Franc-Nohain's name was Maurice Legrand, and he took his pen name from a river of his childhood, the Nohain. His play “L'Heure espagnole”, given in 1904, became the libretto of the opera Maurice Ravel had staged at the Opéra-Comique in 1911. A friend of Alfred Jarry, he had founded with him the Théâtre des Pantins, where “Ubu roi” was played with puppets. He died in 1934. His wife, an illustrator, and his two sons, Jean Nohain and the actor Claude Dauphin, joined him there.
The story
Born Maurice Legrand in 1872 in the Nièvre, he took his pen name from a river of his childhood, the Nohain, and called himself an “amorphous poet”: short, funny verse published in the newspapers.
His play “L'Heure espagnole”, staged in 1904, became the libretto of the opera Maurice Ravel composed and the Opéra-Comique premiered in 1911. A friend of Alfred Jarry, he founded with him the Théâtre des Pantins, where “Ubu roi” was played with puppets; Jarry became godfather to his eldest son.
He died in 1934 and lies in Division 89, one of the parts of the cemetery richest in writers, alongside Oscar Wilde and Georges Courteline. His stone calls him neither poet nor librettist but “fabuliste”, a writer of fables: he had published twelve books of them.
The plot is a family one: his wife, the illustrator Marie-Madeleine Dauphin, lies here too, and their two sons — Jean Nohain (1900-1981), known as Jaboune, a pioneer of radio and television and the creator of 36 chandelles, and the actor Claude Dauphin (1903-1978).
On site, do not miss
The stone calls him neither poet nor librettist, but “fabuliste” — fabulist: he had published twelve books of fables.
Visitors' questions
What was Franc-Nohain's real name?
Maurice Legrand. The pen name comes from a river of his childhood, the Nohain, in the Nièvre. A friend of Alfred Jarry, he founded with him the Théâtre des Pantins, where “Ubu roi” was played with puppets.
The writers and poetsWhat is “L'Heure espagnole”?
His comedy of 1904, which Maurice Ravel turned into the libretto of his opera, created at the Opéra-Comique in 1911. The sung text is Franc-Nohain's, not the composer's.
Marcel ProustWhere is Franc-Nohain's grave?
In Division 89, one of the cemetery's sectors richest in writers, alongside Oscar Wilde and Georges Courteline. The stone calls him neither poet nor librettist, but “fabuliste” — fabulist: he had published twelve books of fables.
The grave of Oscar WildeIs Jean Nohain buried at Père-Lachaise?
Yes, in the same grave as his father, in Division 89. Jean Nohain (1900-1981), known as Jaboune, a lyricist who became a pioneer of radio and television, rests there with his mother Marie-Madeleine Dauphin and his brother, the actor Claude Dauphin.
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