Singer, actor and nightclub legend Regine is no more. It is thought that Regine coined the word discotheque when she operated a nightclub business with a presence in many places, including Los Angeles. Regine’s granddaughter said that she was 92 years old at the time of her death. There is no known cause of her death as yet.
She started her first-ever nightclub in Latin Quarter over 70 years ago, with disc jockeys and turntables in place of the standard jukeboxes. It gave birth to a fresh format, known as the discotheque.
As an explanation for it, she said that if you could not dance, it was impossible to make love. Regine was right about it, as royal family members, elite business people, and celebrities came in droves to her business establishments. That earned her the moniker ‘the queen of the night’ which became closely associated with the good times of the elite.
Regine’s venues included locations in Rio de Janeiro, Los Angeles and Miami. At its peak, there were 22 venues for Regine’s nightlife empire.
In a recent statement made for Regine’s family, comedian and her friend Pierre Palmade said that she has died after a great and long career. Palmade added that stars from the entire world danced in Regine’s nightclubs.
Regine was most known for her nightclub entrepreneurship at a global level, but she is known in France for the contributions she made to songwriting. Singer Renaud from France described Regine as the last person to represent the so-called French chanson, who inspired a whole generation of songwriters cum singers, including Barbara and Serge Gainsbourg.
After her performance in the Olympia location in Paris during the 1960’s, she sang in NYC’s Carnegie Hall.
She said in 2020 that it would her happy if the public listened to her songs 50 years down the line. She added that she felt proud about the fact that some of her songs had entered the standard repertoire of France.
She regarded discotheques as her first profession. Songs were only her hobby until she realized that the most significant part of her life had been the stage. Regine appeared in many movies too, including films from directors such as Claude Zidi and Claude Lelouch.
