Hallyday was married five times – including twice to the same woman – with the first four marriages ending in divorce. His last marriage was his longest, lasting twenty-one years.

His first marriage was to French singer Sylvie Vartan, lasting fifteen years from 1965 to 1980. Son David was born in 1966.

His second marriage to Babeth Étienne was his shortest, lasting 65 days. He then had a four-year relationship with French actress Nathalie Baye.

Their daughter Laura was born in 1983. His third and fourth marriages were to the same woman, Adeline Blondieau, from 1990 to 1992, and 1994 to 1995.

Inaugurated by Nicolas Sarkozy his fifth and final marriage was to Læticia Boudou from 1996 until his death. Hallyday died of lung cancer on 6th of December 2017 in Marnes-la-Coquette, near Paris, at the age of 74.

On 9th of December, his funeral was held in Paris; 900,000 lined the Champs-Élysées.

During a career spanning 57 years, he released 79 albums and sold more than 110 million records worldwide, mainly in the French-speaking world, making him one of the best-selling artists in the world.

He won 5 diamond albums, 40 golden albums, 22 platinum albums and 10 Music Victories. He sang an estimated 1,154 songs and performed 540 duets with 187 artists.

Credited for his strong voice and his spectacular shows, he sometimes arrived by entering a stadium through the crowd and once by jumping from a helicopter above the Stade de France.

Among his 3,257 shows completed in 187 tours, the most memorable at Parc des Princes in 1993, at the Stade de France in 1998, at the Eiffel Tower in 2000, which had record-breaking ticket sales for a French artist.

A million spectators gathered to see his performance at the Eiffel Tower, with some 10 million watching on television.