Pierre Stephen
(COMÉDIENS)
63 Rue Damrémont, 75018 Paris, France
Son of an optician from the rue de Rennes in Paris, Pierre Stephen (real name Pierre Trambouze) entered the Conservatoire in 1906 after studying at the Collège Chaptal. At the end of the Conservatoire, he was hired at the Théâtre de l’Odéon. In 1920, he married the actress Yvonne Thénard and the same year featured in his first film, Irène directed by Marcel Dumont. Between 1920 and 1962, he appeared in a more than seventy TV and cinema films, most often in the roles of a silly, shy and stuttering lover. He was also an artist, known for his caricatures and publicity drawings.

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Fernand Verstraete
(Trompette)
8 Rue Vauvenargues, 75018 Paris, France
Fernand Verstraete (1925-1992) was a jazz trumpeter, trombonist, accordionist, bandleader and arranger. He was active on the French jazz scene and played in Jacques Hélian’s orchestra, which accompanied Django Reinhardt in July 1950 on recordings for Radio Luxembourg. In the 1950s he also worked with Bill Tamper et ses Cool Cats, the Tony Porteau Orchestra, Sidney Bechet, Dizzy Gillespie, Gigi Gryce, Jack Diéval, Alix Combelle, Dave Pochonet and His All Stars, Christian Chevallier, Lucky Thompson, the Claude Bolling orchestra, Benny Vasseur, Guy Lafitte, Martial Solal, Bill Coleman, Michel Legrand, Henri Renaud, Hubert Rostaing, Eddie Barclay, André Persiany, Bobby Jaspar, Art Taylor and Jef Gilson. In the 1960s, Verstraete shifted to light music and released a number of singles, under his own name and that of his nom de plume, Trumpet Boy.

Lucette Raillat
(CHANTEURS ET CHANTEUSES)
9 Rue du Square Carpeaux, 75018 Paris, France
Born in Lyon, singer and actress Lucette Raillat studied under Roger Planchon at the Théâtre de la Comédie, and then joined Jean Dasté’s troupe at the Comedie de St-Etienne. Soon the draw of Paris was too strong, and she came to the capital to audition for La Compagnie Grenier-Hussenot. Under the guidance of André Pasdoc, she sang in the cabarets and revues of Paris, including those of the L’Ecluse, La Bolée, L’Échelle de Jacob, La Tomate, and the La Fontaine des Quatre-Saisons. She would go on to record more than 20 singles, mostly in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

Josy Andrieu
(CHANTEURS ET CHANTEUSES)
11 Rue du Square Carpeaux, 75018 Paris, France
In 1961 singer Josy Andrieu arrived in Paris, performing on the cabaret circuit at night spots such as La Tête de l’Art and Chez Ma Cousine, before securing a two season deal at the ABC in 1963. In the second half of the 1960s she signed with the CBS label, releasing a number of singles, and a LP to follow in 1971. She was married to André Bernard, the manager of the acclaimed guitarist Manitas de Plata.

Suzanne Dehelly
(COMÉDIENNES)
15 Rue du Square Carpeaux, 75018 Paris, France
Suzanne Dehelly was a popular cabaret actress and singer, who made a name for herself in the films of the 1930s, after the arrival of the talkies. Although she made earlier appearances, debuting before WW1 in 1913, she got her first leading role in the melodrama Graziella (1926). She remained a popular draw throughout her career, her name would grace film posters for 50 years. She was a star of theatre, in musical comedies and musicals, her songs were also released on 78rpm records. Dehelly was married twice, first to actor Robert Pizani, and afterwards screenwriter Marcel Rivet, in whose films she often starred. She was a keen chess player, winning the French chess championship in 1943.

Michel Salina
(COMEDIENS)
212 Rue Marcadet, 75018 Paris, France
Swiss actor Michel Salina made his debut on the Paris stage in Pierre ou Jack… ? at the Théâtre de l’Athénée in 1931. The 1930s heralded the start of his career in cinema but it wouldn’t be until after WW2 that he made his mark in Marcel L’Herbier’s L’affaire du collier de la reine (1946). In the 1960s he appeared in the two TV series that employed most of Montmartre’s thespians at one time or another, Les cinq dernières minutes and Allô police. His final theatre appearance was in 1986 at Les Rencontres du Palais Royal in Ma télévision.

Madeleine Lhote/Madeleine Lhot
(COMÉDIENNES)
21 Rue Carpeaux, 75018 Paris, France
One of the lesser known actresses of Montmartre, Madeleine Lhote was at home amongst the chansonniers and cabaret singers of Le Coucou, Théâtre des Noctambules and the Theatre of Dix Heures. She sang in operettas, and appeared in radio plays, including the drama Le Soldat Francois Woyzeck.