Young Parisienne immortalised by photographer Robert Doisneau kissing her lover in a busy street in 1950 dies aged 93

It was a picture of romance that defined an era in the city of love.

What became known as Le baiser de l'hotel de ville (Kiss at the Town Hall) showed the young Parisienne Francoise Delbart in a clinch with her lover Jacques Carteaud.

The photo was taken in 1950 by photographer Robert Doisneau, as France was recovering from the horrors of World War II.

Now, more than seventy years later, it has emerged that actress Mrs Delbart, whose married name was Bornet, died on Christmas Day at the age of 93.

Doisneau, who became famous for his chronicles of Parisian street life, had initially seen a pair of drama students embracing in a café on the Left Bank in April 1950.

He then had Ms Delbart, then 20 years old, reenact the kiss for a shoot commissioned by the American magazine Life to show the return of romance to post-war Paris.

The black and white shot subsequently appeared in the popular magazine, but was then forgotten until 1986, when a poster company rediscovered it and turned it into a worldwide hit.

In the 1990s it adorned hundreds of thousands of posters, but also postcards and even tea towels and chocolate boxes.

The identity of the subjects remained a mystery, with many believing that they had been randomly photographed by Doisneau.

A series of couples came forward claiming they were the lovers in the photo.

Among them were Jeal-Louis and Denise Lavergne, who filed suit in 1992.

This claim prompted Mrs. Delbart to come forward with a signed original print from Doisneau, proving that she was the woman in the photo.

The photo was taken in 1950 by photographer Robert Doisneau, as France was recovering from the horrors of World War II.

Furious, she also took legal action, demanding R100,000 as part of the profits generated from the use of the image.

Although a court dismissed both lawsuits, Doisneau confirmed that Ms. Delbart and Mr. Carteaud had been the lovers and that they had willingly posed for him.

Before he died in 1994, he said: 'I would never have dared to photograph such people. Lovers who kiss each other on the street, those couples are rarely legitimate.'

In 2014, French-American man Marc de Mauregne claimed he was half of the couple pictured.

“I recognized myself, my hair,” said the then 87-year-old.

'I think we went to the movies. The lady was a friend who used to live on my street in Paris. Her name was Rolande Dupuis.”

However, his claim that the photo was taken in 1945 or 1946 conflicted with the photo's verified date.

Ms. Delbart's romance with Mr. Carteaud did not last long. She later said, “Jacques looked a bit like Burt Lancaster. We broke up when he met someone else and we lost touch.”

He became a wine producer and died in 2006.

Ms. Delbart, who appeared in several French films in the 1950s and 1960s, married Alain Bornet, a director and screenwriter, in 1962.

The couple had no children and Mr Bornet died ten years ago.

Ms. Delbart, who appeared in several French films in the 1950s and 1960s, married Alain Bornet, a director and screenwriter, in 1962. Above: The couple in 2005

Ms Delbart sold her original print of the famous photo in 2005 for €155,000.

She said in 2022: 'I was with my boyfriend. We didn't stop kissing… Robert Doisneau asked us to pose for him.

'We took a series of snapshots. They appeared in Life magazine, but no one paid attention.”

She died at her home in Evreux, Normandy.