"You talk like Marlene Dietrich
And you dance like Zizi Jeanmaire
Your clothes are all made by Balmain
And there's diamonds and pearls in your hair"
And so, farewell to another legend - the magnificent Zizi Jeanmaire.
The darling of Paris cabaret, she trained at Paris Opera Ballet, danced with Nureyev, and starred in films such as Hans Christian Andersen (opposite Danny Kaye) and Anything Goes with Bing Crosby. Her costumes were designed by Yves Saint Laurent, her trademark "gamine" hairstyle went on to influence the likes of Audrey Hepburn, Shirley MacLaine and the 1960s "waifs" in Swinging London, and with her choreographer Roland Petit she became a leading player in the "jet-set" art-house scene, collaborating with such luminaries as Andy Warhol...
...and, as the song translates, she adored her "feathery things"!
RIP, Renée Marcelle "Zizi" Jeanmaire (29th April 1924 – 17th July 2020)
