Curated playlist
French male dramatists and playwrights
- VoltaireThe line Voltaire is most quoted for was written in 1906, long after he died.
- Jules VerneJules Verne has been the second most-translated author in the world since 1979. Only Agatha Christie ranks higher.
- MolièreMolière collapsed on stage in 1673 while playing a fake sick man. He insisted on finishing the play.
- Gustave FlaubertGustave Flaubert's first novel, Madame Bovary, put him on trial for immorality. He and his publisher were acquitted.
- Jean-Paul SartreJean-Paul Sartre asked to be dropped as a Nobel nominee, then won anyway. His 1964 letter went unread.
- Denis DiderotJailed writer Denis Diderot annotated Paradise Lost with a toothpick and ink made from slate and wine.
- Victor HugoVictor Hugo asked for a pauper's funeral and got the largest in French history.
- Alexandre DumasIn 2002, France moved Alexandre Dumas's ashes to the Pantheon, with guards dressed as the four Musketeers.
- Hector BerliozPaganini knelt before Hector Berlioz and kissed his hand. Days later he sent the composer 20,000 francs.
- Jean RacineJean Racine secretly sent his hit play to a rival theater company. Molière could not forgive the betrayal.
- Gabriel MarcelGabriel Marcel wrote at least thirty plays, but readers kept turning to his philosophy.
- Louis Carrogis CarmontelleLouis Carrogis Carmontelle built a machine that rolled painted landscapes past a backlit window.