Patrick Topaloff

Patrick Topaloff 30 December 1944 7 March 2010 was a French comedian singer and actor The son of a Georgian father and a Corsican mother which according to him made him a delicate FrancoRussian dessert Topaloff began his career on Europe 1 where his comic antics drew a wide audience especially among children who delighted in his many silly catch phrases Popular singer Claude François encouraged him to try his hand at singing and his recording of Il Vaut Bien Mieux Etre Jeune Riche et Beau Its Much Better to Be Young Rich and Beautiful became a major hit and the first of several gold records In the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s writerdirector Philippe Clair cast Topaloff in a number of slapstick comedy films similar to the Carry On series in the UK or those made by Jerry Lewis in the US after splitting with Dean Martin His last feature film was Drôles de Zèbres for writerdirector Guy Lux in 1977 In his later years problems in Topaloffs private life overshadowed his professional successes Deeply in debt he frequently worked without billing in an effort to avoid liens being placed on his salary In 1995 he was sentenced to a year in prison for nonpayment of alimony and taxes Paroled after four months he undertook a new and successful stage career He died aged 65 from a heart attack His autobiography Les Pleurs du Rire Tears of Laughter was a major bestseller Source Article Patrick Topaloff from Wikipedia in English licensed under CCBYSA 30