François-Frédéric-Raoul Toché (7 October 1850 – 18 January 1895) was a French playwright and journalist.

Life and career

Toché was born on 7 October 1850 in Rueil, now known as

Rueil-Malmaison Rueil-Malmaison () or simply Rueil is a Communes of France, commune in the western suburbs of Paris, in the Hauts-de-Seine Departments of France, department, Île-de-France Regions of France, region. It is located from the centre of Paris. It is ...

, near Paris. As a playwright he is known for his collaborations with Ernest Blum. He also collaborated with

Émile de Najac Comte Émile de Najac (December 1828 – 11 April 1889) was a French librettist. He was a prolific writer during the Second Empire (France), Second Empire and early part of the Third Republic (France), Third Republic, supplying plays and opéra co ...

and Paul Siraudin. He contributed to libretti for

Jacques Offenbach Jacques Offenbach (; 20 June 18195 October 1880) was a German-born French composer, cellist and impresario. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s to the 1870s, and his uncompleted opera ''The Tales of Hoffmann''. He was a p ...

, Gaston Serpette and

Théodore Dubois Clément François Théodore Dubois (; 24 August 1837 – 11 June 1924) was a French Romantic music, Romantic composer, organist, and music teacher. After study at the Paris Conservatoire, Dubois won France's premier musical prize, the Prix de Ro ...

. As a journalist he edited '' Le Gaulois'' under the pseudonym "Frimousse". His other pen names included Escopette, Raoul Tavel, Robert Triel and Gavroche."Parisian Topics", ''Evening Standard'', 21 January 1895, p. 5 Between 1881 and 1885 he published annual retrospectives of theatrical productions in Paris Toché was made a chevalier of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

in 1893. In desperate financial straits, caused by gambling debts, he killed himself on 18 January 1895 at

Chantilly Chantilly may refer to: Places France *Chantilly, Oise, a city ** US Chantilly, a football club *Château de Chantilly United States * Chantilly, Missouri, an unincorporated community * Chantilly (Charlotte neighborhood), North Carolina ...

by shooting himself in the head.

Stage works

Works to which Toche contributed include: *1877 – ''Chanteuse par amour'' *1878 – ''La revue des Variétés'' *1880 – '' Belle Lurette'' *1881 – ''La Noce d'Ambroise'' *1884 – ''Le Château de Tire-Larigot'' *1885 – ''Le Gazier'' *1885 – ''Le Petit chaperon rouge'' *1888 – ''Les Femmes nerveuses'' *1889 – ''Le Parfum'' *1890 – ''Les Miettes de l'année'' *1890 – ''Le Collectionneur'' *1890 – ''Le Cadenas'' *1890 – ''Paris fin de siècle'' *1892 – ''Le Monde ou l'on flirte'' *1893 – ''La maison Tamponin'' *1893 – ''Les Femmes des amis'' *1894 – ''Madame Mongodin.'' ::Source: Bibliothèque nationale de France, and ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''.Raoul Toché
Bibliothèque nationale de France. Retrieved 9 December 2022"Suicide of Raoul Toché", ''The New York Times'', 19 January 1895, p. 5

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Toché, Raoul 1850 births 1895 deaths 19th-century French dramatists and playwrights 19th-century French journalists French male journalists Suicides by firearm in France