diva - Line Renaud

I thought a "My kind of Diva" post was well overdue, so to make amends here we go with the wonderful Line Renaud!

A true Mademoiselle from Armentières, Line Renaud began life as Jacqueline Enté in Pont-de-Nieppe on 2 July 1928. As far as I can tell, the only famous person ever to come from there.

Situated by the Belgian border, it is 42 km southeast of Dunkerque or Dunkirk. The only places of interest are Château de Nieppe (a rather dull looking country house not a castle) and the cemeteries of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

Not the most promising of beginnings for a Diva, but  from the midst of northern France Line Renaud went on to conquer Paris and bathe in the glittering lights of Las Vegas.

Never what you would call a great looker, and with what was thought of as a common, Northern, working class accent, she made it to the top with sheer talent and has stayed at the top right up till today.

Lets see her in action.

She made her national debut on Radio Luxembourg, singing on a Sunday morning programme.

A contract with Pathe Marconi was followed by her recording of "Ma Cabane au Canada", written by Loulou Gasté, which won le Grand Prix du Disque.

She also sang with Yves Montand and recorded with Dean Martin.
Whilst performing at Moulin Rouge she met Bob Hope and consequently appeared in five episodes of The Bob Hope Show.

Line Renaud performed at the Waldorf Astoria, the Coconut Grove and in a Las Vegas show.

She helped save the  Casino de Paris, when it was threatened with closing, by putting on a show called "Paris – Line" with Loulou Gasté, which ran for four years.

Line Renaud Plaisirs 1959

Line also found time to clock up 23 films (58 if you include TV movies) between 1946 and 2008.

In 1950, she married "Loulou" Gasté and stayed with him until his death in 1995. One of the great marriages of all time. She was 16 when she met  her song writer hero (b. Luis Gasté) -  he was 37.

"Loulou" become her mentor, changing her image and her name to Renaud - her mother's maiden name.

Here is the lucky man inbetween Line Renaud and Dalida:

and the truly wonderful birthday tribute to Aznavour follows next.

If this does not bring a lump to your throat then nothing ever could!

Still working and recording and filming, Line Renaud also found time in 1985, to create  "l'Association des Artistes Contre le Sida", and organised televised art events to raise funds for helping AIDS research in France. In 1989 she put on a one-off show which retraced her forty year career.

In 2009, she used her position as Vice-President of Sidaction to condemn the statements of Pope Benedict XVI, who claimed that condoms promote AIDS.

I will leave you with her singing a track from her last album Rue Washington published in 2010

ttfn