Antoine Louis Prosper "Frédérick" Lemaître (28 July 1800 – 26 January 1876) was a French actor and playwright, one of the most famous players on the celebrated

Boulevard du Crime The Boulevard du Crime was the nickname given in the 19th century to the Boulevard du Temple in Paris because of the many crime melodramas that were shown every night in its many theaters. It is notorious in French history for having lost so many ...

Biography

Lemaître, the son of an architect, was born at

Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very cl ...

, Seine-Maritime. He adopted the first name "Frédérick" as a stage name. He spent two years at the

Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

, and made his first appearance at a variety performance in one of the basement restaurants at the

Palais Royal The Palais-Royal () is a former royal palace located in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France. The screened entrance court faces the Place du Palais-Royal, opposite the Louvre. Originally called the Palais-Cardinal, it was built for Cardinal R ...

. At the

Théâtre de l'Ambigu-Comique The Théâtre de l’Ambigu-Comique (, literally, Theatre of the Comic-Ambiguity), a former Parisian theatre, was founded in 1769 on the boulevard du Temple immediately adjacent to the Théâtre de Nicolet. It was rebuilt in 1770 and 1786, but in ...

on 12 July 1823 he played the part of

Robert Macaire Robert Macaire is a fictional character, an unscrupulous swindler, who appears in a number of French plays, films, and other works of art. In French culture he represents an archetypal villain. He was principally the creation of an actor, Frédér ...

in ''L'Auberge des Adrets''. The

melodrama A modern melodrama is a dramatic work in which the plot, typically sensationalized and for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodramas typically concentrate on dialogue that is often bombastic or exces ...

was played seriously on the first night and was received with little favor, but it was changed on the second night to

burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

, and thanks to him had a great success. All of Paris came to see it, and from that day he was famous. He created a number of parts that added to his popularity, especially Cardillac,

Cagliostro Count Alessandro di Cagliostro (, ; 2 June 1743 – 26 August 1795) was the alias of the Italian occultist Giuseppe Balsamo (; in French usually referred to as Joseph Balsamo). Cagliostro was an Italian adventurer and self-styled magician. ...

and Cartouche. His success in the last led to an engagement at the

Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin The Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin is a venerable theatre and opera house at 18, Boulevard Saint-Martin in the 10th arrondissement of Paris. History It was first built very rapidly in 1781 under the direction of (1726–1810) to house th ...

, where in 1827 he produced Ducange's ''Trente ans, ou la vie d'un joueur'', in which his vivid acting made a profound impression. Afterwards at the Odéon and other theatres he passed from one success to another. In 1836, at the

Théâtre des Variétés The Théâtre des Variétés is a theatre and "salle de spectacles" at 7–8, boulevard Montmartre, 2nd arrondissement, in Paris. It was declared a monument historique in 1974. History It owes its creation to the theatre director Mademoiselle ...

he appeared with success as the great, and recently deceased, English actor

Edmund Kean Edmund Kean (4 November 178715 May 1833) was a celebrated British Shakespearean stage actor born in England, who performed, among other places, in London, Belfast, New York, Quebec, and Paris. He was known for his short stature, tumultuo ...

in the play ''

Kean Kean may refer to: * Kean (name) * Kean (play), ''Kean'' (play), 1838 play by Alexandre Dumas père based on the life of the actor Edmund Kean, and its adaptations: ** Kean (1921 film), ''Kean'' (1921 film), a German silent historical film ** Kean ...

'' by

Alexandre Dumas, père Alexandre Dumas (, ; ; born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie (), 24 July 1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas père (where ''Suffix (name)#Generational titles, '' is French language, French for 'father', to distinguish him from ...

. He put the final touch to his reputation as an artist by creating the part of

Ruy Blas ''Ruy Blas'' is a tragic drama by Victor Hugo. It was the first play presented at the Théâtre de la Renaissance and opened on November 8, 1838. Though considered by many to be Hugo’s best drama, the play was initially met with only average ...

Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romantic writer and politician. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote in a variety of genres and forms. He is considered to be one of the great ...

's play (1838). On his return to the Porte St. Martin he created the title-role in Balzac's ''

Vautrin Vautrin is a character from the novels of French writer Honoré de Balzac in the ''La Comédie humaine'' series. His real name is Jacques Collin . He appears in the novels '' Le Père Goriot'' (Father Goriot, 1834/35) under the name Vautrin, a ...

'', which was forbidden a second presentation, on account, it is said, of the resemblance of the actor's wig to the well-known toupé worn by

Louis Philippe Louis Philippe (6 October 1773 – 26 August 1850) was King of the French from 1830 to 1848, and the penultimate monarch of France. As Louis Philippe, Duke of Chartres, he distinguished himself commanding troops during the Revolutionary War ...

. His last appearance was at this theatre in 1873 as the old Jew in ''

Marie Tudor ''Marie Tudor'' is an 1833 play by the French writer Victor Hugo. It is a historical work portraying the rise, fall and execution of Fabiano Fabiani, a fictional favourite of Mary I of England (1516–1558). Mary has Fabiani thrown in the Tower o ...

''. He was married to the actress, Sophia Halligner, sister of the

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C ...

Marie-Julie Halligner Marie-Julie Boulanger, née Marie-Julie Halligner (29 January 1786 – 23 July 1850), was a French mezzo-soprano. She performed her entire career under the stage name Mme Boulanger, appearing in the world premieres of '' Le maître de chapel ...

. Lemaître died in 1876 in Paris and was buried in the

Cimetière de Montmartre The Cemetery of Montmartre (french: link=no, Cimetière de Montmartre) is a cemetery in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, France, that dates to the early 19th century. Officially known as the Cimetière du Nord, it is the third largest necropolis ...

in the

Montmartre Quarter Montmartre ( , ) is a large hill in Paris's northern 18th arrondissement. It is high and gives its name to the surrounding district, part of the Right Bank. The historic district established by the City of Paris in 1995 is bordered by Rue Ca ...

Popular culture references

* Lemaître is one of the principal characters in the famous film '' Les Enfants du Paradis'' (1945).imdb page
on '' Les Enfants du Paradis''.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lemaitre, Frederick 1800 births 1876 deaths Writers from Le Havre French male stage actors Burials at Montmartre Cemetery Conservatoire de Paris alumni 19th-century French male actors 19th-century French dramatists and playwrights 19th-century French male writers Male actors from Le Havre