Les Charlots, known as The Crazy Boys in the English-speaking world, was a group of French musicians, singers, comedians and film actors,[1][2] who were popular in the 1960s, 1970s, and early 1980s.

In 1965, while he was vacationing in Portugal (his home country), Luis Rego was imprisoned for a few months under the Salazar regime, for desertion and rebellion.

They became instantly extremely popular for their humoristic / parodic songs like "Si tu ne veux pas payer d'impôts", "Merci Patron", "On n'est Pas là Pour se Faire Engueuler", "Paulette la Reine des Paupiettes", "Berrystock", "Sois Erotique" (a parody of Serge Gainsbourg's "Je t'aime Moi Non Plus"), "Je Suis Trop Beau" (a parody of Jacques Dutronc), "Berry Blues", "Albert le Contractuel",, "Cet été c'était toi", "Ouvre la Fenêtre", "Pétronille Tu Sens la Menthe", "Elle Avait du Poil au Ventre", "Hey Max" (a parody of Johnny Halliday's cover of "Hey Joe"), "Elle a Gagné le Yoyo en Bois du Japon (avec la Ficelle du Même Métal)", "Le Trou de Mon Quai", "La Biguine au Biniou", "Le Chou Farci", "Histoire Merveilleuse", "Chagrin d'labour", "C'est trop, c'est trop", "Ah Viens!

After they left Antoine, they toured a lot from 1966 to 1970, first as the opening act of prestigious artists like Johnny Hallyday, Françoise Hardy, Sylvie Vartan, Claude François and even The Rolling Stones.

Later in the evening, Sarrus said to Mick Jagger that, if they wanted, the Rolling Stones could play "Paulette la Reine des Paupiettes".

The films focused on the group's anti-authoritarian lifestyle and free-spirited youthfulness, their friendship, freedom, love of music and pretty girls, their laziness towards work, their numerous blunders and their hatred of authority figures like the army.

Their nemesis was a bald and severe sergeant named Bellec (played by character actor Jacques Seiler) who had to endure his new recruits' blunders and was ultimately always ridiculed by the boys.

In Le Grand Bazar (1973), they were factory workers, helping their shopkeeper friend Emile (Michel Galabru) fight against a brand new modern supermarket.

In the big budget parody From Hong Kong with Love[2] (1975), they reluctantly replaced a recently deceased 007 when Queen Elizabeth II is abducted by villain Mickey Rooney... For the occasion, actors Bernard Lee and Lois Maxwell, cameoed in their roles from the 007 franchise as M and Miss Moneypenny respectively.

Supporting actors like Jacques Seiler, Pierre Gualdi, André Badin, Paul Préboist, Roger Carel, Gérard Croce and renowned accordionist Aimable appeared in many of their films.

Jean-Guy Fechner left the band in June 1976, a few months after the release of the expensive Bond parody From Hong Kong with Love.

Following a dispute about unpaid royalties and disagreements about artistic choices, Les Charlots decided not to renew their contract with producer / manager Christian Fechner (Jean-Guy's brother).

At the time of the split with Fechner, Les Charlots were supposed to appear alongside comedy legend Louis De Funès in another film by Claude Zidi.

With no producer and their legal issues with Christian Fechner unresolved, the band went on hiatus until 1978 and the release of their first film as a trio, the mediocre Et Vive la Liberté!

Rinaldi, Sarrus and Filippelli went on as a trio from 1976 to 1986, but their five subsequent films, with the lack of a decent producer, lesser budgets, mediocre scripts and directors, were less successful.

Years later, Filippelli acknowledged that "if you're a fan of Les Charlots, it's best that you don't watch our last films..." In 1979, the trio appeared in their first theatre play, "La Cuisine des Anges", a very successful experience.

After a hiatus following Rinaldi's departure, he was replaced in 1987 by a friend of Sarrus, small-time singer / comedian Richard Bonnot, who had been the opening act for the band a few times in the early '80s.

In the following years, the three of them recorded a few more songs (including "Pour pas qu'l'amour Capote", written for an AIDS awareness campaign) but not enough material to produce a new album.

On the poster, Richard Bonnot's face was intentionally blurred to create a confusion with the more popular Rinaldi, who wasn't in the film.

Now much too old to play young dreamers, burdened with the presence of Richard Bonnot who couldn't act or sing to save his life, the band split shortly after that.

Having appeared in the least successful of all their films and barely remembered for his contributions on the last songs, Bonnot is not considered by fans of Les Charlots as a true member of the band.

After the group officially split in 1997 (but with almost no noticeable activities between 1992 and 1997), he made a few appearances as a comedian on television but his career remains pretty obscure.

The five original members (Rinaldi, Sarrus, Filipelli, Rego and Fechner) reunited on television in Michel Drucker's show, Vivement Dimanche in 2009.

From 2008 to 2011, at the initiative of Jean Sarrus (who's always tried to keep the spirit of the band alive), Rinaldi and Sarrus reunited and toured as Les Charlots, singing medleys of the group's biggest hits for the nostalgia tour "Age Tendre et Têtes de Bois", featuring other French artists from the '60s and '70s.