The first Grimaldi celebrated on the stage, appeared at Paris about the
year 1735, when his athletic force and extraordinary agility procured
him the sobriquet of "Jambe de Fer," or iron-leg. In 1742, when Mahomet
Effendi, ambassador of the Porte, visited Paris, he was received with
the highest honour and utmost distinction; and the court having ordered
a performance for the Turk's entertainment, Grimaldi was commanded to
exert himself to effect that object. In obedience to his directions, in
making a surprising leap, his foot actually struck a lustre, placed high
from the stage, and one of the glass drops was thrown in the face of the
ambassador. It was then customary to demand some reward from the
personage for whom the entertainment was prepared, and, at the
conclusion of the piece, Grimaldi waited upon the Mussulman for the
usual present. If the Turk had concealed the expression of his anger at
the accident, it was not however extinct, for on the appearance of the
buffoon, he directed him to be seized by his attendants, and transported
in his theatrical costume, to his residence, where, after undergoing a
severe bastinado, the hapless actor was thrust into the street, with
only his pedal honour for his recompense.
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