For this episode, Vogue Writer and Editor Lynn Yaeger returns to explain why she is so inspired by the heroic, inspiring and fascinating life of Josephine Baker. Born into a life of poverty, segregation and racial violence in Saint Louis, Josephine Baker managed to escape what seemed to have been her destiny —eventually transforming herself into the glamorous toast of Europe. She starred in successful movies, performed on the stages of the most important theaters and released a string of musical hits—some of which are now considered classic French songs. In fact, many see Josephine Baker as the very first global American superstar. But as Yaeger is happy to tell us, Baker was so much more than just a star. She was also a decorated war hero, helping the French Resistance forces by working as a spy during World War. In later years, she would return home to join another fight: Martin Luther King’s civil rights movement. And, along the way there were many lovers, several victories and quite a few tragedies. Josephine Baker is also an extremely important figure for house of Balmain. She was a muse and inspiration for Pierre Balmain, who dressed her for several of her legendary midcentury performances. Today’s Balmain is known for its love of building upon the power of connecting music and fashion. That singular love of weaving the two arts together began many decades ago, with Pierre Balmain and Josephine Baker. We invite you to click to open the episode’s special webpage, which will allow you to scroll through videos and images of Josephine Baker.CREDITS L’ATELIER BALMAIN EPISODE 2.6 JOSEPHINE BAKER: SUPERSTAR, WAR HERO, ACTIVIST AND BALMAIN MUSEBalmain Creative Director: Olivier RousteingEpisode Direction and Production: Seb LascouxBalmain Historian: Julia GuillonEpisode Coordination: Jeremy MaceWebpage Layout and Coordination: Léa BouyssouEpisode researched, written and presented by John GilliganSpecial Podcast Guest: Lynn Yaeger See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.