Caron

I just finished watching an interview with Leslie Caron. It was conducted by Robert Osborne in 1999 when Leslie Caron was 68 --- she's 76 now and living back in France, where she owns and operates an affordable bed and breakfast, Auberge La Lucarne aux Chouettes.

I first saw Caron in the movie Gigi, probably around 1975, and was immediately under her spell. She was 28 in that film (portraying a Parisian schoolgirl) and mesmerizing. But age isn't a factor for her: 20s, 30s, even now in her 70s she's just got this amazing quality.

Turner Classic Movies is doing a small retrospective of her movies today but I'm only recording Father Goose and An American in Paris. Caron's been in a handful of movies in the past 20 years but her salad days were the late 50s and 60s. She did have an appearance in 2000 with Judi Dench and Johnny Depp in Chocolat and made a rare television appearance in a guest-star role on NBC's Law & Order: SVU in 2006 but those are rare exceptions. For the most part she stays out of the limelight now. :-(

Her inn looks adorable and probably has excellent food and wine since it's in Burgandy. The least expensive room is 99 euros a night which doesn't seem bad for a Continental B&B. Not in my budget though. The chef there, Daïsuke Inagaki, has earned a Michelin star in the past but I don't think the restaurant at Caron's inn has one... yet.