Paris Nights: My Year at the Moulin Rouge
Written by Cliff Simon with Loren Stephens, this memoir of adventure opens with a bored 26-year-old Cliff Simon staring out at the ocean from his beachfront house, wishing he was somewhere else. After his friend Gavin Mills calls him from Paris inviting him to join him at the iconic Moulin Rouge, Cliff sells everything he owns, leaving Johannesburg, South Africa, for the City of Light. He learns that his spot at the Moulin is not guaranteed and is forced to audition.
Making the grade, he is put into the “can-can school” before he is allowed into the company. His adrenaline is pumping from excitement and fear — but it’s not the first time. That’s because when he was twelve, Cliff helmed a racing dinghy in the midst of a thunderstorm on the Vaal River. His father yelled at him not to be a sissy, and he brought the boat back to shore alone.
In London, his family escaped the tumult of Apartheid. He trained for the Olympics, but dropped out, enrolling in the South African military where he is subjected to harsh treatment and name calling as a “Fokken Jood.” After an honorable discharge, he worked in cabaret at seaside resorts, before finally being recruited as a cabaret gymnast. In that role, he realized that the stage was his destiny.
The memoir fast-forwards to Cliff’s meteoric rise at the Moulin from swing dancer to principal in “Formidable.” Off-stage, he gets into fights with street thugs, hangs out with diamond smugglers, and has his pick of gorgeous women.
With a year at the Moulin to his credit, doors open for him internationally and back in South Africa. He earns a starring role in “Egoli: Place of Gold,” and marries his longtime girlfriend, Colette. On their honeymoon to Paris, Cliff says, “Merci Paris, for the best year of my life.”
“A fascinating look behind the doors of the Moulin Rouge from a male’s perspective. A rare treat, indeed!”
— Jennifer L. Scott, New York Times bestselling author of Lessons from Madame Chic
“… delivers in a hugely entertaining way.”
— Marcia DeSanctis, 100 Places in France Every Woman Should Go
Check out a review of “Paris Nights” from Kirkus.
Watch video interview with Jennifer Scott, author of ‘Madame Chic,’ Cliff Simon, and co-author Loren Stephens.
Available on Amazon.