12 Facts About Arletty

Leonie Marie Julie Bathiat, known professionally as Arletty, was a French actress, singer, and fashion model.

Arletty was found guilty of treason for an affair with a German officer during World War II.

Arletty was born on 15 May 1898 in Courbevoie, to a working-class family.

Arletty took the stage name "Arlette" based on the heroine of a story by Guy de Maupassant.

Arletty was not interested in acting until she met Paul Guillaume, an art dealer.

Arletty recommended some theaters and, at the age of 21, she was hired.

Arletty was a stage performer for ten years before her film debut in 1930.

Arletty's career took off around 1936 when she appeared as the leading lady in the stage plays Les Joies du Capitole and Fric-Frac, in which she starred opposite Michel Simon.

Arletty later starred as Blanche in the French version of A Streetcar Named Desire.

In 1945 Arletty appeared in her most famous film role, the central part of Garance in Les Enfants du Paradis, her fourth role for the director.

Arletty was imprisoned in 1945 for her wartime liaison with a German Luftwaffe officer, Hans-Jurgen Soehring, during the occupation of France.

Arletty was too well known for the mere humiliation of having her head shaved, her naked skull tarred with a swastika and in this abject state paraded through the streets to confront the jeers and spittle of the mob.