François-Joseph-Philoclès Regnier de La Brière called Regnier (1 April 1807, in Paris – 27 April 1885, in Paris) was a 19th-century French actor and playwright. The comedian Alcide Tousez was his uncle.

Biography

After he studied at the

Oratorians An Oratorian is a member of one of the following religious orders: * Oratory of Saint Philip Neri (Roman Catholic), who use the postnominal letters C.O. * Oratory of Jesus (Roman Catholic) * Oratory of the Good Shepherd (Anglican) * Teologisk Orator ...

, he made his comedian debut at the Théâtre Montmartre in 1826 then toured the French provinces, particularly in

Metz Metz ( , , , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle (river), Moselle and the Seille (Moselle), Seille rivers. Metz is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Moselle (department), Moselle Departments ...

and

Nantes Nantes (, ; ; or ; ) is a city in the Loire-Atlantique department of France on the Loire, from the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. The city is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, sixth largest in France, with a pop ...

. He was admitted at the

Comédie-Française The Comédie-Française () or Théâtre-Français () is one of the few state theatres in France. Founded in 1680, it is the oldest active theatre company in the world. Established as a French state-controlled entity in 1995, it is the only state ...

in 1831, became a sociétaire in 1835 then the dean in 1865 before retiring in 1871. In 1884, he also became a professor at the

Paris Conservatory The Conservatoire de Paris (), or 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 Jean Ja ...

, where among his students were Réjane,

Marguerite Durand Marguerite Durand (24 January 1864 – 16 March 1936) was a French stage actress, journalist, and a leading suffragette. She founded her own newspaper, and ran for election. She is also known for having a pet lion. The Bibliothèque Margueri ...

, Jules-Théophile Boucher and Constant Coquelin.

Theatre

Career at the
Comédie-Française The Comédie-Française () or Théâtre-Français () is one of the few state theatres in France. Founded in 1680, it is the oldest active theatre company in the world. Established as a French state-controlled entity in 1995, it is the only state ...

* admitted in 1831 * appointed 255th sociétaire in 1835; became dean in 1865 * retired in 1871

Anecdote

In a letter from 1876 Regnier says that the unusual first name of Philoclès comes from the French translation of ''Agathocle'' by

Christoph Martin Wieland Christoph Martin Wieland (; ; 5 September 1733 – 20 January 1813) was a German poet and writer, representative of literary Rococo. He is best-remembered for having written the first ''Bildungsroman'' (''Geschichte des Agathon''), as well as the ...

whose his godfather was a great admirer. The name of Charles was substituted at his baptism, but the destruction of civil registers during the

Paris Commune The Paris Commune (, ) was a French revolutionary government that seized power in Paris on 18 March 1871 and controlled parts of the city until 28 May 1871. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard (France), Nation ...

allowed him to recover it at the time of the reconstitution of his birth certificate.Quoted ''in'' Georges d'Heylli
''Gazette anecdotique'' n° 13 (15 July 1885)
Librairie des bibliophiles, 1885, .

References

Bibliography

* Georges d'Heylli, ''Regnier, sociétaire de la Comédie-Française'', Librairie générale, 1872. * Henry Lyonnet, ''Dictionnaire des comédiens français'', Revue universelle internationale illustrée, Genève, 1912. *

Gustave Vapereau Louis Gustave Vapereau (4 April 1819 – 18 April 1906) was a French writer and lexicographer famous primarily for his dictionaries, the ''Dictionnaire universel des contemporains'' and the ''Dictionnaire universel des littérateurs''. Biography ...

, ''Dictionnaire universel des contemporains'', Paris, 1865.

External links

''Regnier, sociétaire de la Comédie-Française''
on Gallica
Base documentaire La Grange
on the site of the

{{DEFAULTSORT:Regnier, Francois-Joseph 1807 births 1885 deaths 19th-century French dramatists and playwrights 19th-century French educators 19th-century French male actors Academic staff of the Conservatoire de Paris Alumni of Oratorian schools French male dramatists and playwrights French male stage actors Sociétaires of the Comédie-Française Male actors from Paris Writers from Paris