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Arthur Meyer (journalist)
Encyclopedia
Arthur Meyer was a French press baron. He was director of Le Gaulois
, a notable conservative
French daily newspaper that was eventually taken over by Le Figaro
(run by François Coty
at the time) in 1929.
from a modest Jewish
family eventually became a royalist
, an "anti-Dreyfusard" (a non-supporter of the victim of the Dreyfus affair
) and a Catholic
. He was an unusual personality, a key player at the crossroads of society life, the press, and politics under the French Third Republic
.
as a secretary two years earlier, took over the newspaper Le Gaulois permanently. The paper had been founded in July 1868 by Edmond Tarbé des Sablons and Henri de Pène, and it was essentially the main daily social paper of the nobility and the elite of the bourgeoisie in France. Catering to the high-class socialites, Le Gaulois had a relatively small circulation, between 20 and 30 thousand copies, but it had a very real influence on French society. It was the first newspaper to have a column about films, which first appeared in March 1916. From June 1897 until August 1914, Le Gaulois du dimanche (the Sunday edition of Le Gaulois) was the weekly literary supplement of choice and it contained many serials
over the years; it was in Le Gaulois du dimanche that Raymond Roussel's
Locus Solus
appeared.
, to represent the personalities that made the front page of the news section as wax mannequin
s, which allowed visitors – in an era before photography
was used in the press – to put a face to the names in the news. This was the beginning of the Musée Grévin
, which opened its doors on June 5, 1882 and swiftly became successful.
. He engaged in a duel with Édouard Drumont
, who had insulted his origins in La France Juive, and also supported the guilt of fellow Jew Alfred Dreyfus
, who was wrongfully accused of treason
in the aforementioned Dreyfus affair. Meyer converted to Catholicism in 1901 without ceasing to be the target of the anti-Semitic activist group Action Française
.
Le Gaulois
Le Gaulois was a French daily newspaper, founded in 1868 by Edmond Tarbe and Henri de Pene. After a printing stoppage, it was revived by Arthur Meyer in 1882 with notable collaborators Paul Bourget, Alfred Grévin, Abel Hermant, and Ernest Daudet...
, a notable conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
French daily newspaper that was eventually taken over by Le Figaro
Le Figaro
Le Figaro is a French daily newspaper founded in 1826 and published in Paris. It is one of three French newspapers of record, with Le Monde and Libération, and is the oldest newspaper in France. It is also the second-largest national newspaper in France after Le Parisien and before Le Monde, but...
(run by François Coty
François Coty
François Coty was a French perfume manufacturer, newspaper publisher, and founder of the fascist league Solidarité Française...
at the time) in 1929.
Background
This grandson of a rabbiRabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
from a modest Jewish
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
family eventually became a royalist
Monarchism
Monarchism is the advocacy of the establishment, preservation, or restoration of a monarchy as a form of government in a nation. A monarchist is an individual who supports this form of government out of principle, independent from the person, the Monarch.In this system, the Monarch may be the...
, an "anti-Dreyfusard" (a non-supporter of the victim of the Dreyfus affair
Dreyfus Affair
The Dreyfus affair was a political scandal that divided France in the 1890s and the early 1900s. It involved the conviction for treason in November 1894 of Captain Alfred Dreyfus, a young French artillery officer of Alsatian Jewish descent...
) and a Catholic
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
. He was an unusual personality, a key player at the crossroads of society life, the press, and politics under the French Third Republic
French Third Republic
The French Third Republic was the republican government of France from 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed due to the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, to 1940, when France was overrun by Nazi Germany during World War II, resulting in the German and Italian occupations of France...
.
Le Gaulois
In 1882, Arthur Meyer, who had hired Octave MirbeauOctave Mirbeau
Octave Mirbeau was a French journalist, art critic, travel writer, pamphleteer, novelist, and playwright, who achieved celebrity in Europe and great success among the public, while still appealing to the literary and artistic avant-garde...
as a secretary two years earlier, took over the newspaper Le Gaulois permanently. The paper had been founded in July 1868 by Edmond Tarbé des Sablons and Henri de Pène, and it was essentially the main daily social paper of the nobility and the elite of the bourgeoisie in France. Catering to the high-class socialites, Le Gaulois had a relatively small circulation, between 20 and 30 thousand copies, but it had a very real influence on French society. It was the first newspaper to have a column about films, which first appeared in March 1916. From June 1897 until August 1914, Le Gaulois du dimanche (the Sunday edition of Le Gaulois) was the weekly literary supplement of choice and it contained many serials
Serial (literature)
In literature, a serial is a publishing format by which a single large work, most often a work of narrative fiction, is presented in contiguous installments—also known as numbers, parts, or fascicles—either issued as separate publications or appearing in sequential issues of a single periodical...
over the years; it was in Le Gaulois du dimanche that Raymond Roussel's
Raymond Roussel
Raymond Roussel was a French poet, novelist, playwright, musician, and chess enthusiast. Through his novels, poems, and plays he exerted a profound influence on certain groups within 20th century French literature, including the Surrealists, Oulipo, and the authors of the nouveau...
Locus Solus
Locus Solus
Locus Solus is a 1914 French novel by Raymond Roussel.-Plot summary:John Ashbery summarizes Locus Solus thus in his introduction to Michel Foucault's Death and the Labyrinth: "A prominent scientist and inventor, Martial Canterel, has invited a group of colleagues to visit the park of his country...
appeared.
Other enterprises
In 1881, Meyer had the idea, along with Alfred GrévinAlfred Grévin
Alfred Grévin was a 19th century caricaturist, best known during his lifetime for his caricature silhouettes of contemporary Parisian women...
, to represent the personalities that made the front page of the news section as wax mannequin
Mannequin
A mannequin is an often articulated doll used by artists, tailors, dressmakers, and others especially to display or fit clothing...
s, which allowed visitors – in an era before photography
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
was used in the press – to put a face to the names in the news. This was the beginning of the Musée Grévin
Musée Grévin
The Musée Grévin is a waxwork museum in Paris located on the Grands Boulevards in the IXe arrondissement on the right bank of the Seine, at 10, Boulevard Montmartre, Paris, France. It is open daily; an admission fee is charged....
, which opened its doors on June 5, 1882 and swiftly became successful.
Political life
In 1888, Meyer supported the general Georges Ernest Boulanger and plotted with the Duchess of Uzés to bring about the return of the monarchyMonarchy
A monarchy is a form of government in which the office of head of state is usually held until death or abdication and is often hereditary and includes a royal house. In some cases, the monarch is elected...
. He engaged in a duel with Édouard Drumont
Edouard Drumont
Édouard Adolphe Drumont was a French journalist and writer. He founded the Antisemitic League of France in 1889, and was the founder and editor of the newspaper La Libre Parole.- Early life :...
, who had insulted his origins in La France Juive, and also supported the guilt of fellow Jew Alfred Dreyfus
Alfred Dreyfus
Alfred Dreyfus was a French artillery officer of Jewish background whose trial and conviction in 1894 on charges of treason became one of the most tense political dramas in modern French and European history...
, who was wrongfully accused of treason
Treason
In law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason and treason against a...
in the aforementioned Dreyfus affair. Meyer converted to Catholicism in 1901 without ceasing to be the target of the anti-Semitic activist group Action Française
Action Française
The Action Française , founded in 1898, is a French Monarchist counter-revolutionary movement and periodical founded by Maurice Pujo and Henri Vaugeois and whose principal ideologist was Charles Maurras...
.
Personal life
He married Mlle de Turenne, a young aristocrat, in 1904 – a marriage that came relatively late in his life. Meyer died in 1924.Works
- Ce que mes yeux ont vu ("What My Eyes Saw") - 1911
- Ce que je peux dire ("What I Can Say") - 1917