In the Foreign Legion, they sing Wehrmacht songs

In the Foreign Legion, they sing Wehrmacht songs

The revered military institution, the French Foreign Legion, is celebrating the 150th anniversary of its founding these days. In the opinion of its commanders, standards of education have risen over the years—and so have the fighters’ expectations concerning “conditions.” Even so, they remain “excellent professional fighters with high patriotic motivation.”

That does not stop the statistics from showing that most of those who have recently enlisted in the Legion, at least among Europeans, come from Germany. Thirteen in the past month, for example. And anyone who listens today to the legionnaires’ songs, performed at various events or even during training, will discover familiar sounds from the days of the last world war—not necessarily from this side of the Rhine. In fact, many marching songs sung by Wehrmacht soldiers are now favorites of colonial conquerors and fearless fighters in Chad.

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An Egyptian tank in a Lelouch film

For his film “And Now My Love,” director Claude Lelouch (in France) recreated the Battle of Stalingrad of February 1943. He used two authentic T-34 tanks. One had been used by the Egyptians in Sinai during the Six-Day War. The other is a gift the Soviets once gave General de Gaulle.

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The beloved has not forgotten the president

Today, without Central African elephants and Polish bears, Mireille Darc was the only one to remind the leading contender of the eternal hunting grounds.

Among those who took an active part in Valéry Giscard d’Estaing’s election campaign was the famous star couple Alain Delon and Mireille Darc. For Mireille, at least, this is support “with roots.” Years ago, so the gossip went at the time, she was one of the energetic president’s [illegible] mistresses; during that period he often spent time outside his palace and returned at dawn. According to the same gossip, he took Mireille with him on several of his hunting trips in Poland. Since then Mireille has met Delon, and the regime in Poland has changed. But nostalgia does its work, and when the moment of truth came, Mireille Darc rallied to the flag, just as before.

Another friend who did not turn up was His Majesty the former Emperor of Central Africa, Bokassa, who, as is well known, has had some dealings with Giscard. Among other things, he once accused him of having agreed to his overthrow because he coveted Bokassa’s wife, Princess Catherine, now living in France. In an interview with the writer Roger Delpey, Bokassa claims that Giscard was very possessive about the hunting grounds made available to him in Central Africa, where he used to hunt elephants. One day he did not hesitate to rebuke Bokassa rudely when he thought someone had entered “his” territory.

Rika and the elections

How did the elections in France affect the tour Rika Zarai was due to give in Israel this coming summer?

Rika is committed to a number of appearances on French television, initially scheduled for April. But at that time the politicians took over the screen exclusively, as part of the election broadcasts. Rika’s appearances, like those of many other artists, were postponed. In any case, she will come to Israel before Rosh Hashanah and will also release a new record on that occasion.

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Cardin buys Maxim’s

The famous Maxim’s restaurant on Rue Royale in Paris is to pass into the hands of fashion designer Pierre Cardin, who until now was only one of its shareholders. Cardin promises that he will change nothing at one of France’s best-known institutions, “perhaps only add a touch of splendor.”

The restaurant critic of Le Monde immediately expressed his reservations about the change of ownership. “If the idea is that the customers will henceforth wear ‘Pierre Cardin’ clothes,” he wrote, “then I’ll stop eating there. They’ll spoil my appetite.”

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IDF soldiers as sex objects

After IDF women soldiers appeared on the covers of pornographic magazines and in Italian erotic films, it is now the men’s turn. A Swiss magazine published in Zurich and aimed at homosexuals has printed “titillating” photographs of men wearing IDF uniforms, with a gleaming Star of David on their bare, hairy chests. An interesting development, by all accounts, adopting—for the first time—the Star of David as a sexual object. Worth trying.

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Dalida and the Emir of Kuwait

A most unusual performance by Dalida: a Kuwaiti emir, who has long admired her, bought every seat in the Olympia auditorium for one evening, and Dalida sang a full program for him alone.

The famous singer, however, turned down a further proposal from the emir to accompany him to Kuwait for a “concert tour.” “Not even mountains of diamonds could persuade me to go to one of those places where you can’t be sure you’ll come back,” declared the blonde, who is currently electrifying audiences as a matter of fact. “Besides, I wouldn’t be able to get used to life in a harem.”

Meanwhile, the wax museum “[illegible]” paid her a special honor by adding her statue to its permanent exhibition, between Charles Bronson and Catherine Deneuve. Dalida, for her part, denies that she is not made of wax at all; not long ago, passers-by spotted her making love with an unidentified man inside a car “in a public place.”

Montand returns

After thirteen years of waiting, Paris received the news with genuine joy: Yves Montand is returning to the musical stage. At the Olympia, of course. The premiere is scheduled for October 9, and in the first few days after the announcement, 50,000 people rushed to buy tickets, so Montand’s run, initially planned for a month, will be extended until the beginning of January 1982. Montand’s fifth night at the Olympia is expected to be an event in its own right. The renowned singer and actor will celebrate his sixtieth birthday on stage. But his “advanced” age should not mislead anyone. Yves Montand is today as flexible and “fit” as he was 20 years ago (see photograph). This is thanks to special exercise—“something between classical ballet and yoga,” as he puts it. Meanwhile, he is not abandoning cinema. He has just completed filming Alain Corneau’s “Choice of Arms,” alongside Gérard Depardieu and Catherine Deneuve, and in June he will be Isabelle Adjani’s father in Jean-Paul Rappeneau’s “All Fired Up.”