France: death of Zappy Max, popular star of the "papa radio"

"Dear friends … hello!": Zappy Max thus launched his famous radio game, "Quitte or double", playing from 1947 the whole of France and beyond, first on Radio-Luxembourg and then on Radio Monte -Carlo. One of the most famous radio hosts in France and Belgium, he died Sunday, just days from his 98th birthday.

Born June 23, 1921 in Paris, Max Doucet studied chemistry when he was forced, during the Second World War, to work as a miller-miller at the Zapp factory in Cologne, Germany. It will be inspired by this name when it comes time to take a pseudonym.

Attracted after the war by the music hall, this admirer of the Marx Brothers begins as a whimsical singer in an orchestra. Then he joined Radio-Luxembourg to animate "Quit or double" that will mark his era. It is a question of answering questions of general culture, the candidate being able to double the putting after each good answer and to lose everything, if he makes a mistake or does not know.

Became the king of the "radio hook", he animated in the 50s this show under the immense traveling marquee of "Radio Circus", which travels eight months a year the country and on which is displayed his giant portrait.

Thousands of spectators are electrified each week by this game and its animator with the monster's beard, the nasal voice, the eyes in ball of lotto and the little mustache with Max Linder. Other public radio shows are recorded under this marquee. He participates alongside programs or soap operas such as "Vas-y Zappy", "Ça va boir" or "C'est parti mon Zappy".

But in 1966, he is removed from Radio Luxembourg which becomes RTL and wishes to renew itself and kill "Papa's radio". Deeply hurt, he bounced back to RMC and took over "Quit or double", every day, at lunch time, until the early 80s. Ironically, the show will return on RTL, from 2001 to 2006, around Jean-Pierre Foucault.

Zappy Max, who also starred in a few movies and plays, wrote several books including "The Golden Age of Radio" (2004). The writer Georges Perec quoted him in his famous book "Je me souviens": he is the 373rd of his 480 "memories".