Charles Trenet - After The War

After The War

After the war he decided to move to the United States where he lived for a few years and where he quickly became a success. After a few triumphant concerts at the Bagdad in New York, Trenet became a big hit and was approached by Hollywood. He met the likes of Louis Armstrong and began a long-lasting friendship with Charlie Chaplin.

On 14 September 1951, Trenet returned to Paris and made a comeback at the "Théâtre de l'Étoile". He incorporated ten new songs into his act, including "De la fenêtre d'en haut" and "La Folle Complainte". In 1954 he performed at the "Olympia" music-hall in Paris for the first time. The following year he wrote the famous "Route nationale 7", a tribute to the introduction of paid holidays.

In 1958, Trenet was the headlining act at the "Bobino" and the "Alhambra". In 1960 he returned to the "Théâtre de l'Étoile", appearing on stage for the very first time without the famous trilby hat which had for so long been part of his act.

In 1963, Trenet spent 28 days in prison in Aix-en-Provence. He was charged with corrupting the morals of four young men under the age of 21 (they were 19). His chauffeur claimed that Trenet was using him as a pimp. The charges were eventually dropped, but the affair brought to public light the fact that Trenet was homosexual. He was never particularly public about it and spoke of it rarely. In his authorized biography of Maurice Chevalier, author David Bret claims that Chevalier and Mistinguett were the ones who first "shopped" Trenet to the police for consorting with underage boys, around 1940. Trenet never learned of their action.