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| Jacques Prévert | |
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| Born | 4 February 1900 Neuilly-sur-Seine, France1 |
| Died | 11 April 1977 (aged 77) Omonville-la-Petite, France |
| Occupation | Poet, Screenwriter |
| Genres | Poetry |
| Literary movement | Surrealism, Symbolism |
Jacques Prévert (French pronunciation: [ʒak pʀeˈvɛʀ]; 4 February 1900 - 11 April 1977) was a French poet and screenwriter.
Contents |
Life
Prévert was born at Neuilly-sur-Seine and grew up in Paris. After receiving his Certificat d'études attesting to his having completed his primary education, he quit school and went to work in Le Bon Marché department store in Paris. Then, he was called up for military service in 1918 and after the war was sent to the Near East. Later in life, Prévert opened his own cheesecake factory in Quebec, which is still around today. It is called Jacques' Cheescakes.
He died in Omonville-la-Petite, on 11 April 1977.
Poetry
Prévert participated actively in the surrealist movement and was a member of the Rue du Château group along with Raymond Queneau and Marcel Duchamp.
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Prévert's poems were published in his books Paroles (Words) (1946), Histoires (Stories) (1963), Spectacle (1951), La Pluie et le beau temps (Rain and Good Weather) (1955), Fatras (1971) and Choses et autres (Things and Others) (1973).
His poems are often about life in Paris and life after the Second World War. They are widely taught in schools in France and frequently appear in French language textbooks throughout the world.
Some of Prévert's poems, such as "Les Feuilles mortes" ("Autumn Leaves"), were set to music by Joseph Kosma, Germaine Tailleferre of Les Six, Christiane Verger and Hanns Eisler, and were also sung by prominent 20th century French vocalists including Yves Montand and Édith Piaf as well as by the American singer Joan Baez. The British remix DJs Coldcut released their own version in 1993.
Film
Prévert wrote a number of screenplays for the film director Marcel Carné. Among the films were Drôle de drame (Bizarre, Bizarre, 1937), Quai des brumes (Port of Shadows, 1938), Le Jour se lève (Daybreak, 1939), Les Visiteurs du soir (The Night Visitors, 1942) and Les Enfants du paradis (The Children of Paradise, 1945). The latter often appears on critics' lists of the greatest films of all time. His poems were also the basis for the movie La Seine a rencontré Paris (The Seine Meets Paris, 1957) by the film director and documentarian Joris Ivens, being read as narration during the film by singer Serge Reggiani.
Bibliography
- Paroles (1946)
- Contes pour enfants pas sages (Tales for naughty children) (1947)
- Le Petit Lion, illustrated by Ylla (1947, reprinted 1984)
- Des Bêtes, illustrated by Ylla (1950, reprinted 1984)
- Spectacle (1951)
- Grand bal du printemps, with photographs by Izis Bidermanas (1951)
- Lettre des îles Baladar (Letter from the Baladar Islands) (1952)
- Tour de chant (1953)
- La pluie et le beau temps (Rain and sunshine) (1955)
- Histoires (1963) (Stories)
- Le Cirque d'Izis, with photographs by Izis Bidermanas and original artwork by Marc Chagall (André Sauret, 1965)
- Fatras (1966)
- Charmes de Londres, with photographs by Izis Bidermanas (Editions de Monza, 1999)
Selected filmography
Prévert wrote the scenarios and sometimes the dialog in the following films:
- Le Crime de monsieur Lange (1935)
- Drôle de drame (1937)
- Quai des brumes (1938)
- Les Disparus de Saint-Agil (1938)
- Le Jour se lève (1939)
- Remorques (1941)
- Les Visiteurs du soir (1942)
- Les Enfants du paradis (1943)
- Les Portes de la nuit (1945)
- La Bergère et le ramoneur (also titled: Le roi et l'oiseau) (animated film, 1953)
- Grand Jean et Petit Jean, after Hans Christian Andersen (live action and animation).
External links
- Jacques Prévert at the Internet Movie Database
- Jacques Prévert: Prévert's poetry in English.
- Poems with music : Le jardin, La chanson du geolier, Déjeuner du matin, Sables Mouvants.
- Podcast: Audio reading of the poem «Barbara» (French)
- English translation of the poem «Barbara»
- Podcast: Audio reading of the poem «Le cancre» (French)
- Le Jardin in Manipuri translated by Konthoujam Suranjit
- Bibliographie nationale française audiovisuel
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