Historical Figures Codexery

Mistinguett

The highest-paid female entertainer of her time, Mistinguett captivated Paris with her magnetism and risqué routines.

The performer known as Mistinguett was born Jeanne Florentine Bourgeois on 5 April 1873 and worked as a French actress and singer.[1] For a period, she earned more than any other female entertainer globally.[1]

Quick Facts

Birth name
Jeanne Florentine Bourgeois
Born
5 April 1873
Birthplace
Enghien-les-Bains, France
Died
5 January 1956
Place of death
Bougival, France

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

Mistinguett was born in Enghien-les-Bains to a labourer father and a seamstress mother.[2][3] She adopted stage names including Miss Helyett, Miss Tinguette, Mistinguette, and finally Mistinguett.[4] She performed at venues including the Folies Bergère, Moulin Rouge, and Eldorado.[5] She had a son, Leopoldo João de Lima e Silva, born in 1901 from a liaison with a Brazilian diplomat.[6]

Mistinguett died in Bougival at age 82 and is buried in Cimetière Enghien-les-Bains.[7] Her professional life started with selling flowers and singing popular ballads at a restaurant in her hometown.[8] Her initial silent film, L’Empreinte ou la Main Rouge, was released in 1908, and her first talkie came out in 1936.[9][4] In 1919, an insurance policy was taken out on her legs for 500,000 francs.[9][4]

What the cited sources add

The Moulin Rouge account states she first performed there in 1907 in the "Revue de la Femme" after meeting Jacques-Charles.[10] The France Today article notes she was once the highest paid entertainer in the world and a household name across France.[3] David's article describes her as "the Queen of the Music Hall" and notes that "mistinguett" became a term for any young woman who pays attention to her appearance.[4] The same source reports she recorded "Mon Homme" in 1916, which became a massive hit.[4]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Mistinguett" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Du Noyer, "The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Music", Flame Tree Publishing, 2003, p. 420 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Mistinguett" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Town of Soisy sous Montmorency, "History of Soisy""; Flanner, Janet, Paris Journal, Volume Two, 1956—1964 (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1965), page 6 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. "In the Footsteps of Maurice Chevalier and Mistinguett", France Today, 2022-11-21. facts only, no text reused. francetoday.com
  4. David, "A brief history of the original Mistinguett", www.connexionfrance.com, 2021-04-26. facts only, no text reused. connexionfrance.com
  5. Wikipedia, "Mistinguett" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Mistinguett", Moulin Rouge (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Mistinguett" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Jeanne Bourgeois (Mistinguett), genealogy (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Mistinguett" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Flanner, Janet, Paris Journal, Volume Two, 1956—1964 (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1965), page 6 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Mistinguett" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: David, "A brief history of the original Mistinguett", www.connexionfrance.com, 2021-04-26 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  9. Wikipedia, "Mistinguett" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: David, "A brief history of the original Mistinguett", www.connexionfrance.com, 2021-04-26; Du Noyer, "The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Music", Flame Tree Publishing, 2003, p. 420 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  10. "Mistinguett", Moulin Rouge. facts only, no text reused. moulinrouge.fr

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Mistinguett (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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