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In 1951, Alta Anson celebrated her fortieth birthday in Provence, where she had recently renovated a Chateau. She was born a day before Christmas, and wore a beautiful red Dior dress and holly in her hair. The Chateau had four real trees and presents for everyone, including her beloved greyhounds Perseus and Demeter. Alta’s gift to herself was a new car, a black Cadillac Coupe deVille.
Taking a short break from acting, Alta spent her years between France, England, and Italy. On a rainy day in London, she met a striking young woman in gorgeous Chanel ensemble, giggling without a care in the world that she was being soaked through. They ducked into a quiet café and shared cups and cups of tea, and their life stories. Aïssa was an up-and-coming singer, known for her soulful rendition of “Amapola." She was Senegalese-French, her father having fought for France during WWI in the Senegalese Tirailleurs; her mother was a seamstress from Hauts-de-France who had moved to Paris to work for a reputable modiste. Alta had never before felt such love for a person, besides her children, and eventually realized her feelings were reciprocated. Alta and Aïssa were well-known amongst “The Sewing Circle”, a group of Old Hollywood actresses who were openly (as openly as one could be at that time) Lesbian and Bisexual. Among them were such greats as Greta Garbo, Marlene Dietrich (who had long been rumored to have been more than just friends with Aïssa), Barbara Stanwyck, Joan Crawford, and Katharine Hepburn.
Aïssa would go on to move in with Alta at the chateau in 1953, were they would host lavish parties, filled with champagne and smoke, and the keenest minds of the time-period. No evening would be complete without Alta accompanying Aïssa on the piano as she sung her latest hits. Eventually, Alta would even adopt five-year-old twin girls, which was quite unusual for the time, and though it couldn’t be said legally, it was known that they raised them together. They were together for six years, until Aïssa would lose her beloved father to a long battle with cancer. She needed time alone and moved to London to record a new album. Alta was heartbroken by her decision but didn’t let it get in the way of supporting her long-time love and their children.
DW: Aïssa Raymonde Ndiaye
DW: Alta Anson
DD3/DD4: Edwige Roselyne Ndiaye // Myriame Gracieuse Ndiaye
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Edwige would become a smoky-voiced chanteuse like her mother, known most popularly for singing the theme song for the James Bond film, Ms. Moneymaker, in 1973 at twenty-five. She would never marry, but had two long term relationships, one with a French-Algerian model, Karim, who was the male face of Gucci for over fifteen-years; their relationship lasted from 1972 to 1978. They had a son together. Her most recent is with British art-house director, Roderick. Together, they had a baby girl.
DBF1: Karim Lucien Bencharif
DGF: Edwige Roselyne Ndiaye
DS: Sofiane Jerome Bencharif
DBF2: Roderick Leonard Heathcote
DGF: Edwige Roselyne Ndiaye
DD: Honora Bérengère Heathcote
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Myriame would become a chef whose German, West African, and French fusions had celebrities like Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg, France Gall, and Jean-Paul Belmondo coming back again and again. Her original restaurant, “Méli-Mélo," was happily situated in bustling Paris, but now there is one in Hollywood, London, and even Tokyo. She married her sous-chef and they had four amazing children, who have inherited their parents’ love of food.
DH: Thierno Amadou Maal
DW: Myriame Gracieuse Ndiaye
DS: Alioune Cyril Maal
DS/DD: Mbaye Judicael Maal // Mame-Anne Albane Maal
DD: Capucine Maimouna Maal