René Clair's Porte des lilas | The Gates of Paris (1957)

René Clair's Porte des lilas is based on René Fallet's novel La Grand Ceinture, and it is fitting that a very rare acting appearance of one of the main stars, the awesome singer George Brassens, was a friend of Fallet. He plays L'Artiste, an unemployed guy like his friend Juju (Pierre Brasseur), an alcoholic who frequents the local café run by Alphonse (Raymond Bussières), whose daughter Maria (Dany Carrel) is in constant presence there.

And then along comes Pierre Barbier (Henri Vidal), a man who's killed three men and is escaping from the police. Barbier hides in L'Artiste's cellar, and being anarchists (Brassens is in some respects playing to type) the two friends conceal him from the law. Meanwhile Maria, who has fallen in love with Barbier, wants to go away with him, but the problem for the now sober Juju is that he's fallen in love with Maria. Maria obtains the money for Barbier's escape, with which she intends to leave with him. But on learning that Barbier isn't interested and will simply run away with the money, Juju kills him with Barbier's own gun.

Alain Poulanges: Boby Lapointe : ou les mamelles du destin (2012)

Boby Lapointe (1922–1972), about whom I have written several posts on this blog, was a singer, writer and mathematician of some brilliance. He was born and died in Pézenas (Hérault), although he spent most of his mature years in Paris. Alain Poulange's biography is by far the best work that has been written on Boby, although – five years after its publication – it is out of print. Which is a pity, as he seems to be more popular today than he was in his lifetime, and only several weeks ago Le Monde included him in their Géants de la chanson series.

Boby's singing involves great use of puns and other play on words, Spoonerisms, nonsense, general absurdity, and it is perhaps unsurprising that a number of people have found his work too difficult to understand, although to contradict this many children have also enjoyed his playfulness. Even just after the age of twenty he was using a pun in a very serious situation: he escaped from the Nazi work camp (Service du Travail Obligatoire, usually called STO) and made his way back to Pézenas as Robert Foulcan (for which read fout le camp, which of course is exactly what he was doing).

The book charts his love of women, his love of wine, his sense of humour, and his inability to deal with money. He was very fortunate to have Georges Brassens (who too didn't care much for money, although he had enough of it) change his bald car tyres for new ones, even give him a new car and help his family out.

There are many humorous moments in this book, such as the attempts to take a plaster cast of his penis, or the fact that (as Pierre Perret notes in the Preface) he could even joke about dying of cancer: usually late for gigs, he suddenly as if by miracle started turning up early for them: when other performers took a long time getting to a venue because of the difficulty parking, Boby simply parked on the pavement: his reasoning was that he wouldn't have to pay the fines because he'd be dead.

We're lucky to have this book. But why hasn't it been re-printed?

My other Boby Lapointe posts:
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The Birth and Death of Boby Lapointe in Pézenas, Hérault (34)
Musée Boby Lapointe, Pézenas, Hérault (34)
Boby Lapointe Sculptures in Pézenas, Hérault (34)

Georges Brassens, 14th arrondissement, Paris

L'impasse Floriment, Plaisance.

'GEORGES BRASSENS

HABITA CETTE IMPASSE

DE 1944 À 1966.

IL Y ÉCRIVIT

SES PREMIÈRES CHANSONS'

'DANS CETTE IMPASSE

EST NÉ

PIERRE NICOLAS

1921–1990

MUSICIEN ET CONTREBASSISTE

DE GEORGES BRASSENS'

In March 1943 Georges Brassens was working in Basdorf, Germany, under the Nazi compulsory work programme. A year later he was given a fortnight's leave, but never returned. Jeanne Planche and her husband sheltered him from the Gestapo at 9 impasse Floriment under primitive conditions, complete with hens, cats and dogs. Brassens was to remain there for twenty-two years.

'GEORGES BRASSENS 

Poète, musicien et chanteur 

vécut dans cette maison 

de 1944 à 1966.

"ET QUE J’EMPORTE ENTRE LES DENTS 

UN FLOCON DES NEIGES D’ANTAN…"

The plaque above was the brainchild of 'Les Amis de Georges' and erected in 1994. The cats below, created in memory of the many cats Jeanne befriended, are in terra cotta and were made by the potter Michel Mathieu:

Georges Brassens in the 15th arrondissement, Paris

Poet and singer Georges Brassens (1921–81) lived in rue Santos-Dumont not far from the park now named after him in the 15th arrondissement.

A sign in the park says the bust of Brassens is by Creck, although I can find no information on this person.

I could only find two stones on which extracts from poems were inscribed, and assume that earlier there were a number but that they went astray. This one reads:

'Auprès de mon arbre

Auprès de mon arbre,
Je vivais heureux,
J'aurais jamais dû m'éloigner de mon arbre...
Auprès de mon arbre,
Je vivais heureux,
J'aurais jamais dû le quitter des yeux.

'Discours de fleurs

Sachant bien que même si
Je suis amoureux transi,
Jamais ma main ne les cueille
De bon cœur les fleurs m'accueillent.'

 

François-Xavier Lalanne (1927–2008) sculpted the cart and donkey.

There's also a small vineyard and an apiary here, but this is the main attraction: at the east (rue Brancion) side of the park, every weekend of the year, is the Marché du livre ancien et d'occasion, a covered market (simply known as 'Brassens' in the trade) where secondhand and antiquarian books have been sold since 1987.

The attractive Parc Georges Brassens.