SIGNORET, SIMONE

Signoret, Simone: translation

(1921-1985)

Actress. Born Simone Kaminker in Wiesbaden, Germany, Simone Signoret strove to become an actress from an early age; a member of theGroupe Octobre, Signoret made her debut illegally during the Nazi Occupation of France. She was forced to change her name to disguise the fact that her father was Jewish and to work in secret in mostly uncredited roles during the war. Her first roles were in films such as Jean Boyer'sBoléro(1942) andMarcel Carné'sLes Visiteurs du soir(1942), but it was her role in Yves Allegret'sLes Démons de l'aube(1946) that changed her career.She married Allegret in 1944, but the two divorced in 1949. Signoret went on to appear in Marcel Blistène'sMacadam(1946), Jean Sacha's remake ofLouis Feuillade'sFantômas(1947), and Maurice Tourneur'sImpasse des deux anges(1948).

During the 1950s, Signoret became a leading lady, appearing in such films as Allegret'sManèges(1950),Max Ophuls'sLa Ronde(1952),Henri Calef'sOmbre et lumière(1951),Jacques Becker'sCasque d'or(1952), Carné'sThérèseRaquin(1953),Henri-Georges Clouzot'sLes Diaboliques(1955), Luis Bunuel'sLa Mort en ce jardin(1956), and Raymond Rouleau'sLes Sorcières de Salem(1957). She won an Oscar for her role in Jack Clayton's English-language film,Room at the Top(1959). The film made Signoret an international star.

In the 1960s and 1970s, Signoret had supporting roles in Michel Boisrond'sAmours célèbres(1961),Constantin Costa-Gavras'sCompartement tueurs(1965),René Clement'sParis brûle-t-il?(1966),Jean-Pierre Melville'sL'Armée des ombres(1969), René Allio'sRude journée pour la reine(1973), andPatrice Chéreau'sLa Chair de l'orchidée(1975). She also appeared in a number of English-language films. She had starring roles in Clément'sLe Jour et l'heure(1963), Costa-Gavras'sL'Aveu(1970), Pierre Granier-Deferre'sLe Chat(1971) andLa Veuve Couderc(1971), Moshe Mizrahi'sLa Vie devant soi(1977), Chéreau'sJudith Therpauve(1978), andJeanne Moreau'sL'Adolescente(1979).

During the 1980s, she appeared in only a handful of films including Mizrahi'sChère inconnue(1980), Granier-Deferre'sL'Étoile du nord(1981), and Michel Drach's biopicGuy de Maupassant(1982). One of the most recognized and most talented actresses in French cinema, Signoret is almost universally remembered for her roles in Becker'sCasque d'or(1952) and Ophuls'sLa Ronde(1952), films in which she played prostitutes. In fact perhaps these roles characterized her in the public mind, because she played a fair number of prostitutes on the screen. She is also widely known for her performance in Clouzot'sLes Diaboliques(1955). Signoret was married to actorYves Montandfrom 1951 until her death.