Concert connoisseurs, were Marlene Dietrich's first French shows at Paris' Theatre de l'Etoile between 1959-1960? Nowadays, people write more about Dietrich's drama-filled dates in Germany during 1960, overshadowing her Parisian triumph. If it weren't for Uli's classic site, I wouldn't be able to keep up with these details. Thankfully, I've got an additional reminder--an interview that Dietrich gave to Kerry Ellard on January 6, 1960, which is available from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) Digital Archives.
In this interview, Dietrich is sweeter than maple syrup, praising Burt Bacharach, Alexander Fleming, Jonas Salk, and Ernest Hemingway ("the wock of Gibwaltaw of my life"). Dietrich also shares that she prefers stage shows to making movies, that she lacks ambition (très "laziest girl in town"), that she wouldn't have dared to perform in Paris in the past, that she doesn't get stage fright, that Witness for the Prosecution was her only real part, that she's sick of the "grandmother" image, and that she looks for men who are intelligent and not stupid squares. Oddly, she credits the British for her gender-bending tuxedo act. Enjoy this clip!
EDIT: !@#$ it! I can't get the clip to stop autoplaying. Click the "Read more" link below, and it will load.
In this interview, Dietrich is sweeter than maple syrup, praising Burt Bacharach, Alexander Fleming, Jonas Salk, and Ernest Hemingway ("the wock of Gibwaltaw of my life"). Dietrich also shares that she prefers stage shows to making movies, that she lacks ambition (très "laziest girl in town"), that she wouldn't have dared to perform in Paris in the past, that she doesn't get stage fright, that Witness for the Prosecution was her only real part, that she's sick of the "grandmother" image, and that she looks for men who are intelligent and not stupid squares. Oddly, she credits the British for her gender-bending tuxedo act. Enjoy this clip!
EDIT: !@#$ it! I can't get the clip to stop autoplaying. Click the "Read more" link below, and it will load.
Marlene chanta le 14 juillet 1939 place de l'Opéra, à Paris. Elle reprit "Quand l'amour meurt", la valse 1900 qu'elle interprétait dans "Morocco" et "Auprès de ma blonde", une vieille chanson française du début de XVIIIème siècle.
ReplyDelete"Auprès de ma blonde,
Qu'il fait bon, fait bon, fait bon,
Auprès de ma blonde,
Qu'il fait bon, fait bon dormir"...
Je considère son intervention le 14 juillet 39 comme un soutien aux démocraties contre Hitler. Pendant l'Occupation, le 14 juillet était interdit de célébration.
Elle a donné un concert à l'Olympia réservé aux soldats en mai 1946.
Son spectacle du 27 novembre 1959 au Théâtre de l'Etoile est donc son premier véritable show. Le théâtre ferma en 1964.
Son retour à l'Olympia en 1962 (11-31 mai) fut un grand succès. Elle enregistra un EP en français. La presse parla longuement des exigences de Marlene et du soulagement du personnel du théâtre au départ de "l'Ange" bleu...
Elle revint chanter en 1973 (19-20 septembre, 29 septembre - 10 octobre) à l'Espace Cardin. "L'Espace" n'était pas un théâtre, il n'y avait pas de rideau, le sol de la scène était en plastique... Marlene fit installer un rideau rouge et exigea un parquet en bois... Orson Welles lui avait dit qu'il fallait toujours un rideau, très utile pour cacher une faiblesse passagère en se retenant à lui... Cardin répète toujours que Marlene est la femme qui lui coûta le plus d'argent... Mais il ajoute que cela en valait la peine.
En fin de compte, Marlene a peu chanté en France. Et toujours à Paris. Pourquoi ?
What a wonderful find! I never tire of listening to Dietrich speak for one, and another, the part I really liked to hear (and always like to hear) was the acknowledgement that her early Hollywood roles were based on personality, the star power factor. I feel this invalidates criticism of her acting ability - I firmly believe that when required to act, she can.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, Dietrich was sweet in this interview. How accommodating and charming to the interviewer.
I loved the way she almost shouted"Burt Bacharach",but did you notice that some of "R's" were fine.Paul
ReplyDeleteFabrice, I am guessing that Dietrich was wearing a tuxedo during that 1939 performance. Are there photos, audio, or video from it? I know of that old French song but never knew Dietrich sang it. By the way, your insight about the political implications of Dietrich's performance on Bastille Day add to the list of her pro-French acts.
ReplyDeleteCara, I think one aspect of Dietrich's acting that almost never gets enough credit is her comedic strength. Even early in her American career, she was funny. Her German peasant routine in Dishonored always makes me laugh, especially when she starts meowing.
Paul, she was quite enthusiastic about Burt in this interview! Her accent really wasn't so prominent here, but I do wonder what accent Dietrich was going for. Is it that old Hollywood Transatlantic one?
J'avais fait une vidéo de la valse de Crémieux et Milandy sur YT quand j'étais LilyMarleneDietrich...
ReplyDeletehttp://youtu.be/gPdD6qSMVQk
En revanche, "Auprès de ma blonde" doit dormir dans des archives jamais publiées, ou perdues, hélas...
J'aime beaucoup quand pour expliquer l'accent allemand de Marlene Hollywod la présente comme une Française : Madeleine de Beaupré, Claire Ledeux, Blanche Ferrand, Marquise de Crèvecoeur,... Et Bijou et Frenchy ?
Joseph, there is newsreel footage of that 1939 performance (she's wearing a dress) and it was broadcast in the US on NBC.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Fabrice and missladiva!
ReplyDeleteFabrice, I didn't know that was your account. Do you use a new one, or have you stopped posting videos?
About Marlene being presented as a French woman rather than a German, I have an unfounded belief that American audiences regard French women as sexy, stylish femmes fatales and German women as fat, dumpy hausfrauen. Maybe this stereotype exists in Europe, too, because you mentioned Dietrich's Marquise the Crevecoeur character from the very off-Hollywood flick, The Monte Carlo Story. That movie reeked with a potpourri of national caricatures, particularly that garish Latin woman (was she Argentinian?) and that bovine Bavarian.
Now, if we're going to talk Germans, my sympathies go out to the men! Almost any time I see a movie with a German male character, he's a Nazi. It's as egregious has always depicting Italian men as mafiosos and Arab men as terrorists.
Joseph, j'avais perdu l'accès à certaines de mes chaînes. Quelqu'un avait changé le mot de passe, d'après YT. Je n'y crois pas. J'ai posté beaucoup de vidéos, je n'ai plus d'idées et... je n'aime pas le nouveau YT.
ReplyDeleteIl faut dire que je suis passé de "serial youtuber" à "serial blogger" : j'ai crée cinq blogs en un mois ! Il faut que je me calme... Ce nouveau moyen de partager me passionne en ce moment.
Qui disait : "J'ai des fidélités successives" ? Un Français, sûrement. Je suis fidèle à Marlene...
"The Monte Carlo Story" est un anachronisme, une comédie des années 30 réalisée vingt ans trop tard...
Ah, les clichés nationaux ! Ils ont la vie dure. Je ne vois pas beaucoup de différences entre "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" et "Catch me if you can"... Pourtant Spielberg a voyagé. Quand je vois ça, j'en ai le béret qui tombe de la tête et j'ai envie de frapper avec la baguette de pain que je me suis faite greffer sous le bras !
A bientôt, cowboy ;-)
Well, I'm sure we all appreciate what you have made available on YouTube. I know how to convert YouTube content to mp3s, which allows me to enjoy what you've shared away from my computer (yes, I do shut it off from time to time!).
DeleteYour maniacal tendencies are delightful, and it's better that you're a serial YouTuber and blogger than a serial rapist or killer.;) With all your intelligent comments here, I think you should start writing editorial-type entries on your blog. Perhaps that wouldn't interest you, but you'd have a lot to say that would hopefully pique the interest of French Dietrich fans.
The Monte Carlo Story is difficult for me to watch. Hardly anything happens, none of the lines are memorable, and the cinematography is sinful considering the picturesque locale. The only part I enjoy is the parade of stereotypes at the beginning. On the subject of French stereotype, my favorite was the Looney Tunes character, Pepe Le Pew.
En France, Pepe le Putois a l'accent italien !
DeleteJe suis conscient que mon blog ressemble à un simple catalogue plus qu'à un blog véritable, je vais faire un petit effort de rédaction, mais comme je n'ai pas encore de messages, je ne sais si le blog intéresse les gens qui y passent et s'ils y reviennent. Il est plus facile de répondre à vos articles passionnants, documentés et plein d'esprit.
Merci Joseph.
What? Next, you'll be telling me that Speedy Gonzalez has a Chinese accent!
DeleteYour blog is fine, but I think you might get more attention if you shared your collection on Tumblr. I would write comments, but you'd probably grow bored of reading "How pretty!" again and again.