Saturday June 15, 2024, on the occasion of Johnny Hallyday’s birthday (he would have been 82), France Info broadcast a very special issue of its podcast “La vie de Nelly”. Initially, this audio gem focused on the life of Nelly, a modest 73-year-old retiree who devoted a large part of her life to her passion for Johnny Hallyday.
An exceptional day, a special surprise. To honor the memory of Taulier, on this day of celebration, the journalist behind the podcast orchestrated a meeting between Nelly and the daughter of his idol in the bar of a small hotel in the Paris region. The opportunity for Laura Smet to open up about her dad like never before. From her relationship with him to the way he was dressed before closing his coffin, she made (very) intimate confidences.
“He was very handsome”
Johnny was this sacred rock monster, but he was also a very good dad. Laura told Nelly what kind of father he was. When friends came to his door but he had planned to watch a horror film with his daughter, he did not hesitate, for example, to send them home screaming: “I don’t give a damn anymore!” Get out! I am with my daughter ! »
The 40-year-old actress was not sparing with details. During a moment rich in emotion, she described what her dad was wearing the day his coffin was closed for good.
“He was in a suit, he was very handsome”, she remembered, before detailing said costume: black in color, accompanied by a white shirt, and a hairstyle “as usual”. However, something was different.
“ I saw a body that was much smaller than my father”
Laura Smet nevertheless confided that she had not completely recognized her father. While she had always considered him to be a big person, she realized that, in his grave, Johnny seemed very small. “ I saw a body that was much smaller than my father” This impression was due, she deduced, to “the immense soul” of his father, a soul who gave the impression that he towered over everything.
“His soul was so big. »
Another element that David’s sister wanted to share with her father’s absolute fan is the impression of extreme calm that emanated from him. “It was clear that he had not suffered, his face was not tense at all”she clarified to the attentive ear of Nelly, so moved and reassured to learn this.
