Madeleine Renaud, one of France's outstanding stage and screen actresses for six decades, died Friday at the American Hospital in Paris. She was 94.
She and her late husband, actor-director Jean-Louis Barrault, formed probably the most famous stage couple ever in France. They were married for 54 years before Barrault's death in January, and Renaud had been in poor health since then."I'm sad, but I'm happy for her,"
said Barrault's niece, actress Marie-Christine Bar-rault. "She had no place since Jean-Louis was gone. . . . Life didn't have any meaning for one without the other."
The exact cause of death was not given.
Renaud stood just 5 feet tall, but her stage presence and versatility were commanding.
She was born in Paris on Feb. 21, 1900. By the time she graduated from high school, she had written short stories, plays and a novel.
Drama inspired her most, and she entered the Conservatory for the Performing Arts. Her performance in Moliere's "School For Wives" earned her the conservatory's top honor, and she joined the prestigious Comedie Francaise at 21.