THE RISE AND FALL OF LA GOULUE...
ENCHANTMENT AND HUMAN DRAMA OF THE WORLD OF CABARET
Her fall was as dramatic and spectacular as her rise and fame. She earned a fortune but spent it on friends, the needy, the poor, the homeless, the gigolos and scary business investments, including a partnership in an animal-taming act. The once upon a time, famous and wealthy "artiste" became homeless, and old before her time. She was a striper with a heart larger than life but her generosity did not save her from poverty. In 1925 she was found toothless and white-haired in Neuilly-sur-Marne. She returned to Montmartre in 1928 to sell peanuts, cigarettes, roses, cheap dried fruits and matches on the miserable streets of the poor districts of Paris and sometimes near the Moulin Rouge. Yes, she was the toast of Paris. While selling cigarettes in the streets, nobody recognized "La Reine Du Cabaret", the former queen of the Parisian Cabaret and entertainment. She died in 1929 without a name...she had hard time convincing the priest who gave her the last holy sacrament that she was indeed "La Goulue." This is her story and the tale of the early days of Montmatre cabaret and Parisian Can Can...
By Maximillien de Lafayette
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