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Rosemonde Gérard

Louise-Rose-Étiennette Gérard, known as Rosemonde Gérard (April 5, 1871, Paris – July 8, 1953, Paris) was a French poet and playwright. She was the wife of Edmond Rostand (1868–1918, author of Cyrano de Bergerac), and was a granddaughter of Étienne Maurice Gérard, who was a Marshal and a Prime Minister of France.

Gérard is perhaps best known today as the author of the lines:

Car, vois-tu, chaque jour je t’aime davantage,

Aujourd’hui plus qu’hier et bien moins que demain.

(For, you see, each day I love you more,

Today more than yesterday and less than tomorrow.)

This couplet is taken from a poem, variously known as "L'éternelle chanson" ("The Eternal Song") or "Les Vieux" ("The Old Ones"), that she wrote to Rostand in 1889. The poem was published in 1890, but did not enjoy immediate success. The phrase became celebrated as an expression of ever-growing love when, in 1907 (17 years after its publication), a Lyonnais jeweler, Alphonse Augis, had the idea of making a medallion with the core portion of the verse engraved on it. The medallions became quite popular, and led to the production of other, similarly decorated jewelry items, such as earrings and matchboxes; many older examples include Augis' name. A very common variation on the design presents the line with the words "plus" and "moins" replaced by the mathematical + and − signs, respectively. The mathematical signs are frequently rendered in tiny gemstones, often in contrasting colors.

Among Gérard's other works is the play “A Good Little Devil” (1913), co-written with Maurice Rostand. It was made into a movie of the same name in 1914. Mary Pickford starred in both the play and the movie; she later opined that the movie was one of the worst—if not the worst—she had ever made. Gérard also subtitled a number of films including Alexis Granowsky's Das Lied vom Leben (1931) and Nikolai Ekk's film The Road to Life (1931).

Gérard and Rostand were married on April 8, 1890; they had two sons, Maurice (1891–1968) and Jean Rostand (1894–1977). In later years, Gérard and Maurice Rostand frequented an intellectual circle that included Jean-Paul Sartre and Gilbert Martineau.

It has been said that Gérard "doubtless would have been famous had not her husband's star so far eclipsed her own." After 35 years of widowhood, she died in 1953 and is buried at Cimetiere de Passy, in Paris, as is her son Maurice.

Birth and Death Data: Born April 5, 1871 (Paris), Died July 8, 1953 (Paris)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1908 - 1936

Roles Represented in DAHR: author, songwriter

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Edison 7554 10-in. 10/1/1920 L'anneau d'argent Paul Dufault Tenor vocal solo, with orchestra author  
Gramophone 5528h 10-in. 1908 L’anneau d’argent Lucile Panis Female vocal solo, with orchestra author  
Columbia (U.K.) WL1020 10-in. 4/13/1928 L'anneau d'argent Élie Cohen ; Lucien Fugère Baritone vocal solo, with piano author  
Columbia (U.K.) CL4848 10-in. 5/2/1934 Polka Pierre Chagnon ; Le Petit Mircha Vocal solo with instrumental ensemble songwriter  
Columbia (U.K.) CL5736 10-in. 5/30/1936 L'hôtel du clair de lune Lucienne Boyer ; Iza Volpin Female vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble author  

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Gérard, Rosemonde," accessed April 22, 2024, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/106503.

Gérard, Rosemonde. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved April 22, 2024, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/106503.

"Gérard, Rosemonde." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 22 April 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/106503

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