I always thought that Nick Sarkozy was the president who wanted to break with the past, so I was a bit surprised to see that his official photo looks remarkably like that of his predecessors.

It seems that Mitterand was the only one who had time to read.

I've featured Stephane Halleux previously on Frogsmoke. He's a French sculptor who creates remarkable steampunkish characters, engines, vehicles and very curious creatures. Now, his website has had a lift. Personally I hate Flash sites where I have to press Enter to get beyond the front page, but this inconvenience is relatively small once you see [...]

Every Saturday in the Belleville suburb of Paris, Juliette Dragon teaches the art of stripping "with grace and humor". French Express magazine went to have a look and came back with this video. Don't worry — it stays decent, and it's good for your French language skills.

Culture shocks ahead: Indian Ocean island votes to become fully French
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Voters on Mayotte, a tiny island in the Indian Ocean, chose by referendum Sunday to become a fully fledged part of France — a change of status that will end local traditions such as polygamy and Islamic courts.
It has a population of about [...]

Maurice Jarre died aged 84 years old, but his music will stay forever, including these two Oscar-winning film scores:

Times Obituary

Paris wouldn't be what it is today if there hadn't been Baron Georges-Eugène Haussmann, the civic planner whose name is forever associated with the rebuilding of the capital in the 19th century. Le Figaro has a wonderful series of before-and-after photos that show what Hausmann did for Paris. Here's one of them. Click to view [...]

Les Chats Sauvages was one of France's first rock'n'roll bands in the early sixties. Like most bands in those years they didn't last long. In 1964 they disbanded, only to be reunited in 1982 for a brief comeback. In the few years of their existence they made a dozen 45rpms and two albums. Here's one [...]

French pole vaulter Romain Mesnil is in need of a sponsor after Nike pulled out. To make sure his plight doesn't get unnoticed (after all he's the world's second best) he ran through the streets of Paris, supposedly without his clothes on. The video editor made sure it remained an exercise of good taste.
Now [...]

When Gustave Eiffel designed the tower that bears his name he specified that the steel construction had to be painted every seven years.

Next week this paint job will start for the nineteenth time. A group of 25 Greek and Romanian painters will start from the top, and work towards the bottom of the tower. [...]

From the useless statistics department: 57% of the French claim they've never stolen anything from a hotel, which leaves 43% who have. Towels are apparently popular. Eleven percent of French hotel guests admit they've stolen at least one hotel towel.
These are some of the results of a survey by the researchers at TripAdvisor, who compared [...]

As if France doesn't have enough trade unions: sex workers start their own syndicat

Around 20,000 people in France make a living providing sexual entertainment. Now they want to be recognized as a regular workforce. The spanking new Syndicat du Travail Sexuel (Strass for short) is going to be the instrument in their battle.
The union [...]

Disturbing: Le Figaro reveals a secret document which highlights France's gangdom:

According to the report, nearly 2,500 individuals run 222 known gangs, 156 of them specializing in drugs. Only 21% operate outside Paris, the rest inside the capital and its suburbs. Particularly disturbing is the age of these gangsters: nearly half of them are 18 years [...]

Today, popular actor Kad Merad turns 45. Have a fat one!

Anecdote: In an interview in "Cigar Club" magazine, Kad Merad once said he "likes to have a cigar with his aperitif." Regarded as offensive by the Association of Rights for Non-Smokers, a court in Paris condemned the publication to a fine of € 5000 for [...]

Surprise surprise: the inventor of punk rock mellows, gets jazzy and plans to sing in French.

Iggy Pop, who is obsessed with sex, death and the end of the human race, has grown weary of a career as an entertainer and wishes for a new life. His next work will be "a quieter album, with some [...]

When French workers go to the streets they don't care about the rest of the world. Here's what happens when workers of the Continental tire manufacturer demonstrate against the imminent closure of their factory: they burn piles of rubber in the streets of Paris. Stinkers!