Editing Maurice Chevalier (section)

{{Short description|French singer, actor, and entertainer (1888–1972)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2012}}
{{Infobox person
 | image            = Maurice Chevalier-publicity.jpg
 | caption          = Chevalier, early 1930s
 | birth_name       = Maurice Auguste Chevalier
 | birth_date       = {{birth date|df=y|1888|9|12}}
 | birth_place      = [[Paris]], [[France]]
 | death_date       = {{death date and age|df=y|1972|1|1|1888|9|12}}
 | death_place      = Paris, France
 | occupation       = {{flatlist|
* Singer
* actor
* composer
* lyricist
* writer<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://data.bnf.fr/en/12762520/maurice_chevalier/|title = Maurice Chevalier (1888-1972)}}</ref>
}}
 | yearsactive      = 1900–1970
 | spouse           = {{unbulleted list|{{marriage|[[Yvonne Vallée]]|1927|1932|reason=divorced}}|{{marriage|Nita Raya|1937|1946|reason=divorced}}}}
 | signature        =
 | module           ={{Infobox musical artist|embed=yes
 | background       = solo_singer
 | instrument       ={{flatlist|
* Vocals
* piano<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://periodpiano.com/gaveau-paris-ca-1935-maurice-chevalier/|title = Gaveau, Paris, ca. 1935 - Maurice Chevalier| work=Period Piano Company |date = December 8, 2016}}</ref>
}}
 | label            ={{flatlist|
* [[RCA Victor]]
* [[Imperial Records]]
* [[MGM Records]]
}}
 | genre            ={{flatlist|
* [[Café-concert]]
* [[Music hall#Music halls of Paris|Music-hall]]
* [[Musical theatre]]
}}
}}
}}

'''Maurice Auguste Chevalier''' ({{IPA|fr|mɔʁis ʃəvalje|lang}}; 12 September 1888 – 1 January 1972) was a French singer, actor, and entertainer.<ref name="Larkin50">{{cite book|title=[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music|The Virgin Encyclopedia of Fifties Music]]|editor=Colin Larkin|editor-link=Colin Larkin (writer)|publisher=[[Virgin Books]]|date=2002|edition=Third|isbn=1-85227-937-0|pages=69/70}}</ref> He is best known for his signature songs, including "[[Livin' in the Sunlight, Lovin' in the Moonlight|Livin' In The Sunlight]]", "[[Valentine (Maurice Chevalier song)|Valentine]]", "[[Louise (Maurice Chevalier song)|Louise]]", "[[Mimi (song)|Mimi]]", and "[[Thank Heaven for Little Girls]]", and for his films, including ''[[The Love Parade]]'', ''[[The Big Pond]]'', ''[[The Smiling Lieutenant]]'', ''[[One Hour with You]]'', and ''[[Love Me Tonight]]''. His trademark attire was a [[boater]] hat and tuxedo.

Chevalier was born in [[Paris]]. He made his name as a star of [[musical comedy]], appearing in public as a singer and dancer at an early age before working in menial jobs as a teenager. In 1909, he became the partner of the biggest female star in France at the time, [[Fréhel]]. Although their relationship was brief, she secured him his first major engagement, as a mimic and a singer in ''l'Alcazar'' in [[Marseille]], for which he received critical acclaim by French theatre critics. In 1917, he discovered [[jazz]] and [[ragtime]] and went to London, where he found new success at the [[Palace Theatre, London|Palace Theatre]].

After this, he toured the United States, where he met the American composers [[George Gershwin]] and [[Irving Berlin]] and brought the [[operetta]] ''[[Dédé (opérette)|Dédé]]'' to [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] in 1922. He developed an interest in acting and had success in ''Dédé''. When [[talkies]] arrived, he went to Hollywood in 1928, where he played his first American role in ''[[Innocents of Paris]]''. In 1930, he was nominated for the [[Academy Award for Best Actor]] for his roles in ''The Love Parade'' (1929) and ''The Big Pond'' (1930), which secured his first big American hits, "[[You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me]]" and "Livin' in the Sunlight, Lovin' in the Moonlight".

In 1957, he appeared in ''[[Love in the Afternoon (1957 film)|Love in the Afternoon]]'', which was his first Hollywood film in more than 20 years. In 1958, he starred with [[Leslie Caron]] and [[Louis Jourdan]] in ''[[Gigi (1958 film)|Gigi]]''. In the early 1960s, he made eight films, including ''[[Can-Can (film)|''Can-Can'']]'' in 1960 and ''[[Fanny (1961 film)|''Fanny'']]'' the following year. In 1970, he made his final contribution to the film industry where he sang the title song of the Disney film ''[[The Aristocats]]''. He died in Paris, on 1 January 1972, from complications of a suicide attempt.