Jean Richepin
A bohemian provocateur of French letters who championed the raw, the vulgar, and the vitality of the streets in his verse.
1849–1926 (age 77)·French poet, novelist and dramatist·Birthday: February 4
Biography
Jean Richepin's 1876 poetry collection 'La Chanson des gueux' landed him a month in prison for outrage to public morals. A former soldier and sailor, he co-founded the 'Vivants' group in the 1870s, which celebrated artistic excess. His poems, novels, and plays like 'Le Chemineau' depicted thieves, prostitutes, and outcasts with unvarnished vigor. Richepin rejected bourgeois polish for a primal lyricism, finding beauty in humanity's rough edges. He died in 1926 at age 76.
#1 When Jean Was Born
The biggest hits of 1849
Jean's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1849Born
1854Started school
1862Became a teenager
President: Abraham Lincoln
1865Could drive
President: Andrew Johnson
1867Could vote
President: Andrew Johnson
1870Turned 21
President: Ulysses S. Grant
1879Turned 30
President: Rutherford B. Hayes
1889Turned 40
Eiffel Tower opens in Paris
President: Benjamin Harrison
1899Turned 50
President: William McKinley
1909Turned 60
Robert Peary claims to reach the North Pole
President: William Howard Taft
1919Turned 70
Treaty of Versailles signed; Prohibition ratified
President: Woodrow Wilson
1926Died at 77
Robert Goddard launches the first liquid-fueled rocket
President: Calvin Coolidge"Baby Face" — Jan Garber
Key Achievements
- Published the scandalous and influential poetry collection 'La Chanson des gueux' in 1876, which led to a prison sentence.
- Elected to the Académie Française in 1908, marking his eventual acceptance by the French literary establishment.
- Wrote the successful play 'Le Chemineau' (The Tramp) in 1897, which became a staple of French popular theatre.
Did You Know?
He was briefly a schoolteacher, one of the many odd jobs he held in his youth.
Richepin's son, Tiarko Richepin, became a noted composer and conductor.
He once fought a duel with a critic who gave his play a negative review.
“I have the cult of energy, of will, of life.”
