Alexandre Bisson (9 April 1848 – 27 January 1912) was a French

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

, vaudeville creator, and novelist. Born in Briouze, Orne in Lower Normandy, he was successful in his native France as well as in the United States. Remembered as a significant creator of Parisian vaudeville, in collaboration with Edmond Gondinet, Bisson's 1881 three-act comedy ''Un Voyage d'agrément'' was performed at the Théâtre du Vaudeville in Paris. Of his works, Bisson is best remembered for his play ''Madame X'', which was performed in 1910 both in Paris and on Broadway with

Sarah Bernhardt Sarah Bernhardt (; born Henriette-Rosine Bernard; 22 or 23 October 1844 – 26 March 1923) was a French stage actress who starred in some of the most popular French plays of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, including '' La Dame Aux Camel ...

in the leading role. Over the years, the play would be revived for Broadway three times and nine '' Madame X'' motion pictures in several languages have been filmed. The first

silent screen Silent Screen (1967–1993) was an American Champion Thoroughbred racehorse. Background Silent Screen was trained by J. Bowes Bond for owners Sonny and Leah Ray Werbin who raced under the '' nom de course'', Elberon Farm. Racing career Si ...

adaptation was in 1916 and the latest in 2000. Better-known versions include a 1929 sound film starring Ruth Chatterton and directed by

Lionel Barrymore Lionel Barrymore (born Lionel Herbert Blythe; April 28, 1878 – November 15, 1954) was an American actor of stage, screen and radio as well as a film director. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in ''A Free Soul'' (1931) ...

plus the 1966 film starring Lana Turner. In 2006, a musical based on the original play was produced in Chicago. Bisson also adapted the 1910 best-selling

Florence Barclay Florence Louisa Barclay (2 December 1862 – 10 March 1921) was an English romance novelist and short story writer. Biography She was born Florence Louisa Charlesworth in Limpsfield, Surrey, England, the daughter of the local Anglican rec ...

novel, '' The Rosary'' as a three-act play for the Paris stage. Widely acclaimed in the United States, Alexandre Bisson was invited to write about the theatre by '' The Saturday Evening Post'' and his articles "The Dilemmas of the Theater" and "How the World Contributes to the American Stage" were published in 1912. Alexandre Bisson died in Paris in 1912 at the age of 63.

Selected works for stage

* 1882: ''115, Rue Pigalle'' * 1884: ''Le Député de Bombignac'' ( Comédie-Française, 28 May 1884)Title page
''Le Député de Bombignac'' * 1886: ''Une Mission délicate'' * 1886: ''Un Conseil judiciaire'' * 1887: ''Ma gouvernante'' * 1888: ''Les Surprises du divorce'' (with Antony Mars) * 1893: ''Le Veglione (le Bal masqué)'') (with Albert Carré) * 1895: ''Monsieur le Directeur !'' (with

Fabrice Carré Fabrice Carré or Carré-Labrousse, real name Jules Fabrice, (9 July 1855 in the 6th arrondissement of Paris – 1921) was a 19th-century French playwright, and librettist. The dramatist Fabrice Labrousse (1806-1876) was his grandson. After stud ...

) * 1896: ''Disparu !'' * 1897: ''Jalouse'' * 1897: ''La famille Pont-Biquet'' * 1898: ''Feu Toupinel'' (adapted by William Gillette as ''

Mr. Wilkinson's Widows ''Mr. Wilkinson's Widows'' is a farce-comedy in Three Acts by William Gillette from the Alexandre Bisson play ''Feu Toupinel''. The play opened under the management of Charles Frohman on Monday, March 30, 1891 at Proctor's Theatre and continued ...

'') * 1898: ''Le Contrôleur des wagons-lits'' * 1900: ''Château historique !'' * 1901: ''Le Bon juge'' * 1907: ''Les Plumes du paon'' * 1908: '' Madame X'' * 1910: ''Nick Carter vs. Fantômas'' (with

Guillaume Livet Charles Guillaume Livet (24 January 1856 – 16 April 1919) was a French playwright, journalist, novelist and physician. Biography A student in hospitals and journalist with '' L’Événement'', ''Le Temps'', ''Gil Blas'', the ''Voltaire'' (1 ...

) (translated )

Filmography

Madame X Adaptations

*', directed by (Denmark, 1910, short film), starring

Oda Nielsen Oda Laurenze Helmine Nielsen née Larsen (1851–1936) was a highly acclaimed Danish actress who performed both in private theatres in Copenhagen and at the Royal Danish Theatre. Inspired by French actresses, she played the roles of attractive you ...

as Jacqueline Floriot *'' Madame X'', directed by George F. Marion (1916), starring Dorothy Donnelly as Jacqueline Floriot *''A névtelen asszony'', directed by

Jenő Janovics Jenő Janovics (8 December 1872 – 16 November 1945) was a Hungarian film director, screenwriter and actor of the silent era. He directed 33 films between 1913 and 1920. He also wrote for 30 films between 1913 and 1918. He was the founder ...

(Austria-Hungary, 1918), starring

Emília Márkus Emília Márkus, (married name Pulszky; September 10, 1860 – December 24, 1949), was a Hungarian aristocrat, politician and the most renowned actress of her time in Hungary, known for her roles in a number of Hungarian theatrical and film pr ...

as Jacqueline Fleuriot *'' Madame X'', directed by Frank Lloyd (1920), starring Pauline Frederick as Jacqueline Fleuriot *'' Madame X'', directed by

(1929), starring Ruth Chatterton as Jacqueline Fleuriot *', directed by

Carlos F. Borcosque Carlos Francisco Borcosque Sánchez (9 September 1894 – 5 September 1965) was a Chilean film director and screenwriter involved in the production of the Cinema of Argentina. Borcosque was born in Valparaíso. He established Estudios Cinem ...

(Spanish-language, 1931), starring as Jaquelina *'' Madame X'', directed by Sam Wood (1937), starring Gladys George as Jacqueline Fleuriot *'' The Trial of Madame X'', directed by Paul England (UK, 1948), starring Mara Russell-Tavernan as Jacqueline *'' Madame X'', directed by Artemio B. Tecson (Philippines, 1952), starring Alicia Vergel *'' Madame X'', directed by Orestis Laskos (Greece, 1954), starring Cybele as Lina Flerianos *'' Madame X'', directed by Julián Soler (Mexico, 1955), starring Libertad Lamarque as Adriana *'' The Unknown Woman'', directed by

Mahmoud Zulfikar Mahmoud Qasdy Ahmed Mourad Zulfikar (18 February 1914 – 22 May 1970) was an Egyptians, Egyptian film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. He started his career as an architect, before becoming an actor in 1939. He was a major figur ...

(Egypt, 1959), starring Shadia *'' Madame X'', directed by David Lowell Rich (1966), starring Lana Turner as Holly Parker *'' Madame X'', directed by Robert Ellis Miller (1981, TV film), starring Tuesday Weld as Holly Richardson

Other Adaptations

*', directed by

Georges Monca Georges Monca ( 23 October 1867 – 26 December 1939) was a French film director. He was extremely prolific, making nearly four hundred films during his career - mainly during the silent era A silent film is a film with no synchronized recor ...

(France, 1912, short film, based on the play ''Les Surprises du divorce'') *''Le Contrôleur des wagons-lits'', directed by

(France, 1913, short film, based on the play ''Le Contrôleur des wagons-lits'') *''Le Bon Juge'', directed by

(France, 1913, short film, based on the play ''Le Bon Juge'') *''Monsieur le directeur'', directed by

(France, 1913, short film, based on the play ''Monsieur le directeur'') *''Le Roi Koko'', directed by

(France, 1913, short film, based on the play ''Le Roi Koko'') *'' Her Beloved Villain'', directed by Sam Wood (1920, based on the play ''Le Veglione ou le Bal masqué'') *''Un viaggio di piacere'', directed by (Italy, 1922, based on the play ''Un voyage d'agrément'') *', directed by Mario Almirante (Italy, 1922, based on the play ''Le Contrôleur des wagons-lits'') *', directed by Guido Brignone (Italy, 1923, based on the play ''Les Surprises du divorce'') *', directed by

Henri Desfontaines Henri Desfontaines (12 November 1876, Paris – 7 January 1931, Paris) was a French film director, actor, and scriptwriter. Filmography As director * 1908 : ''Hamlet'' * 1909 : '' Le Puits et le pendule'' * 1910 : '' Un invité gênant'' * 19 ...

(France, 1924, based on the play ''Château historique'') *''Monsieur le directeur'', directed by (France, 1925, based on the play ''Monsieur le directeur'') *', directed by

Jean Kemm Jean Kemm (15 May 1874–1939) was a French stage and theater actor and film director. Kemm was born Jules Adolphe Félix Bécheret in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris and died in Paris in 1939. Selected filmography * '' André Cornélis'' (19 ...

(France, 1933, based on the play ''Les Surprises du divorce'') *', directed by

Roger Capellani Roger Capellani (31 January 1905 – 30 May 1940) was a French film director, the son of film director and screenwriter Albert Capellani and the nephew of the actor Paul Capellani. He shot French versions of foreign films for the studios of the ...

(France, 1934, based on the play ''Feu Toupinel'') *''Der Schlafwagenkontrolleur'', directed by Richard Eichberg (Germany, 1935, based on the play ''Le Contrôleur des wagons-lits'') **', directed by Richard Eichberg (France, 1935, based on the play ''Le Contrôleur des wagons-lits'') *', directed by

Christian-Jaque Christian-Jaque (byname of Christian Maudet; 4 September 1904 – 8 July 1994) was a French filmmaker. From 1954 to 1959, he was married to actress Martine Carol, who starred in several of his films, including ''Lucrèce Borgia'' (1953), '' ...

(France, 1935, based on the play ''La Famille Pont-Biquet'') *', directed by (Sweden, 1936, based on the play ''Les Surprises du divorce'') *', directed by

Henri Chomette Henri Chomette (1896–1941) was a French actor, screenwriter and film director. He was the brother of the film director René Clair. Selected filmography * '' Roger la Honte'' (1922) * '' De quoi revient les junes film''Shown in Boston in 1927, ...

(France, 1938, based on the play ''Jalouse'') *', directed by Guido Brignone (Italy, 1939, based on the play ''Les Surprises du divorce'') *', directed by

Luis Bayón Herrera Luis Bayón Herrera (23 September 1889 – 30 March 1956) was a Spanish film director and screenwriter who worked in Argentine film of the 1940s and 1950s. He was "one of the most important directors of the golden age of Argentine cinema". Herre ...

(Argentina, 1940) *', directed by (Argentina, 1943, based on the play ''Les Surprises du divorce'') *', directed by

Gilles Grangier Gilles Grangier (5 May 1911 – 27 April 1996) was a French film director and screenwriter. He directed more than 50 films and several TV series between 1943 and 1985. His film '' Archimède le clochard'' was entered into the 9th Berlin In ...

(France, 1950, based on the play ''Château historique'')

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bisson, Alexandre 1848 births 1912 deaths People from Orne 19th-century French dramatists and playwrights 19th-century French novelists 20th-century French novelists 20th-century French male writers French male novelists 19th-century French male writers