Françoise Giroud (born Lea France Gourdji; 21 September 1916 – 19 January 2003), was a French journalist, screenwriter, writer, and politician.

Biography

Giroud was born in

Lausanne Lausanne ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of towns in Switzerland, city of the Swiss French-speaking Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Vaud, in Switzerland. It is a hilly city situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, about halfway bet ...

, Switzerland to immigrant Sephardi Turkish Jewish parents; her father was Salih Gourdji Al Baghdadi, Director of the Agence Télégraphique Ottomane in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

.Obituary
in the London ''Independent'' (published 21 January 2003) She was educated at the Collège de Groslay and the Lycée Molière in Paris. She did not graduate from university.
''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'', published 20 January 2003 She married and had two children, a son (who died before her) and a daughter.

Career

Giroud's work in cinema began with director Marc Allégret as a script-girl on his 1932 adaptation of Marcel Pagnol's play '' Fanny''. In 1936, she worked with

Jean Renoir Jean Renoir (; 15 September 1894 – 12 February 1979) was a French film director, screenwriter, actor, producer and author. His '' La Grande Illusion'' (1937) and '' The Rules of the Game'' (1939) are often cited by critics as among the greate ...

on the set of '' Grand Illusion''. She later wrote screenplays, 30 books (both fiction and non-fiction), and wrote newspaper columns. She was the editor of ''Elle'' magazine from 1946 (shortly after it was founded) until 1953, when she and her then-partner

Jean-Jacques Servan-Schreiber Jean-Jacques Servan-Schreiber, often referred to as JJSS (13 February 19247 November 2006), was a French journalist and politician. He co-founded in 1953 with Françoise Giroud, and then went on to become president of the Radical Party in 19 ...

founded the newsmagazine . She edited until 1971, then was its director until 1974, when she began her political career.

Political career

In 1974, French President

Valéry Giscard d'Estaing Valéry René Marie Georges Giscard d'Estaing (, ; ; 2 February 19262 December 2020), also known as simply Giscard or VGE, was a French politician who served as President of France from 1974 to 1981. After serving as Ministry of the Economy ...

nominated Giroud to the position of Secretary of State for women's rights, which she held from 16 July 1974 until 27 August 1976, when she was appointed to the position of

Minister of Culture A culture minister or a heritage minister is a common cabinet position in governments. The culture minister is typically responsible for cultural policy, which often includes arts policy (direct and indirect support to artists and arts organiza ...

. She remained in that position until March 1977, for a total service of 32 months, serving in the cabinets of prime ministers

Jacques Chirac Jacques René Chirac (, ; ; 29 November 193226 September 2019) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. He was previously Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and 1986 to 1988, as well as Mayor of Pari ...

and Raymond Barre. She was a member of the centrist Radical Party. Giroud often said that her goal was to get France "out of its rut", contrasting France with the dynamism and optimism she saw in the United States. On her first visit to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

soon after World War 2 ended, she had been struck by "the degree of optimism, the exhilaration" she had found there. That view stayed with her: "There is a strength in the United States that we in Europe constantly tend to underestimate." Giroud gave the commencement address at the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

on May 1, 1976.

Later activities

Giroud received the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

. She led Action Against Hunger, a humanitarian aid organization, from 1984 to 1988. From 1989 to 1991, she was president of a commission to improve cinema-ticket sales. She was a literary critic for the weekly '' Le Journal du Dimanche'', and she contributed a weekly column to '' Le Nouvel Observateur'' from 1983 until her death. Giroud died at the American Hospital of Paris on September 21, 2003 while being treated for a head wound incurred in a fall. A special issue of covered Giroud's death. It stated: :Women everywhere have lost something. Ms. Giroud defended them so intelligently and so strongly.The Honorable Lucie Pépin, Senator

Published works

* (1953) * (1954) * (1958) *''I Give You my Word'' (1973) * (1977) * (1978) * (1983) * (1981) (published in English as ''Marie Curie: A Life'' (1986)) * (screenplay) (1984) *''Dior'' (1987) * (1988) * (, 1990) * (television series) (1991) * (1992) * (with Bernard-Henri Lévy, 1993). * (1994) * (1999) * (2000) * (2000) * (2001) * (2003)

Filmography

* '' Promise to a Stranger'' (1942) * ''

Fantômas Fantômas () is a fictional character created by French writers Marcel Allain (1885–1969) and Pierre Souvestre (1874–1914). One of the most popular characters in the history of French crime fiction, Fantômas was created in 1911 and appeared ...

'' (1946) * '' The Angel They Gave Me'' (1946) * '' Last Love'' (1949) * '' Love, Madame'' (1952) * '' A Girl on the Road'' (1952) * '' A Woman's Treasure'' (1953) * '' Le Bon Plaisir'' (1984)

References

;Citations ;Bibliography *''Françoise Giroud, une ambition française'', an authorized biography by Christine Ockrent (2003)

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Giroud, Francoise 1916 births 2003 deaths Accidental deaths from falls Writers from Lausanne Politicians from Lausanne 20th-century French Sephardi Jews Radical Party (France) politicians Union for French Democracy politicians French women journalists French magazine founders Ministers of culture of France Analysands of Jacques Lacan French women company founders French women screenwriters 20th-century French women writers Elle (magazine) writers Women government ministers of France Jewish women writers 20th-century French screenwriters French people of Turkish-Jewish descent Jewish women politicians