JEAN-PAUL VIGNON – BON VIVANT & FORREST GUMP?

Ok. This guy. Here’s a good one. The only reason I had initially created an entry for Jean-Paul Vignon is because I had found an autographed copy of his single with Farrah Fawcett-Majors (with her on the front of the picture sleeve – natch) autographed by JPV for $17 on eBay. And then I found and quickly scanned through his autobiography “From Ethiopia to Utopia”, and I was alternately dumbstruck and laughing out loud. From his book I found that Jean-Paul was basically like Forrest Gump; always in the stratosphere of famous people and a non-sequitur … but who TF was he really?!?! And how many people of note can I connect to him???? This guy is just too “connected” and over the top to ignore.

JEAN PAUL-VIGNON AUTOGRAPH

Here's the autographed 45 that got me started on my JPV journey ...

JEAN-PAUL VIGNON – RECORDS WITH FARRAH FAWCETT-MAJORS ON HER ONLY RECORD

Farrah Fawcett is one of my all-time favorites,and she has been ever since I saw her in a shaving cream commercial with Joe Namath… BEFORE Charlie’s Angels.

As an original member of the Farrah Fawcett-Majors fan club, I can guarantee you that I have a novella of stories and boxes of memorabilia related to her. Including a bottle of Farrah Fawcett shampoo as you can see here … (yes, I still have it)

Jean-Paul Vignon may be one of my most random autographs, but since he sings a duet with a sing-talking Farrah on her ONLY record and picture sleeve 45. You already snow that I’ve got multiple copies in my collection.

What kills me about this, is that Jean-Paul says in his book that Farrah was his girlfriend, that she had a “famous poster in Cosmopolitan” and regarding their record … “it was never released”. Ummmm … excuse me Sir, but ….

FACT CHECK: Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. The song was recorded in 1974 and Farrah was with Lee Majors from 1969. She wasn’t Jean-Paul’s “girlfriend”. She WAS on the cover of Cosmopolitan in 1975 (shown here & HIGHLY collectible!); but never a centerfold. The famous poster he is referring to is probably the red swimsuit nipple that we all had. And YES, the record WAS released. Duh!

Check out this video made of Jean-Pauls and Farrah's “duet” … he may be the thumbnail but it's mostly Farrah footage.

FARRAH FAWCETT AUTOGRAPH

Regarding Farrah’s autograph – I’ve got quite a few in my collection, but the most meaningful ones are shown here, because I got them TTM in 1983 and I do believe they are authentic. The two B&W were sent by me, and this color shot inscribed to me was included by her in my SASE.

JEAN-PAUL VIGNON – FRENCH MOVIE STAR & OPENS FOR EDITH PIAF

“From Ethiopia to Utopia: A Remarkable Journey in Music and in Love”. This is the title of Jean-Paul’s autobiography. Jumping all over the place timewise, it seems to be a fanciful mix of fact, fiction, and fragmentation.

It kicks off with him being “discovered by a producer” and then immediately being put into three movies in the row as the star/ co-star with his name above the title.

FACT CHECK: Kinda true. He DOES have two French movie credits on IMDb in the late 1950’s where he IS billed in the top 3. He IS the male lead as shown in poster photo matched with his autograph ($22 on 4x6 card).

But check out the movie's poster!!! Pretty racy and totally rapey … and it was 1956!!!

He then says he was invited to perform a song at Edith Piaf’s house and that she was so impressed by him that she asked him to open for her in concert. After one of his shows "she came backstage to compliment us. But she did not remember that I had dinner with her in her apartment in Paris." Okayyyyyyy …

FACT CHECK: Part of this is verified fact. He DID open for Edith Piaf at some shows because they were both signed to the same record label, Disques Vogue. However, other than his own book, there is no mention of him auditioning or ever being invited to the home of “The Little Sparrow”. And her biographers have been THOROUGH. I call B.S. In his own words "She (Piaf) came backstage to compliment us. But she did not remember that I had dinner with her in her apartment in Paris." Oh. Ok.

JEAN-PAUL VIGNON – CRUISE SHIP ENTERTAINER

Jean-Paul is on the final Voyage of the SS Liberte in 1961 and is asked to be the cruise entertainer. He says he had his own first-class table, met Edie Adams and Ernie Kovacs and was seated at the Captain's Table with Carol Burnett.

FACT CHECK: Maybe, NO, NO. Jean-Paul WAS on that voyage. No verification if he was the cruise entertainer, but it’s possible. Carol Burnett did NOT sail across the Atlantic on Liberté. Her first documented transatlantic ocean liner crossing occurred years later, in May 1966. Throughout the fall of 1961, Kovacs and Adams were busy in California, both heavily occupied with producing and acting – not on the Liberté.

EDIE ADAMS AUTOGRAPH

TBH, I really can’t recall seeing Edie Adams in anything – I just know that she was attractive, photographed pretty well and was married to Ernie Kovacs. I have a couple of Edie Adams autographs in my collection (about $30 total). The closeup is authentic and the black top is a secretarial.

CAROL BURNETT AUTOGRAPH

Here’s a clip of Carol in 1961 (when Jean-Paul) says he met her. She, Julie Andrews and Gwen Verdon are doing a spoof of Jack LaLanne's TV show.

Like most everyone, I was a huge fan of “The Carol Burnett Show” and she was one of my early fan letter requests when I was a teenager. The cast shot and latter-day photo are both autopens. The index card is authentic and the early 8x10 is probably also an autopen. Notice that the grey envelope (in which I received the cast photo) is addressed to “Betty Gonzales”. Was my handwriting that bad? You’ll see that I’ve also got a great 9x12 shot from the “What Becomes a Legend Most” Blackglama book signed by Carol and included when I purchased the “Broadway” Joe Carter collection.

JEAN-PAUL VIGNON – AMERICAN CABARET STAR & GLORIA SWANSON HAIRCUT

According to his autobiography, on November 12, 1963, Jean-Pierre Aumont, Gloria Swanson and Johnnie Ray are in the audience of his opening night performance at The Blue Angel Cabaret. Gloria Swanson was so taken with Jean-Paul that she invited him to her house for drinks and then cut Jean-Paul’s hair in her living room.

FACT CHECK: Again, part of this is verified fact. He DID open at The Blue Angel in November (opening for Woody Allen BLECH) and Aumont & Swanson WERE in the audience as verified by gossip columns. Johnnie Ray WAS NOT; he probably came another night. Also, there is zero corroboration of going to Gloria’s home or her cutting his hair. For those of you familiar with Gloria Swanson’s VERY detailed 25,000-page autobiography/doorstop (ahem), AND her fondness for younger, handsome men ... you know that she might have mentioned such a story, but JPV is not mentioned in the index of over 1,000 (literally) entries.

However, in this video montage you can see Gloria touching JPV’s face and looking into his eyes, so they DID meet.

GLORIA SWANSON AUTOGRAPH

“To all of you wonderful people out there in the dark”. Yes, I’ve got Gloria Swanson autographs and I’m a huge fan of “Sunset Boulevard” (covered separately). But for this entry on Jean-Paul Vignon, I’m including a vintage 5x7 signed in white grease pencil from the approximate time period of JPV’s story.

JEAN-PIERRE AUMONT AUTOGRAPH

I know Jean-Pierre Aumont primarily as the husband of Maria Montez, a friend of Marlene Dietrich’s and his appearance in “Mahogany” as Diana Ross’s benefactor when she moves to Rome. I don’t think I’ve seen any of his movies, but I can see him being an escort for Gloria Swanson to the nightclub on JPV’s opening night. The autograph you see here is from a vintage autograph book from the 1940’s accompanying a bathing suit nip slip shot.

JOHNNIE RAY AUTOGRAPH

He was famous for “Cry” and the “The Little White Cloud that Cried” – and crying must have been a lot of what Johnnie Ray did. Sadly, he was a closeted man during a time when being openly gay and in his field was just not feasible. He was also almost completely deaf and had a serious alcohol problem. His career success was short-lived, his songs and his story are heartbreaking, and he died at the age of 63. Liver failure and the toll of the bottle. Glad that I got his autograph in a lot of $20/ea signed 4x6 cards. Check out this interesting (non-AI bullshit) true documentary on Johnnie:

JEAN-PAUL VIGNON – TV CROONER

In Jean-Paul’s book, he says that Ed Sullivan asked to get Jean-Paul on his show because his performance at the Blue Angel was so well received. JPV says he “auditioned” for the Ed Sullivan Show by performing in front of the live audience before the show that featured Herman's Hermits. He says he was a huge success with the audience and signed an eight-appearance contract with Sullivan

FACT CHECK: Wrong/right. Herman’s Hermits first appearance was in 1965. Jean-Paul’s first appearance on Ed Sullivan was in 1964. But Jean-Paul did appear 8 times on Sullivan.

PETER NOONE AUTOGRAPH

Herman’s Hermits were a part of the British invasion, knocking out 18 top 40 hits in the states between 1964-1968. I can’t lie that I find some of their songs irresistible, like their version of “It’s a Kind of Hush”, “I’m into Something Good” and “I’m Henry VIII”. Peter is still milking it, doing dozens of live shows per year and having a net worth of ~ $10 million. Mr. Noone, you’ve got a lovely wallet.

I’ve got a lot of Herman’s Hermits albums, but I think the one shown here is most flattering to Peter. As for the autographed CD, it was a find at Rasputin’s in Berkeley for $5.95. It just happens to be inscribed to Bob, but I have no idea what the rest says. I also dislike that he signed “Herman”. I’m gonna meet him in person and get that LP signed. And you KNOW that I will have him sign his full name AND Herman.

ED SULLIVAN AUTOGRAPH

The wooden Ed Sullivan is forever ingrained in my head simply for my fascination with the Supremes appearances. Back in the day, there was a “rare VHS” of all of their Sullivan appearances in chronological order. And if you were lucky, you got the additional clip of Jean Terrell with the Supremes performing “Up the Ladder”. Mostly, I just remember his sometimes-awkward introductions like “the girls here” (when he must have forgot who was introducing) and his unique way of turning and speaking. Where would YouTube be without the plethora of fantastic Ed Sullivan appearances!?!? This 7x9 authentically signed vintage photo was an eBay find for $88.

Here is Jean-Paul’s 1964 debut on Ed Sullivan – great looking, good energy and fun vocals “Twistin’ the Twist”

Jean-Paul says his American TV debut on Ed Sullivan was a show on May 24th, 1964, which was “headlined” by the Beatles, and he performed with Liza Minnelli - which he referred to "as another memorable show was when they had me sing a duet with an 18-year-old girl who was starting to make a name for herself"

FACT CHECK: Wrong, wrong and wrong. He made his American TV debut on “The Tonight Show” with Johnny Carson (appearing twice in 1963) and he appeared on “The Red Skelton Hour” in early 1964. As for Sullivan, there was a video CLIP of the Beatles which preceded his May 24th, 1964, performance, and the 18-year-old girl was Liza Minnelli – with whom he did NOT appear until the following year. She WAS on the May 1964 show; but performed solo.

JOHNNY CARSON AUTOGRAPH

I wrote to Johnny Carson when I was 14, and he responded with a pre-print autographed photo. Mailed 10/4/1979 and answered on 2/16/1980 – nice to get a free pic, but even my 14-year-old self knew it was fake. By all accounts, anybody who knew or interacted with Johnny Carson personally seems to focus on his NON-Carson-like personality. Apparently, he was a curmudgeon, self-serious, frugal, unfriendly, sexist, cold and abrupt. So often it’s the comedians who are the grumps in real life. (Robin Williams being a notable exception.) I never tried to get Johnny TTM again, but I did buy the “Tom” collection ($3.52 ea) from a guy who collected magazine covers and inside photos from almost every male on TV in the late 70’s. And that’s where this signed cover of “People” comes from. Regarding Vignon’s appearances on Carson (eight in total; same as Sullivan) – none are available online because Carson’s estate has not released all 4,000 plus episodes.

RED SKELTON AUTOGRAPH

I’ve never been a huge Red Skelton fan, so I never wrote to him for an autograph. But I have three examples of his signature in my collection – all shown here with a vintage 8x10 containing his standard “I Dood It” autopen signature. At the top you will see a return address from a fan envelope that is secretarial (or family member) and the piece of paper signed “Dear Heart” is authentic. From various collections, the 3 of them were less than $25 total. BTW – I can’t find any existing footage of Jean-Paul on his single 1964 Skelton Show appearance either. BUT I do enjoy this German trailer for “Bathing Beauty” featuring the breakout of Esther Williams with Red Skelton as her love interest (ummm…). Watch for Esther, the clowning and the dubbing

LIZA MINNELLI AUTOGRAPHS TTM - MOSTLY SECRETARIAL

Autograph collectors were recently in an uproar because Liza Minnelli’s “Kids, Wait Till You Hear This” were being sold as “signed” when it was actually an autopen signature on every signed copy (unless you saw her sign one in-person). For all of us collectors through the years who have considered Liza to be such a gracious and generous signer, think again. They are almost all secretarial. I’m sorry for the hard hit; but it’s simply a fact. The top 2 and the “Steppin’ Out” item were all sent TTM by me when she was appearing in San Francisco at Golden Gate Theater in 1992. All of these are NOT authentic.

LIZA MINNELLI AUTHENTIC AUTOGRAPH

Funnily enough, there are some AUTHENTIC Liza Minnelli autographs in my collection from mass purchases that I’ve made, and I always thought that THEY were the fake ones. HA! Shown here is one of three similar 3x5 photo cards sent, and authentically signed by Liza in her early career, that I have in my collection. I don’t even review my “sold” log anymore, because for years I was selling autographs that I always thought were messy or possibly secretarial and in retrospect I realize that they were the real thing. C’est la vie.

Here’s a clip of their Liza and Jean-Paul’s performance together of “Boum” on Ed Sullivan on January 3, 1965:

JEAN-PAUL VIGNON - MISSES HIS CUE ON LIVE T.V.

JPV says he messed up on live TV on October 11th, 1964, on Sullivan, by missing his cue and having to be summoned on stage by Ed but was consoled afterwards with a hug by Juliet Prowse for the flub.

FACT CHECK: It’s true that JPV and Juliet Prowse were both on this episode of Sullivan; there’s no video of the missed cue and of course not the hug.

JULIET PROWSE AUTOGRAPH

Is it horrible that the main thing I know and remember about Juliet Prowse is that she was bitten by leopards – TWICE – once on “Circus of the Stars” and again on “The Tonight Show” (both during rehearsals). Oh, and she dated douche-Natra, did an Elvis movie, had long legs and headlined in Vegas.

Ok – so right after I wrote the above – I go to my filing cabinet. Here you will see WHY I remember. My filing cabinet has the vintage newspaper articles of Juliet’s bites from 1987, a leggy magazine ad and her obituary. Hoardington Castle (mi casa) is a friggin’ pop culture museum. Or a mausoleum.

JEAN-PAUL VIGNON – RELEASES AN LP & HAS SEX WITH GLORIA STEINEM

In 1965, his ONLY LP, “Because I Love You”, is released. "My first single made it to #38 on the Billboard charts. The song was “Don't Cry Little Girl”. It had teenage appeal but never climbed to number one."

FACT CHECK: Ixnay. Utter bullshit. That didn't happen. Neither the single, nor the LP, charted anywhere in America or Europe. He may have been referring to the local Mayberry RFD radio chart.

However, I am going to give him and this song some props, regardless of non-existing chart position. Because he DID sing the song on Ed Sullivan, and it’s a nice clip showcasing his looks and voice – and adding to its appeal are the bevy of 1960’s glamor models standing perfectly still like statues as he weaves around them.

While promoting his album (with the imaginary top 40 hit), he was staying at the Beverly Hills Hotel and he was seduced by a bikini-clad blonde who hungered and pounced. Don’t take it from me. Here are his exact words about … Gloria Steinem

FACT CHECK: As Judy Tenuta said “It could happen”. Gloria Steinem has never mentioned this encounter, but although she’s written many books, she has never revealed many “private details”. During the time of his album promotion, Gloria was a freelance journalist, she WAS kinda blonde and was often in Los Angeles, so it IS possible that she was the “hungry” “blonde in a bikini” that has sex with him for hours.

GLORIA STEINEM AUTOGRAPH

I never wrote to Gloria Steinem, and I almost always passed up on signed books at Thrift Stores. Finally, I did buy a signed copy of her book “Moving Beyond Words” at Community Thrift for $1.25. I found a picture of her that looks closest to what Jean-Paul describes and matched up with the signed popcorn box piece ($3.80) bought in a collection. I figured it was appropriate to place the feminist looking sexy on top of popcorn as a snack.

JEAN-PAUL VIGNON – IMPRESSES SINATRA, VEGAS DEBUT & ANGEL OF THE MORNING

Sinatra was performing in the main room at the Eden Rock in Miami and came to Jean Paul's show. Frank was apparently so impressed with his show that he had the hotel concierge give JPV a note which said: “Mr. Sinatra has learned that your birthday is tomorrow and he would like you to invite you to a big party on the rooftop of the hotel.” So, a big bash is thrown for Jean-Paul, but Sinatra didn't show up.

FACT CHECK: Zero corroboration of Jean-Paul connected with Sinatra. I mean, it could have happened, but with over 100 biographies written on Sinatra including massive tomes and chronicles obsessed with every little detail?? Ok. Maybe I'm being harsh. Or not.

In 1968 Merrilee Rush introduced him to a couple, British pop singer Eden Kane and his fiancé. They wanted Jean-Paul to be their best man in a "secret wedding" because of "unexpected legal problems". There was a ceremony at City Hall "wearing big sunglasses so nobody would recognize us"

FACT CHECK: Again, zero corroboration. Anywhere.

P.S. I absolutely LOVE “Angel of the Morning” and it’s multiple covers including P.P. Arnold, Juice Newton and especially the dance version by E.G. Daily

But Merrilee’s was the original and here’s a nice montage performing the song on different TV appearances.

MERRILEE RUSH AUTOGRAPH

This 10x8 signed by Merrilee Rush was a $5 purchase in 2009. She used to sell this photo on her website. I met her in person once at a convention and I wanted a copy of the album cover photo signed, and she wanted maybe $30 at the time. I said “Well, on your website, you’re selling photos for $5-$10. I’ll just get one that way.” I never did. But what a dick I was.

JEAN-PAUL VIGNON VEGAS DEBUT - OPENS FOR SHECKY GREENE

In 1968 Jean-Paul also made his Las Vegas debut at The Riviera Lounge opening for Shecky Greene. Contemporary newspaper reviews at the time noted it was quite a "baptism under fire" for Vignon's opening night—he had to sing delicate French ballads while Greene's rowdy, eager fans were noisily flooding into the lounge and shuffling to their seats ahead of Greene's headlining set. (NOT MENTIONED IN JPV’S BOOK)

SHECKY GREENE AUTOGRAPH

I have very little knowledge of Shecky Greene. I may have caught a few minutes of him on TV and was probably disinterested. This autographed 8x10 was in the $.88 each collection of ~1,500 pieces that I bought. But it’s secretarial. My log shows that I also found a signed album by Shecky at a Thrift Store and I have NO friggin’ idea where it is. I may have sold it, misfiled it or God only knows. The one thing of note is that I DID go to Shecky Greene’s house in Palm Springs back in the day when I would go door-to-door for autographs when visiting Palm Springs. But why Shecky, I didn’t even really know who he was. We collectors are weird. And he wasn’t home anyway.

JEAN-PAUL VIGNON – DICK CLARK THINKS HE’S SEXY

Dick Clark, as a producer, approaches Jean-Paul to appear in a Canadian TV series called “The Sensuous Man”.

FACT CHECK: True. Dick Clark & Alan Hamel did indeed developer this show for JPV. The campy variety show ran for 26 episodes in 1972 (Canada only) and was famous for ending each week with Vignon reclining in a bathtub filled with elements like olive oil, flowers, or mud

DICK CLARK AUTOGRAPH

I never wrote to Dick Clark. Not sure why. But I do have a few autographs of his in my collection from purchases throughout the years. He’s like the Pat Boone of TV to me. He was always so clean-cut and earnest, sometimes bordering on obsequious. But in reality, he was a huge part of the payola scandal where he owned financial stakes on over 30 music-related companies which profited heavily when songs were promoted on American Bandstand. To avoid criminal charges and losing his job, ABC required that he divest ALL of his music holdings. Oh, Dick, tsk tsk.

JEAN-PAUL VIGNON – NUDE PLAYGIRL CENTERFOLD

“So now you know that in the sixth issue of Playgirl (1973) I was the first centerfold to show everything. I always joke that the issue should have come with a magnifying glass!"

FACT CHECK: The first two parts of this sentence from his book are true-ish; just off a bit. He was in the 7th issue, not the 6th. And George Maharis was the FIRST to show “everything” in Playgirl (even though it was only his side peen). JPV was the first celeb centerfold to show full frontal. The third part of the sentence about the magnifying glass is verifiably true.

JEAN-PAUL VIGNON – AMERICAN FILM, TV, SOAPS & VOICE ACTING

JPV made his American film debut in “The Devil's Brigade” (1967) starring William Holden and Cliff Robertson.

He was 13th billed. He worked for decades in TV and film, appearing in small roles on multiple big-name TV series (Rockford Files, Murder She Wrote, Dallas, Gilmore Girls, etc.) as well as daytime soaps (Days of Our Lives, The Bold & the Beautiful) and voice actor (Shrek). Let’s see how many actors I can connect to Jean-Paul!

(1967) Jean-Paul shared a dressing room with Richard “Dickie” Dawson who apparently kept him in stitches during the duration of the filming of “The Devil’s Brigade.

RICHARD DAWSON AUTOGRAPH

Who doesn’t love “Family Feud”!?! I did and thought Richard Dawson was pretty damn funny. “Hogan’s Heroes”? Not so much. But being married to British Marilyn Monroe sexbomb, Diana Dors? THAT is an interesting tidbit. The autographed postcard here is authentic and a pretty hard find. Most of Richard’s autographs, especially from Family Feud are secretarial. Luckily, I nabbed this piece for ~$50.

(1979) One of Jean-Paul’s favorite roles was in the episode of “Only Rock and Roll Will Never Die” of the Rockford Files, working with James Garner. The funny part of this story is that somebody did a review of THIS specific episode …

JAMES GARNER AUTOGRAPHS TTM -MOSTLY SECRETARIAL

Any autograph collector who is reading this and thinks that they have authentic James Garner autographs in their collection and that he was such an accommodating TTM signer, I’m sorry but you probably have secretarial signatures. Yes, he was covered multiple times in “Autograph Collector” magazine for being a top signer and so generous. Sadly, like James Stewart, Jerry Lewis and so many others, almost EVERYTHING received TTM from Garner was signed by a member of his staff. However, UNLIKE the others, the signature so well known as James Garner’s is not even remotely close to his authentic signature. 99.9% of those currently being sold on eBay with COA’s are inauthentic. ALL of the autographs shown below are secretarial. If you don’t believe me, ask Google or any AI. Sorry, kids.

JIM GARNER AUTOGRAPH

Because everybody is so busy buying the fake James Garner autographs with COA’s (sigh), they are all passing up on the real deal. Which means that I’VE gotten real deals in purchasing the authentically signed “Maverick” photo and the two signed cuts for less than $75 in total. Meanwhile, you will see his beautifully signed secretarials that have been “certified” selling for double the price. Learn, class.

(1979) Jean-Paul later appeared in a miniseries called “The French Atlantic Affair” (filmed aboard a Carnival Cruise ship) which includes Jean-Pierre Aumont in the cast and is top-billed by Telly Savalas. In his biography he states that Telly Savalas and Louis Jourdan took an especial affinity towards Jean’s daughter, Marguerite and that they treated her with great kindness.

TELLY SAVALAS AUTOGRAPH

I’ve got two Telly Savalas index cards in my collection from the $.88 each collection. I’m on the fence about their authenticity though. Hmmm.

Telly reached #1 in the U.K. with his spoken-word version of Bread’s “If”. Kojak be slick.

(1985-1986) JPV played waiter & maître d’ in “Crazy Like a Fox” – because the French love food? John Rubinstein (and Jack Warden) were the leads in the short-lived series.

JOHN RUBINSTEIN AUTOGRAPH

Why do I even have John Rubinstein in my collection?!?! That would be because I bought a massive 1,000+ piece collection from a “Star Trek” and “Star Wars” fanatic. It includes all the major leads of the originals and their spin-offs AND just about every guest star. Since Rubinstein appeared in both “Star Trek: Voyager” and “Star Trek: Enterprise”, here he is. Tony winner for “Pippin” and Emmy nominated for “Family” – it’s a nice addition.

The TV series trailer of Rubinstein’s father/son private eyes in “Crazy Like a Fox” is so dated! Just like me.

(1987) Jessica Fletcher watched Jean-Paul be the emcee of a fashion show in the Season 4 premiere of “Murder She Wrote”

ANGELA LANSBURY AUTOGRAPH

Angela Lansbury has always been a good, and authentic signer, through the mail. I’ve written to her a couple times over the years and the last time was during the pandemic when I had her sign the beautiful 8x10 glamour portrait. If you think Jessica Fletcher is a sweet old lady, you really need to watch her in “The Manchurian Candidate”. See Angela as the brutally manipulative mother of a vice-presidential nominee and her assassination plans. Wicked good.

DAYS OF OUR LIVES (1983 Mr. Carre, 1994 Jacques Marcel -2 eps, 1998 Monsieur Lazare – 3 eps) Jean-Paul appeared six times on “Days of Our Lives” over 15-year period. I wonder if he flirted with Deidre Hall. I’m surprised he didn’t write about a seduction!

DEIDRE HALL AUTOGRAPH

Yep, Deidre Hall is in my collection. And certainly not because I’m a soap fan! I’m glad to have this interesting shot of her though. It was taken at an event in the 80’s – clearly … with that hair! I’ve never watched a single episode of “Days of Our Lives”, but I love the fact that she’s Jimmy’s (Paul W. Downs) mother on “Hacks”

(2000) How about connecting Jean-Paul to O.J. Simpson? Yep. He played “Owner” the restaurant owner of Mezzaluna where Ron Goldman was working and found the sunglasses of Nicole Brown Simpson. Ron Silver played second lead, defense attorney Robert Shapiro

RON SILVER AUTOGRAPH

Just another brick in the wall. I never sought out Ron Silver, but yep, he’s in my collection. Questionable authenticity, but I’m a Suspicious Sully.

(2000) Jean-Paul has a small role in “Gilmore Girls” had him attending the funeral of a CAT along with Lauren Graham in the “Cinnamon’s Wake” episode.

LAUREN GRAHAM AUTOGRAPH

Yet another one whose show I never watched. Shrug. I bought a collection of 100 pieces for $350 – so I got Lauren Graham for $3.50. When you consider that she doesn’t do fan conventions, hasn’t signed autographs TTM for years (and even then, rarely authentically) and you can’t touch a signed card for less than $100 on eBay – I’m damn lucky!

(2001) JPV voices one of the French Merry Men in “Shrek” – so technically JPV and Eddie Murphy shared a scene, since the Donkey is watching Robin & the Merry Men singing.

EDDIE MURPHY AUTOGRAPH

Love Eddie Murphy! I’ve got three signed items of his in my collection. One is a rare TTM hand-signed photo. Many copies of the same photo (black jacket) received through the mail were pre-printed, sometimes with a handwritten secretarial inscription. The signed scene from “Nutty Professor II” is a classic Eddie Murphy street graph; rushed, but authentic. The index card signed in blue is a bad forgery.

(2009) “500 Days of Summer” Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s character dreams he is inside a dramatic, black-and-white classic French film depicting his heartbreak over Zooey Deschanel, and Vignon provides the French-language narration in Joseph’s dream.

ZOOEY DESCHANEL AUTOGRAPH

I was a HUGE fan of “Modern Girl” and even a bigger fan of Zooey’s music with “She & Him”. Anybody who loves retro 60’s girl groups and covers The Ronettes “I Can Hear Music” is alright by me! Very pleased that I got two signed cards in one of the massive >$1 each collections. Here’s a video with scenes from “500 Days of Summer” with the background track of Zooey’s top 40 hit “I Thought I Saw Your Face Today”

JEAN-PAUL VIGNON – THE DISCO ERA

Jean-Paul was the featured male vocalist on the title track of the “Belle Du Jour” album by Saint Tropez. It’s basically bedroom talk in French between him and one of the girls over a slow beat. Check out his smoldering glance towards the women on the cover and the suggestive (Roxy Music-ish?) pose from the center of the gatefold sleeve.  This guy! EVERYWHERE

His “seduction speak” starts about 1:15 …

SAINT TROPEZ COMPLETE DISCOGRAPHY

Of course, I have the entire Saint Tropez discography (3 LP’s; 1 EP) in my collection. They were a “studio group” with a rotating group of vocalists and featured Jean-Paul on one album (vocals/photos) = “Belle du Joru”. Their biggest hit was “One More Minute” - #49 Pop, #8 Dance (then called the “Disco” chart) and #90 R&B and it was from the album featuring JPV.

Oh, look who’s on the cover of March 1979 Oui magazine? The Girls from St. Tropez. But how could they pass up letting Jean-Paul be part of this little sexcapade? He is with the girls in all 10 photos within the magazine (even kissing ass in one; literally). When you’re sexy and you know it, clap your hands. Yes, I do have a pristine physical copy of this issue of “Oui”. Bobby the completist!

Who the hell knew that Jean-Paul Vignon was pervasive throughout decades of European and American pop culture? And I discovered all of this because of my devotion to Farrah!

For those of you who want to learn how to permeate the entertainment world, I suggest you take lessons and listen to Jean-Paul’s version of “Teach Me Tonight”

As for “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon” – they’ve got it all wrong. It’s “Two Degrees of Jean-Paul Vignon”

DIRECTORY

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