U.S. and France
Americans in France
LINDBERGH, Charles (1902-1974)
Aviator, born in Detroit, MI
Lindbergh was the first man to fly the Atlantic ocean solo. The flight took place on May 20-21, 1927. Pilot for an airmail line, Lindbergh attempted the first nonstop New York-France flight with financing by a group of St.Louis businessmen, he designed a plane named "The Spirit of St.Louis". On May 21, 1927, he arrived at Le Bourget airport after a 331/2 hour flight which earned him a tumultuous welcome.
MILLER, Henry (1891-1980)
Writer, born in New York City, NY
Henry Miller and his wife June stayed in the Hôtel de Paris, rue Bonaparte (6th) in April and May 1928. Miller taught June how to ride a bike on nearby rue de Visconti in preparation for a bicycle tour through the South of France. In 1930, Miller settled in Paris, where he lived until the outbreak of World War II. During his first winter in Paris in 1930, he came close to starving. Sleeping in a different place each night, cadging meals whenever possible, he chanced upon Richard Osborn, an American lawyer, who gave him a free room in his apartment, rue Auguste Bartholdi (15th). Each morning, Osborn left ten francs on the kitchen table. In the fall of 1931, Henry Miller got a job at La Tribune as a proofreader, thanks to his friend Alfred Perlès who worked there. Miller enjoyed the work, the atmosphere, the noise of the machinery, the French typesetters working at night. He submitted articles under the name of Perlès, since only the editorial staff were permitted to publish in the paper. In his book, My Friend, Henry Miller, Perlès reproduces Miller's article, Rue Lourmel in the Fog. In 1931, he met Michael Frankel at the Villa Seurat in Montparnasse. This was the place where he wrote Tropic of Cancer published by the Obelisk Press in 1934. It is also at the Villa Seurat in 1931 that he met fellow writer Anais Nin. He and Nin both influenced each other in their work. Miller left Paris in 1939, after the publication of Tropic of Capricorn. He recalled his life as a penniless writer in Paris in Quiet Days in Clichy, published in 1956.
MORRISON, Jim (1943-1971)
Rock star, poet and filmmaker, born in Melbourne, FL
Increasingly disenchanted with his role as rock star, and largely blacklisted as a result of pending lawsuits, Morrison moved to Paris in March 1971, with the intent to concentrate on his writing. On July 3, 1971, he was found dead in the bathtub of his apartment on rue Beautreillis (4e). His death was attributed to heart failure, and he was buried, without an autopsy, in the Poet's Corner of Père-Lachaise cemetery. Each year, his grave is visited by thousands of devoted fans.
PORTER, Cole (1891-1964)
Composer and lyricist, born in Peru, IN
Cole Porter came to Paris in July of 1917, living the life of a wealthy American Socialite while studying music at the Schola Cantorum under Vincent d'Indy. On December 19, 1919, he married Linda Lee Thomas, an American, at the Town Hall of the 18th. They lived in a lavish apartment on Rue Monsieur (7th). Soon Porter’s career was launched, first in Paris and on Broadway, then in Hollywood. They returned to the United States in 1939. In 1953, he wrote I Love Paris and C’est Magnifique in homage to the city he loved.
POUND, Ezra (1885-1972)
Writer, born in Hailey, ID
Starting in 1907, Pound journayed to Europe, where he spent most of the rest of his life. He lived in Paris from 1920 to 1925. There he became acquainted with James Joyce and Ernest Hemingway, among others, and contributed regularly to The Little Review. In his apartment on Rue Notre-Dame-des-Champs (6th) he worked on his Cantos, which he had started writing during his stay in England and which remained unfinished at his death. He died in Italy.
POWELL, Bud (1924-1966)
Jazz musician, born in New York City, NY
Powell toured Europe for the first time in 1956 with the “Birdland All Stars.” He settled in France in 1959, founding the “Three Bosses” trio (active until 1962) with fellow American expatriate Kenny Clarke and Frenchman Pierre Michelot, and appearing regularly at the Blue Note (27, rue d'Artois in the 8th). During his stay in Paris, Powell, under dire health and financial conditions, was supported by young music critic Francis Paudras. This friendship was made famous by Bertrand Tavernier’s Oscar-nominated film Round Midnight (1986). He returned to the United States in August 1964 and died in New York two years later.