Jacqueline Jeanne Paule Maillan (11 January 1923 - 12 May 1992) was a French actress with a career spanning almost five decades, known primarily for her forty theatre productions, she also appeared in more than fifty films (1947 to 1992) and is remembered as one of the greatest comedic thespians of her generation and even nicknamed "The

Louis de Funès Louis Germain David de Funès de Galarza (; 31 July 1914 – 27 January 1983) was a French actor and comedian. He is France's favourite actor, according to a series of polls conducted since the late 1960s, having played over 150 roles in fil ...

in skirt". After working on the classics of French theatre, she excelled in playing exuberant, strong and powerful women in

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

and

boulevard A boulevard is a type of broad avenue planted with rows of trees, or in parts of North America, any urban highway. Boulevards were originally circumferential roads following the line of former city walls. In American usage, boulevards may ...

on stage or in such films as

Jean-Marie Poiré Jean-Marie Poiré (; born 10 July 1945) is a French film director, and screenwriter. He is the son of the producer Alain Poiré. Filmography As director * '' Les petits câlins'' (''The Little Wheedlers'') (1978) * '' Retour en force'' (''Ret ...

's cult '' Gramps Is in the Resistance'' ( French: ''Papy fait de la résistance'',1983) before pioneering

stand-up Stand-up comedy is a comedic performance to a live audience in which the performer addresses the audience directly from the stage. The performer is known as a comedian, a comic or a stand-up. Stand-up comedy consists of one-liners, stories, ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. Her husband Michel Emer, who was

Edith Piaf Edith is a feminine given name derived from the Old English words ēad, meaning 'riches or blessed', and is in common usage in this form in English, German, many Scandinavian languages and Dutch. Its French form is Édith. Contractions and var ...

's composer, helped her hide her bisexuality (if not her sole

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to pe ...

) from the public as they lived as a 'free couple' when it was then deeply stigmatized during the 1950s and 1960s. She was made a Chevalier ( French: ''Knight'') of the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

and Officer of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres.

Selected filmography

References

External links

* * * 1923 births 1992 deaths French stage actresses French film actresses French television actresses Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur Officiers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres Death in Paris Burials at the Cimetière parisien de Bagneux 20th-century French women {{France-actor-stub