Robert Beauvais

Robert Beauvais — Biography

Robert Beauvais was born in the 13th arrondissement of Paris on 6 March 1911. During his military service in the Near East in the early 1930s he met the painter and entomologist Wilfrid Perraudin. He spent much of his career in radio and television, producing numerous programs he co-hosted with his wife Gisèle Parry; he commentated the 1961 Eurovision Song Contest for French-language broadcasters, hosted the game show Le Francophonissime from 1969 to 1971, and remained a regular on Jacques Martin's Thé dansant until his death. He was also a prolific author of humorous books, and some of his works were adapted for the screen by Jean Yanne; in 1974 he co-wrote the film adaptation of his own novel Quand les chinois, released as Chinese in Paris. In 1980 he played a park keeper in Nelly Kaplan's Charles et Lucie. Close friends of his included the writer Françoise Sagan, the economist Jacques Rueff and the painter Maurice Boitel. Married twice, he had a daughter from his first marriage who became known as the singer Clothilde. Beauvais died in Boulogne-Billancourt on 23 February 1982 and was buried in the village of Audresselles.