Les Cent Livres des Hommes (ORTF, 1969-1973) was a series of literary programs created by Claude Santelli and Françoise Verny, and produced notably by Santelli, Jean Archimbaud, and Serge Moati. Planned for one hundred episodes but completed at thirty-nine, the series aimed to introduce great literary works, 'chefs-d’œuvre', to a younger audience through a mix of dramatization, reading, and documentary techniques. It marked a transfer of cultural legitimacy from writers and critics to a generation of television producers, offering a new model of educational and creative literary broadcasting - 'télévision d’auteur'.
Les Cent Livres des Hommes (Season 1)
Le Petit Prince de Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (Episode 1)
Writer: Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Air date: 1970-06-07
Runtime: 33 min
Overview: 'The Little Prince' by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. An introduction to the poetic and philosophical universe of Saint-Exupéry, blending analysis and adaptation of his masterpiece.
Le Petit Chose (Episode 2)
Writer: Alphonse Daudet
Air date: 1971-02-03
Overview: 'Little Good-For-Nothing' or 'Little What's-His-Name' by Alphonse Daudet.
Le Noeud de vipères (Episode 3)
Air date: 1971-04-07
Runtime: 50 min
Overview: 'The Knot of Vipers' by François Mauriac. A reading of Mauriac's novel that combines personal accounts with adapted scenes.
La Chartreuse de Parme (Episode 4)
Writer: Stendhal
Air date: 1971-11-17
Runtime: 75 min
Overview: 'The Charterhouse of Parma' by Stendhal.
Du côté de chez Swann (Episode 5)
Writer: Marcel Proust
Air date: 1971-12-22
Overview: 'Swann's Way' by Marcel Proust.
A la recherche du temps perdu (Episode 6)
Writer: Marcel Proust
Air date: 1971-12-22
Runtime: 60 min
Overview: A realistic and poetic evocation of Marcel Proust's 'In Search of Lost Time.' Halfway between an audiovisual adaptation and a portrait of the dandyish and reclusive writer, all in black and white by Claude Santelli, evoking the mystery, the intimacy, and the fatalism of existence.
Martin Eden (Episode 7)
Writer: Jack London
Air date: 1972-01-24
Runtime: 51 min
Overview: 'Martin Eden' by Jack London. Claude Santelli and Jean-Louis Muller interview Professor Las Vergnas, a specialist in American literature, who contextualises the book within the author's entire body of work and life. Then, Maurice Le Goas, a labor activist, shares his experience of Jack London's influence on him.
Le portrait de Socrate (Episode 8)
Air date: 1972-01-26
Runtime: 60 min
Overview: The portrait of Socrates.
L'exode (Episode 9)
Air date: 1972-02-23
Overview: The biblical Book of Exodus.
Les Souffrances du jeune Werther (Episode 10)
Writer: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Air date: 1972-03-22
Runtime: 60 min
Overview: 'The Sorrows of Young Werther' by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.
L'île mystérieuse (Episode 11)
Writer: Jules Verne
Air date: 1972-04-15
Overview: 'The Mysterious Island' by Jules Verne.
L'Enfance de Gorky (Episode 12)
Writer: Maxim Gorky
Air date: 1972-04-26
Runtime: 55 min
Overview: 'My Childhood' by Maxim Gorky.
Gargantua (Episode 13)
Writer: François Rabelais
Air date: 1972-05-24
Runtime: 60 min
Overview: 'Gargantua' by François Rabelais.
Jude l'Obscur (Episode 14)
Writer: Thomas Hardy
Air date: 1972-07-26
Runtime: 30 min
Overview: 'Jude the obscure' by Thomas Hardy.
Robinson Crusoe (Episode 15)
Writer: Daniel Defoe
Air date: 1972-12-20
Runtime: 60 min
Overview: 'Robinson Crusoe' by Daniel Defoe.
Histoire de la Révolution (Episode 16)
Writer: Jules Michelet
Air date: 1973-07-30
Overview: 'History of the Revolution' by Jules Michelet.
Alice aux pays des merveilles (Episode 17)
Writer: Lewis Carroll
Air date: 1973-12-28
Runtime: 60 min
Overview: 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' by Lewis Carroll. This program explores Wonderland from every angle: iconic scenes in which Brigitte Fossey portrays a mischievous Alice, readings by Claude Rich, and analyses of the 'delirious metaphysics' of this great literary classic. Lewis Carroll's universe never ceases to amaze!
Seasons
Episodes 17