Edith Piaf Memorial Tribute

This week on From the Vault, we present an early 1970’s biographical tribute to French singer, songwriter, and actress Edith Piaf. Produced by Ruth Hirschman, this documentary takes us from Piaf’s difficult childhood in a working-class neighborhood in Paris to her rise to fame and stardom, her relationship with the boxer Marcel Cerdan, her struggle with drug addiction, and her early death at the age of 47 from liver cancer – all beautifully tied together with selections of her music. We conclude this episode with an excerpt from another radio profile on France’s ‘national diva’ (as Piaf was affectionately known), courtesy of veteran Pacifica producer Carlos Hagen in 1974.


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