Mistinguett

 The Mistinguett Legend

Rebelling against the harsh dictates of a conventional Catholic upbringing, Jeanne Bourgeois nurtured a burning ambition to appear on the French stage from an early age. At eighteen she was engaged by the Eldorado as an "added attraction"...less than a decade later, as Mistinguett, she had become the toast of Paris. Even the acid-tongued writer Colette was forced to admit, "Mistinguett is more than just a monument, she is national property!"

During a career which spanned some sixty years, her temper and meanness became almost as famous as her panache of plumes and exotic costumes, her fabulous million-dollar legs, and the handful of songs she delivered quaintly but sincerely in her own inimitable way.

Her countless love affairs with the famous made her infamous. One such with Maurice Chevalier made them 'the most famous couple in Paris', and added spice to headlines around the world. Colleagues and lovers alike admitted to being terrified of her, yet her public - for whom she would have done absolutely anything - only adored her, flocking to see her in droves.

In this frank and colourful biography, David Bret brings us the true story of this exciting and formidable woman in all her decadent glory.

Maria Callas

 Maria Callas: The Tigress and The Lamb

Hers was the archetypal tale of the ugly duckling who with sheer willpower and courage of conviction transformed herself into the most beautiful of swans. Maria Calogeropoulos, the shy awkward daughter of Greek immigrants, rose like a shooting star to become the greatest operatic dica of the 20th century.

By applying the experiences and emotions of her own troubled life, Callas was able to climb inside the skin of each of her heroines and bring these often wretched women to life in a unique way.

Yet Callas's greatest role was herself, the temperamental diva whose tantrums and walk-outs were almost as sensational as her entrances, the condummate professional who had no patience with time-wasters or second-raters, the voluptuous siren whose ability to seduce brought her a series of relationships which were destined to be doomed. Oscar, the enemy soldier so cruelly wrenched from her. Ross-Lemeni and Mangliveras, the opera stars who used her, only to find the tables turned on themselves. Meneghini, the man who fashioned her career and married her, only to discover he could not tame the tigress. Visconti, Bernstein and Pasolini, homosexuals she attempted to 'cure'...and the greatest love of her life, Aristotle Onassis, whose death set her on a rapid downward spiral.

Off and on the stage, Maria Callas was the Sacred Goddess. This is her story.