Claudine Longet
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Claudine Longet | |
|---|---|
 We've Only Just Begun (1971) LP
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| Background information | |
| Born | 29 January 1942 |
| Origin | Paris, France |
| Genre(s) | Pop Bossa nova French pop Standards Soft rock |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, Actress |
| Instrument(s) | Voice, Guitar |
| Years active | 1963—1975 |
| Label(s) | A&M, Barnaby Records |
| Associated acts | Andy Williams Nick De Caro |
Claudine Georgette Longet (born on 29 January 1942 in Paris, France) was a popular singer and recording artist during the 1960s and 1970s. She was also an actress and a dancer. She was married to pop singer Andy Williams from 1961 until 1975 and they remain "very good friends" to the present day.[1] In 1977, a trial jury convicted her of "misdemeanor negligent homicide"[2] in the 1976 death of former Olympic skier Spider Sabich.
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[edit] Andy Williams
- See also: Andy Williams
Longet and Williams met in Las Vegas in 1960 when she was 18 years old and he was 32 years old. Claudine was experiencing problems with her car and had pulled over to the side of the road. Driving by in his car, Williams stopped to offer assistance. She was the lead dancer of the Folies Bergère revue at the Tropicana Resort & Casino. They married on 15 December 1961 in Los Angeles,[3] and had three children: Noëlle (born on 24 September 1963), Christian (born on 15 April 1965), and Robert ("Bobby") (born on 1 August 1969). They legally separated in 1970[4] and divorced in January 1975.[5]
[edit] Career
After about a one-year hiatus, Longet resumed her professional career in late 1962. Her first appearances as an actor on television were in two 1963 episodes of the comedy series McHale's Navy. She also acted in the 1964 theatrical feature film of the same title. Many of her acting roles during the 1960s were in episodes of television adventure series that included Twelve O'Clock High, Combat!, The Name of the Game, and The Rat Patrol.
She appeared many times on The Andy Williams Show series and specials. She also occasionally appeared as a singer on other variety and music programs, including those of singers Bobby Darin and Tom Jones. Williams called Longet—a beautiful, athletic, slender, petite sleek brunette with large doe eyes—"my favorite French singer".
Her career breakthrough occurred in 1966. She had a guest starring role in the season one finale of the NBC television adventure series Run for Your Life which starred Ben Gazzara. In the episode "The Sadness of A Happy Time", she mesmerized viewers with her ethereal English-French bilingual rendition of the bossa nova song "Meditation" ("Meditação"), singing with a very soft angelic voice filled with longing and melancholy but also with a cheerful optimism. The episode was first broadcast on 16 May 1966.
A&M Records co-founder Herb Alpert was among the viewers whom Claudine charmed with her performance of "Meditation". When Alpert by happenstance met Longet at a club in New Orleans later in 1966, he offered her a recording contract with his company.[6] Longet recorded singles and five albums for A&M Records between 1966 and 1970.
"Meditation" was Claudine's first single release for A&M. The song is one of many majestic compositions of the prolific and legendary Brazilian composer Antônio Carlos Jobim. Claudine loves singing his songs. Other Jobim compositions that she has recorded include "A Felicidade", "How Insensitive" ("Insensatez"), and "Dindi".
In 1968, Longet co-starred with Peter Sellers in the motion picture The Party, a box office smash and reportedly a favorite film of Elvis Presley. Longet sang "Nothing to Lose" (music by Henry Mancini and lyrics by Don Black) in the film.
In 1971, she joined Williams' Barnaby Records label. She released singles and two albums for Barnaby, We've Only Just Begun in 1971 and Let's Spend the Night Together in 1972. She also recorded songs for a projected third album for Barnaby that went unreleased. Many of the songs for the planned third album finally appeared on the 1993 compact disc release titled Sugar Me but the masters for some of the other songs are missing and presumed lost.
In 1975, she appeared as "The Flower" (a non-singing role) with Richard Burton, Jonathan Winters, and others on the children's album The Little Prince based on the Antoine de Saint Exupéry novel. The album won the Grammy Award for Best Album for Children in 1976.
She has enjoyed success on the music popularity charts. Her 1967 debut album Claudine peaked at #11 on the Billboard pop albums chart in the United States. Claudine became a RIAA-certified gold album, selling more than 500,000 copies. Subsequent albums The Look of Love peaked at #33 in 1967 and Love Is Blue peaked at #29 in 1968 on the Billboard pop albums chart in the U.S.
Longet's musical cohort on her charting albums was arranger Nick De Caro. He also arranged her other two albums on A&M, Colours (1968) and Run Wild, Run Free (1970), and We've Only Just Begun on Barnaby.
She also has had hit singles in America on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. Her charting singles include "Here, There and Everywhere" (music and lyrics by John Lennon and Paul McCartney), "Hello, Hello" (composed by Terry MacNeil and Peter Kraemer), "Good Day Sunshine" (composed by Lennon and McCartney), "Small Talk" (music and lyrics by Garry Bonner and Alan Gordon), and "Love Is Blue" ("L'Amour Est Bleu") (music by André Popp and French lyrics by Pierre Cour (Pierre Lemaire)). Another song, "Wanderlove" (music and lyrics by Mason Williams), went to #7 on the singles charts in Singapore and still occasionally gets airplay on Asian radio. She remains popular in Japan where all of her original albums were reissued on compact disc.
[edit] Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy
- See also: Robert F. Kennedy, Ethel Kennedy, and Robert F. Kennedy assassination
Claudine and Andy Williams were close personal friends of Robert F. "Bobby" Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy. During the mid-1960s, they regularly socialized at Claudine and Andy's residences in Bel Air and in Palm Springs and at Bobby and Ethel's residences at Hickory Hill and in New York City.[7] They also took summer cruises on the Salmon River in central Idaho and on the Colorado River.[8]
On or before June 4, 1968, the day of the 1968 Democratic Party presidential primary in California, Bobby—a contending Democratic presidential candidate—and Ethel made tentative arrangements with Andy and Claudine to visit a trendy local disco named The Factory. According to Andy, Bobby told them that he would make a hand signal at the conclusion of his televised speech at the Ambassador Hotel to confirm their get together.[9]
Shortly after midnight on June 5, Claudine and Andy watched Senator Kennedy’s primary victory speech on the television in the bedroom of their Bel Air home. When they saw Kennedy make the “little hand gesture”, they got out of bed and began getting dressed. As they were putting on their clothes, they heard loud noises on the television and learned that someone had shot Senator Kennedy.
Claudine and Andy rushed to the hotel and eventually joined Kennedy’s family and close friends at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angeles where doctors were trying to save the Senator's life. They stayed at the hospital for about 24 hours. After Kennedy died during the early morning hours of June 6, Claudine and Andy went into his hospital room and saw Ethel asleep near her husband.
Claudine and Andy attended Senator Kennedy’s funeral mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City on June 8. A television camera captured Andy consoling a sobbing Claudine during the mass. After Bobby's brother Edward M. "Ted" Kennedy delivered a brief and an emotional eulogy, Andy and a vocal choir sang "The Battle Hymn of the Republic” in what a Washington Post reporter described as a “hauntingly slow tempo”.[10] Outside the cathedral on the streets of New York, thousands of people were listening to the mass over loudspeakers. When they heard Andy singing, they began singing with him.[11]
After the funeral mass, Claudine and Andy boarded the 21-car funeral train that took Senator Kennedy’s body to Washington, DC and Arlington National Cemetery for burial. Claudine and Andy were with Senator Kennedy’s body, Ethel Kennedy, Ted Kennedy, and other Kennedy family members in the end car of the train. The front page of the June 9, 1968 edition of the Washington Post has a large photograph that depicts Ted Kennedy and Claudine standing together on the rear platform of the funeral train as it passed through North Philadelphia.[12]
Claudine and Andy named their son Bobby, who was born in August 1969, in remembrance of Bobby Kennedy.
[edit] Spider Sabich
Longet was arrested and charged with the 21 March 1976 fatal shooting of her lover, Olympic skier Vladimir "Spider" Sabich, at his Aspen, Colorado home after he had showered and was preparing to dress. Sabich was a very handsome athlete with no lack of female companionship when he met Longet. As their relationship progressed, Longet and her three children moved in with Sabich, radically altering his bachelor life. There were widespread rumors of discord between the couple before the shooting. Spider had told friends he wanted Claudine out of his house but had taken no real action to evict her because he adored her children. At the sensational trial, Longet claimed the gun discharged accidentally as Sabich was showing her how it worked. Despite the fact that the autopsy found that Sabich was bent over with his back turned to her and Claudine was no closer than 6 feet (1.8 meters) from him, she stuck to her story that it was a tragic accident. Williams very publicly supported Claudine throughout the trial, even escorting her to and from the courthouse.
The Aspen police made two enormous blunders which turned the tide for Longet. They took a blood sample from her and confiscated her diary without warrants. Longet's blood contained cocaine and her diary showed that her relationship with Sabich had turned bitter. Since the evidence was not obtained legally the prosecution could not enter it into evidence. The gun was also mishandled by non-weapons experts. It was given to a policeman, who wrapped it in a towel and put it in the glove compartment of his unit; for 3 days it was unaccounted for.
Put on the stand, Longet reiterated her innocence and pleaded for mercy because her three young children needed her. The jury acquitted her of felony manslaughter but convicted her of criminal negligence, a misdemeanor, and sentenced her to pay a small fine and spend 30 days in jail. As a generous gesture, Judge Lohr allowed Longet to choose the days she served, believing that this arrangement would allow her to spend the most time with her children. Longet chose to work off most of her sentence on weekends. Once the trial was over, she took off for a vacation with her defense attorney Ron Austin. Austin left his wife and children to do so. Longet and Austin later married and remain together, residing in Aspen.
Longet has never performed again. After the criminal trial, the Sabich family initiated civil proceedings to sue Longet. The case was eventually settled out of court for a large monetary settlement, with the proviso that Longet never tell or write about her story.
[edit] Trivia
- Claudine Longet recorded "Electric Moon" by Donovan.
- The incident of criminal negligence in the death of Sabich was the subject of a song written by Mick Jagger, which was ultimately cut from the 1980 Rolling Stones album Emotional Rescue, although copies have surfaced due to piracy over the years. The song, titled simply "Claudine", contains the lyrics:
"Claudine's back in jail again/She only does it at weekends/Claudine Oh, Claudine/Now only Spider knows for sure/But he ain't talkin' about it any more/Is he, Claudine?/There's blood in the chalet/And blood in the snow/Washed her hands of the whole damn show/The best thing you could do, Claudine/Shot him once right through the head/Shot him twice right through the chest/The judge says it was an accident, Claudine/Accidents will happen (In the best homes)/What about the children, baby?/Poor, poor children/Now I threaten my wife with a gun/I always leave the safety on/I recommend it/Claudine/Now she pistol whipped me once or twice/But she never tried to take my life(What do you think about that)/Claudine/The prettiest girl I ever seen/I saw you on the movie screen/Hope you don't try to make a sacrifice of me/Claudine (Don't get trigger happy with me)/Don't wave a gun at me (Claudine)"
- Season 1 Episode 18 of Saturday Night Live featured a skit titled "The Claudine Longet Invitational," which parodied the shooting incident, showing skiers making runs down the slopes until they are "accidentally" shot by Claudine Longet, resulting in abrupt wipeouts. [13]
- Season 1, Episode 12 (18 January 2001) of Gilmore Girls features Rory's friend Lane having bought an eclectic range of CDs. Rory responds: "I must listen to anyone named Claudine Longet." They play Claudine's version of the song "God Only Knows" (composed by Brian Wilson and Tony Asher), and Lorelai, on discovering to whom they are listening, says: ". . . the chick who shot the skier? . . . Wow, Renaissance woman." Season 5, Episode 22 (17 May 2005 season finale) of the show features Claudine's recording of "I Think It's Gonna Rain Today" (composed by Randy Newman).
- Claudine recorded a version of the Lynsey De Paul song "Sugar Me".
- Longet participated in the A&E Biography documentary series in an episode on the life of Andy Williams, but she did not appear on camera. She provided voice-over commentary about her relationship with Williams. The program originally aired on 23 November 2003.
When Aspen suffered through unseasonably warm winters without snow that adversely affected tourism, some local residents posted signs that read, "It's all Claudine's fault", an allusion in poor taste to the shooting tragedy.[citation needed]
- Claudine and Andy Williams were close friends of John Glenn[14] and his spouse Annie Glenn.
[edit] Discography
[edit] U.S. albums
| Year | Title | Label & No. | Billboard pop albums chart peak position | Cash Box pop albums chart peak position | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | The Wonderful World of Andy Williams | Columbia CL 2137/ CS 8937 | #9 | #8 | Claudine appears on "Let It Be Me" ("Je T’Appartiens") (duet with Andy Williams); RIAA-certified gold album |
| 1967 | Claudine | A&M SP 4121 | #11 | #9 | RIAA-certified gold album |
| 1967 | The Look of Love | A&M SP 4129 | #33 | #23 | |
| 1968 | Love is Blue | A&M SP 4142 | #29 | #31 | |
| 1968 | Colours | A&M SP 4163 | #155 | #80 | |
| 1970 | Run Wild, Run Free | A&M SP 4232 | |||
| 1971 | We've Only Just Begun | Barnaby/ CBS Z 30377 | |||
| 1972 | Let's Spend the Night Together | Barnaby/ MGM BR-15001 | |||
| 1975 | The Little Prince | Warner Brothers | Spoken word children's album with music score | ||
| 2000 | The Very Best of Claudine Longet | Varèse Vintage 302 066 118 2 | Compilation |
[edit] Notable foreign albums
| Year | Title | Label & No. | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Sugar Me | Vivid M131538 | Japanese issue (includes singles and previously unreleased Barnaby recordings) |
| 1998 | A&M Digitally Remastered Best | A&M/ Polydor POCM-1573 | Japanese issue (compilation of key A&M recordings and a few hard-to-find singles) |
| 2003 | Cuddle Up With Claudine Longet | Munster 002 | Spanish issue (2-disc compilation of Barnaby recordings) |
| 2003 | The Party (Original Soundtrack) | BMG France RCA Victor Gold Series 82876524862 | French reissue of 1968 motion picture soundtrack (RCA Victor LSP-3997) (includes Claudine's 45 rpm single version of "Nothing to Lose" as a bonus track) |
| 2005 | Hello Hello: The Best of Claudine Longet | Rev-Ola CR REV 119 | British issue (compilation of key recordings for A&M Records) |
[edit] References
- ^ Larry King Live (2000). Transcript of Interview with Andy Williams, August 22, 2000. Retrieved on 2008-06-05.
- ^ Endicott, William. Miss Longet Given 30-Day Jail Term, Los Angeles Times, Feb. 1, 1977, B1.
- ^ Andy Williams Weds Dancer, Los Angeles Times, Dec. 16, 1961, B1.
- ^ Andy Williams to Separate, Washington Post, June 9, 1970, B6.
- ^ Newsmakers --, Los Angeles Times, Apr. 20, 1975, A2.
- ^ The Lounge-O-Leers. Music to Live by . . . Notes from the Lounge. Retrieved on 2008-06-04.
- ^ Telegraph.co.uk (2002). Bobby Kennedy Was Buried in My Tie, June 2002. Retrieved on 2008-06-09.
- ^ Andy Williams to Cruise with Bob Kennedys, Los Angeles Times, June 21, 1967, D10.
- ^ Telegraph.co.uk (2002). Bobby Kennedy Was Buried in My Tie, June 2002. Retrieved on 2008-06-09.
- ^ Roberts, Chalmers M. Kennedy's Body Returned to Capital As Vast Throngs View Funeral Train; Suspect in Dr. King's Slaying Is Arrested, Washington Post, June 9, 1968, A1, A17.
- ^ Telegraph.co.uk (2002). Bobby Kennedy Was Buried in My Tie, June 2002. Retrieved on 2008-06-09.
- ^ Photograph of Senator Edward M. Kennedy and Claudine Longet aboard the Robert F. Kennedy funeral train, Washington Post, June 9, 1968, A1.
- ^ Saturday Night Live transcript of Claudine Longet parody skit. Retrieved on 2006-08-25.
- ^ Haber, Joyce. Andy Williams: All This, Golf Tourney, Too, Los Angeles Times, Feb. 4, 1968, D6.
[edit] External links
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Longet, Claudine Georgette |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | singer and recording artist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | January 29, 1942 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Paris, France |
| DATE OF DEATH | |
| PLACE OF DEATH | |
