biography
| name: |
Aznavour, Charles
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| |
originally Shanour Varenagh Aznavourian
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pronunciation:
[aznavoor]
| sex:
| male
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| lived:
| (1924– )
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| biography:
| Auteur, actor, composer, and performer, born in Paris, France. His family fled the massacre of the Armenians in Turkey in 1915. His life was difficult until the Liberation, and he worked in various low-paid jobs. With Pierre Roche he wrote ‘J'ai bu’, sung by Georges Ulmer, which won the Grand Prix du Disque in 1947. He wrote for Patachou, Chevalier, Mistinguett, and Piaf, who encouraged him to interpret his songs. For Piaf he wrote the film score Pour Edith et Marcel by Claude Lelouch. His numerous well-known songs include ‘Je n' peux plus rentrer chez moi’, ‘Je m'voyais déjà’ (1958), and ‘La Mama’ (1963). Other works include an operetta, Monsieur Carnaval (1965). He acted in nearly 60 films, including La tête contre les murs (1959) and Tirez sur le pianiste (1963). He retired for a time to Switzerland, and published an autobiography Hier quand j'étais jeune in 1979. Following the 1988 earthquake in Yerevan, he founded the Association Aznavour pour l'Arménie. |
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