In addition to a flock of reporters from Paris Match, two high-profile French love-birds were shadowed by a herd of cows when they attempted an Alpine summer escape. There was a prancing horse too… on the bonnet of Roger Vadim’s silver Ferrari 250 GT California Spider.
It was the summer of 1961, and the then 17-year-old Deneuve was experiencing the price of fame for the first time
The exploits of French screenwriter, director, and producer Roger Vadim were well known far beyond the borders of France. Already twice-married – to Brigitte Bardot when she was only 15 and he was 22, then Danish actress Annette Strøyberg – when he started a relationship with Deneuve, the whole world took notice of the man whose first directorial role was in ‘And God Created Woman’.
It was the summer of 1961, and the then 17-year-old Deneuve was experiencing the price of fame for the first time. Vadim decided to take his love away for a weekend in Morzine, in the French Alps. He had spent his youth in the area, so rented a small chalet.
The idea was to get away from the heat, bustle and press intrusion of the French capital. Vadim could also work on scripts, particularly with his young companion in mind, who had only just starred in ‘Les Parisiennes’. In 1962, now married to Vadim, she was to take a leading role in his film ‘Vice and Virtue’. In their Alpine hideaway Deneuve seems relaxed in front of the paparazzi’s cameras. In the background can be seen the powerful Ferrari that transported Vadim on his manyliaisons dangereuses in Paris, the Alps and St Tropez.
And it’s still around today, having been sold by Artcurial at its 2012 Paris Rétromobile sale for 4.5m euros.
Photos: Paris Match via Getty Images
