French superstar with legendary triumphs of every facet of show business, one of France’s most beloved and respected artists. She has won France’s equivalent to a Tony, an Oscar, three Grammy’s and two Emmys. In 1974, President Georges Pompidou presented her with the Chevalier de la Legion d’Honneur, the highest honor of the country.
Renaud first gained prominence as a recording artist while in her teens with her first release, “Ma Cabane au Canada,” soaring to No.1 in France, Belgium, Switzerland and Canada. She was awarded the prestigious Grand Prixe du Disque for an unprecedented two consecutive years. An all-time best selling artist, she has recorded 40 #1 hit singles and a dozen LPs.
In 1955, Renaud received France’s Best Actress Award for “La Madelon,” a film that is the highest grossing national film in history. TV was gaining a strong voice that year and Renaud premiered her weekly variety show which quickly became the most popular show on the air in Europe and the UK. Her TV specials uniformly break audience records.
In 1959, she led a Review in the French music hall which was hailed, and in 1963, she headlined a production at the Dunes in Las Vegas. American audiences embraced her so enthusiastically that she appeared in Vegas for six months of each year for the following six years. Her debut of “Paris-Line” at the Casino de Paris was acclaimed as the greatest revue in the history of the French music hall. The video tape was presented as an HBO special in the U.S. five times. She has also appeared in American TV specials on six Merv Griffin shows and on Perry Como’s “Christmas in Paris.”
As of 1998, Renaud arranged the last Three Tenor Concerts in Paris. Her personal philanthropic passion goes to the support of AIDS research, similar to Liz Taylor in the U.S.
Renaud married Louis Gaste on 18 December 1950 and was widowed by the death of her husband on 8 January 1995.
Link to Wikipedia biography