Zouzou (model)

Zouzou (born Danièle Ciarlet on November 29, 1943 in Blida, French Algeria) is a model, actress, singer and icon of the 1960s and early 1970s. She is known largely for her lead role in Éric Rohmer's Love in the Afternoon. Her career, however, was constantly hampered by her addiction to heroin and other drugs.

The screen name "Zouzou" reportedly stems from her zézaiement (lisp) ^[2] of the consonants 's','j' and 'z'.^[3]

Her boyfriends during her years of fame included Brian Jones (of the Rolling Stones), Michel Taittinger, Dave Davies (of the Kinks), Jean-Paul Goude and Jack Nicholson.

Biography

Zouzou obtained her Baccalauréat at 14, then enrolled at the Artististic Training Centre of the Académie Charpentier.

The news magazine Paris Match baptised her "la twisteuse". She represented the liberated young woman, who was active during the protests of May 1968, as indeed Zouzou was.^[4]

She moved to Swinging London with Brian Jones, but left him and returned to Paris. Her fame soon eroded. In 1978, she left Paris for the Antilles where she remained for seven years. She returned to France in 1985.

Drug addiction

From the early 1970s she was addicted to a number of drugs, in particular heroin. This resulted in two short periods in Fleury-Mérogis prison, in 1992 and 1994.

Return

In 2002, Zouzou co-starred in the short film Signe d' hiver ("Sign of winter"), directed by Jean-Claude Moireau and also starring Marie Rousseau and Cyrille Thouvenin.^[5] In 2003, her autobiography, Jusqu' à l' aube ("Until dawn"),^[6] co-written with Olivier Nicklaus, was published by Flammarion. At the beginning of 2004, a retrospective of Zouzou was organized by Centre Georges Pompidou.^[7] In 2005, Zouzou appeared at the Sentier des Halles club in Paris.^[8]

Selected filmography

• Love in the Afternoon (1972)
• S*P*Y*S (1974)
• The Last Woman (1976)
• Sky Riders (1976)

References

Further reading

• Jusqu'à l'aube, autobiography co-written with by Olivier Nicklaus, Éditions Flammarion, Paris.

External links

• Official web site
• Zouzou at the Internet Movie Database