Chevalier, Maurice [key], 1888–1972, French singer and film actor. He made his debut in 1900 singing and dancing at the Casino de Tourelles, Paris. As the dancing partner of Mistinguett and as the star of several Paris music halls, he won his public by his charm and inimitable smile; by 1928 his reputation was international. He became famous for his portrayal of the debonair man-about-town, typically sporting a straw hat and a cane. Among his later films are Love in the Afternoon (1956), Gigi (1958), Can-Can (1959), and Fanny (1961).
See his autobiographies With Love (1960) and I Remember It Well (1970); study by G. Ringgold and D. Bodeen(1973).
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