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International Women's Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. It was first honored in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland on 19 March, 1911, and today it celebrates its 110th year of birth. Renée Simonot, French actress and voice artist, mother of also French actress Catherine Deneuve, will also celebrate her 110th birthday this year, a very inspiring and empowering coincidence!  Renée Simonot, mother of French actress Catherine Deneuve, 13 May 1965  Renée-Jeanne Simonot, her real name Jeanne Renée Deneuve(the maiden name which Catherine Deneuve used for her stage name) was born on 10 September 1911, and she is the oldest living actress in the world. The second French actress who has lived more than 100 years after Renée-Jeanne Simonot is Gisèle Casadesus (14 June 1914 – 24 September 2017), who died at 103 years old.  Born in Le Havre, Renée-Jeanne Simonot debuted at the Odéon Theatre in 1918 at the age of seven. Primarily a stage actress, she remained there for 28 years, holding the post of "leading lady". Renée Simonot was one of the first French actresses to begin the dubbing of American films in France from the beginning of the talkies in 1929 through the 1930s. She was the voice of Olivia de Havilland (in most of her films), Sylvia Sidney, Judy Garland, Donna Reed and Esther Williams, among others. Renée Simonot had her first daughter, Danielle, out of wedlock on 27 October 1936. A few years later, she met Maurice Dorléac while dubbing for MGM, and they married in 1940. The couple had three daughters: Françoise Dorléac (1942–1967), Catherine Deneuve (born 22 October 1943) and Sylvie Dorléac (born 14 December 1946).  Catherine Deneuve and her sister Françoise Dorléac with their mother Renée Simonot  Catherine Deneuve and her sisters Françoise Dorléac and Sylvie Dorléac with their parents Renée Simonot and Maurice Dorléac.  Catherine Deneuve with her parents Renée Simonot and Maurice Dorléac, 1961. Renée Simonot Simonot has been a widow since 1979 and lives alone in an apartment in Paris, 16e arrondissement. Catherine Deneuve sees her mother not only as someone who has given her birth but also a source of inspiration, "a pretty incredible woman" ("une femme assez incroyable")who has made her who she is today. In an interview with Le Monde in 2012, Catherine Deneuve has described her mother's life like this:"...It's incredible!...She lives alone, she plays bridge, she wears glasses but has very good hearing and her brain works great. It's certainly a heartwarming image of old age. I tell myself that we, my sisters and I must have taken a lot from her in terms of energy! (« C'est incroyable, oui : ma mère a 100 ans ! Bientôt 101. Elle vit seule chez elle, joue au bridge, porte des lunettes mais conserve une très bonne ouïe et une tête formidable. C'est assurément une image réconfortante de la vieillesse. Je me dis que, question énergie, on doit tenir pas mal de ma mère, mes sœurs et moi !)  Young Catherine Deneuve and her sister Françoise Dorleac with their mother Renée Simonot, 13 June 1996 In an interview conducted a few months before her 102nd birthday in 2013, Renée Simonot said: "My old age is not sad. I am lucky to be very surrounded. There is not a day where I don't get a phone call or a visit from my children and grandchildren."  Renée Simonot, 21 September 1996 In 2019, ahead of her mother Renée Simonot's 108th birthday, Catherine Deneuve told Gala: "It's pretty amazing, it comes from her genes. My sisters and I are holding her. She has been in a home for two or three years. At the same time it's a little scary, it still seems very far in life. I am all the more surprised by her longevity that she is not sick."  Catherine Deneuve with her mother Renée Simonot Further interestComments are closed.
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