Jean de Létraz,
pen name of Jean Félix Deletraz, (23 February 1897 – 3 June 1954) was a French playwright, spécialising in
vaudeville, who authored nearly 118 plays, among which the most famous is Bichon written in 1935.
Biography
His first of more than 100 plays was Opium, a
one-act play starring
Sarah Bernhardt during
World War I.[1] As well as Bichon (1935), other popular plays of his included On demande un ménage (1942), Descendez, on vous demande (1946), Moumou (1944) and La Fessée (1936).[1] He was also a screenwriter and a dialoguist. A good number of his plays have been adapted to film.
From 1942 until his death, he was managing director of the
Théâtre du Palais-Royal where he directed both his own plays and others. He was also a vice-president of a Paris theatre managers' organization.[1]
His wife, Simone,[2] took over the managing of the theatre up to 1965 and staged some of his posthumous works.[3]
Novels
Nicole s'éveille (with Suzette Desty, 1926)
Nicole s'égare (with Suzette Desty, 1926/27)
Un homme... deux femmes (with Suzette Desty, 1927)
Douze Nuits d'amour (1927)
Nicole s'abrite (with Suzette Desty, 1928)
Un couple passa... (1929)
La jeune fille et les amants (1930)
...tu m'aimes? (1932)
Works in the theatre
Adapted
1931 : Chauffeur Antoinette, comedy in 4 acts by
Robert Blum, based on a novel by Jean de Létraz and Suzette Desty[4][5]