Category: Paris

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“A Painted Lady”

Each generation is attached to one or more celebrities who take self-promotion to the highest level through publicity and somehow differentiating themselves. My parents had George Hamilton, the eternally tanned “actor” . . . well, we’re still not sure why he was a celebrity although his ads for Kentucky Fried Chicken were hilarious. My generation had Paris Hilton who was just as tan as George and . . . well, we’re still trying to figure out why she was a celebrity. Our children’s generation has been blessed with Miley Cyrus, Lindsay Lohan, the Kardashians, and Britney Spears, just to name a few. Watch “Extra Crispy” George Hamilton here.

George Hamilton. Photo by Angela George (2009). PD-CCA-Share Alike 3.0 Unported. Wikimedia Commons.
George Hamilton. Photo by Angela George (2009). PD-CCA-Share Alike 3.0 Unported. Wikimedia Commons.
Paris Hilton. Photo by Peter Schäfermeier (2005). Universal Photo. PD-CCA-Share Alike 2.5 Generic. Wikimedia Commons.
Paris Hilton. Photo by Peter Schäfermeier (2005). Universal Photo. PD-CCA-Share Alike 2.5 Generic. Wikimedia Commons.

My grandparents would have undoubtedly been well aware of a young lady who never had today’s media resources for self-promotion (e.g., social media, podcasts, television, and tattoo sleeves). In those days, it was accomplished through publicity agents and gossip columnists such as Walter Winchell, Hedda Hopper, and Louella Parsons via newspapers and radio. The subject of our blog today lived in France and had a very unique personal method for turning herself into a rich international celebrity.

Suzy Solidor. Photo by Studio Harcourt (date unknown). Ministère de la Culture- Médiathèque de l’architecture et du patrimonine. Dist. RMN.
Suzy Solidor. Photo by Studio Harcourt (date unknown). Ministère de la Culture- Médiathèque de l’architecture et du patrimonine. Dist. RMN.

She was a beautiful woman. Her face and figure represent what we consider today to be the iconic image of the 1920s jazz age flapper: thin, broad shoulders, short blonde bob, and dressed in long flowing tight gowns. A well-known singer, actress, and cabaret star, Suzy Solidor’s self-promotion was her face and body captured in paintings and photographs by more than 225 artists. I don’t even think the Sun God, King Louis XIV, had that many portraits commissioned of himself during his seventy-two-year reign.

For more than thirty years, Suzy was the most popular model for artists and in fact, she became the most painted lady of her generation. I suppose her portraits were the forerunners to the “selfies” which Miley Cyrus and others like to post to social media. The difference is, Suzy’s “selfies” hang on the walls of museums and private collectors’ homes.

Did You Know?

Did you know that over the years, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) has banned some pretty innocuous songs? Considering the recent uproar in the United States over the ban by selective radio stations of the 1949 Academy Award-winning song, Baby, It’s Cold Outside, I thought you might like to see this list, albeit certainly not all-inclusive.

Ding Dong the Witch is Dead (1939)             Sung by the Wizard of Oz film cast

Why banned? The song disrespected the deceased (and the BBC wasn’t referring to the Wicked Witch of the West). Actually, a band called Hefner released “The Day That Thatcher Dies” and used the Oz song at the end. It was a dig towards the former British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, who had just passed away (2013). And I thought it was all about one of my high school teachers.

Deep in the Heart of Texas (1941)                 Sung by Bing Crosby

Why banned? The song was “too jaunty.” It was feared that factory workers would stop working in order to clap their hands. As I’ve always said, “I don’t make this stuff up.”

Monster Mash (1962)                                    Sung by Bobby Pickett & The Crypt-Kickers

Why banned? The song was too morbid. Really?

Leader of the Pack (1964)                              Sung by The Shangri-Las

Why banned? It talked about teenage death. I guess Ozzie Osbourne hadn’t hit the charts yet.

Lola (1970)                                                      Sung by The Kinks

Why banned? The BBC didn’t like the song advertising Coca-Cola. So, Ray Davies changed the lyrics to “Cherry cola.” At least Jim Morrison never gave in to Ed Sullivan on changing the lyrics to the song, “Light My Fire” before singing it on the Ed Sullivan Show ⏤ The Doors were permanently banned from the show.

Let’s Meet Suzy Solidor 

Suzy Solidor (1900-1983) was born in Brittany, France to an unwed mother and her employer. When her mother married another man, Eugène Rocher, Suzy took his last name. At the age of sixteen, Suzy obtained her drivers license and the next year, drove an ambulance on the front lines during World War I. After the war, Suzy moved to Paris and in the late 1920s, she changed her last name to Solidor, the name of a district where she had once lived. Read More “A Painted Lady”

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“Sex Toy and Other Père Lachaise Neighbors”

Did you find this blog in your computer junk file? I have a feeling today’s blog might end up there because of the title. But don’t worry, it’s not what you might think. So, I hope everyone took my advice from our last blog and checked their junk file.

Today, we are going to visit with some occupants of Paris’s best-known cemetery: Père Lachaise. We’ll start with Delphine Palatsi and then introduce you to some of the inhabitants, who like Delphine, you’ve likely never heard of. However, I guarantee you that they all had very interesting lives.

Most of the books written about Père Lachaise contain very famous and well-known celebrities such as Oscar Wilde, Edith Piaf, Colette, and naturally, Jim Morrison. However, I want to be different so, my future book, Where Did They Bury Jim Morrison? A Walking Tour of Curious Paris Cemeteries will take you around and introduce you to people who have disappeared into the black hole of history. The common thread is that all of them led interesting lives and in one way or another, were historically significant in their day ⏤ some even left legacies we appreciate today. You’ll visit Baron Haussmann, Jane Avril, Ferdinand de Lesseps, and Guy Môquet as well as some occupants (e.g., Rin Tin Tin ⏤ the dog, remember?) of other curious Paris cemeteries.

In the meantime, let me give you a sneak preview and introduce you to Sex Toy and some of her Père Lachaise neighbors including the most erotic effigy in the cemetery (or any other cemetery for that matter).

Did You Know?

Did you know that when all of us  are gone, our children are not going to want most of the “stuff” we’ve accumulated over our lifetime? Their generation has no desire to hold onto great grandma’s set of china plates or grandma’s complete set of silverware (and I mean real silver, not the silver-plated stuff). Your stamp collection? You might as well start to learn how to become a seller on eBay. None of this stuff has any meaning or significance to them.

However, many of us have kept lots of paper. This is paper which documents parts of our lives as well as the people in our lives. A personal example I can use is the two-and-a-half-inch stack of Aerogramme Luchtpostblad (a sheet of light paper folded and sealed to form a letter for sending by airmail) which my father gave me years ago. These are letters my mother wrote to my grandparents when we were living in Holland during the mid-1960s. It seems my grandmother kept every letter and before she passed away, gave the stack of letters to Mom. The letters pretty much document most of our years living in Holland and highlight events I had forgotten about or rekindle an untold story to an event that I do remember.Air Mail Letter I’m not too sure if our children want these letters but if they don’t, I’m going to brainwash our grandchildren into believing they need them. Better yet, I’ll make it a condition of taking the letters (and the silverware) if they want to get their grubby little hands on our art collection (just kidding kids ⏤ well, sort of).

Let’s Meet Delphine Palatsi – Division 28

Let’s stop by and pay our respects to Sex Toy. Yes, she went by this name ⏤ she might have had it legally changed because it’s on her grave. Delphine Palatsi (1968-2002) was a groundbreaking Parisian DJ specializing in electronic or techno music. I’m not too sure what the technical or street names are for this type of music. You see, like the song says, “I like that old time rock n’roll.” Read More “Sex Toy and Other Père Lachaise Neighbors”