Paul Blouet correspondence

Collection

Identifier: MS 0129

Staff Only

Finding aid note: Stored on-site at the Woodson Research Center.

Scope and Contents

This collection contains 62 letters written by Paul Blouet (pseudonym, Max O'Rell) and one written by Marie Blouet. Some are signed as Paul Blouet, others as Max O'Rell. Most letters are addressed to E.W. Appleton and G. Christy and discuss Blouet's various lecture tours and speaking engagements. In one letter to G. Christy, Paul Blouet discloses the recurrence of the cancer that would ultimately lead to his death. Also included in this collection is an agreement for the exclusive rights to manage Blouet's play, John Bull on the Continent, with Fredrick Mouillot.

Dates

Creation: 1885 - 1903

Creator

O'Rell, Max (Person)

Access Restrictions

This material is open for research.

Conditions Governing Access

Stored onsite at the Woodson Research Center.

Use Restrictions

Permission to publish from the Paul Blouet correspondence must be obtained from the Woodson Research Center, Fondren Library, Rice University.

Biographical Note

Paul Blouet (1848-1903) was a French humorist and writer best known by his pseudonym, Max O'Rell. Blouet studied piano at the Paris Conservatoire, was educated in Paris at the Ecole Polytechnique, and served as a cavalry officer in the Franco-Prussian War. In 1887 Blouet published John Bull et son ile, a work that parodied English characteristics and eccentricities. In 1887 and 1890 Blouet lectured in the United States, where his humorous speeches made him extremely popular. In 1902 he settled in the Champs-Élysées quarter of Paris as correspondent of the New York Journal and wrote in the French newspaper Le Figaro. Blouet died of stomach cancer on 24 May 1903.

Works Cited: Seccombe, T. and Matthew, C.G. (2004). Blouet, (Leon) Paul. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Retrieved July 24, 2006 from http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/31933

Extent

0.1 Linear Feet (1 folder (64 letters))

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract:

This collection consists primarily of letters written by French author and journalist, Paul Blouet (pseudonym, Max O'Rell) between 1885 and 1903. The letters discuss Blouet's lecture tours, the management of his play "John Bull on the Continent", and his affliction with cancer.