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'.
CreatorsClaude Santelli, Françoise Verny
Le Petit Prince de Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Jun 7, 1970
'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
Feb 3, 1971
'Little Good-For-Nothing' or 'Little What's-His-Name' by Alphonse Daudet.
Le Noeud de vipères
Apr 7, 1971
'The Knot of Vipers' by François Mauriac. A reading of Mauriac's novel that combines personal accounts with adapted scenes.
La Chartreuse de Parme
Nov 17, 1971
'The Charterhouse of Parma' by Stendhal.
Du côté de chez Swann
Dec 22, 1971
'Swann's Way' by Marcel Proust.
A la recherche du temps perdu
Dec 22, 1971
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
Jan 24, 1972
'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
Jan 26, 1972
The portrait of Socrates.
L'exode
Feb 23, 1972
The biblical Book of Exodus.
Les Souffrances du jeune Werther
Mar 22, 1972
'The Sorrows of Young Werther' by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.
L'île mystérieuse
Apr 15, 1972
'The Mysterious Island' by Jules Verne.
L'Enfance de Gorky
Apr 26, 1972
'My Childhood' by Maxim Gorky.
Gargantua
May 24, 1972
'Gargantua' by François Rabelais.
Jude l'Obscur
Jul 26, 1972
'Jude the obscure' by Thomas Hardy.
Robinson Crusoe
Dec 20, 1972
'Robinson Crusoe' by Daniel Defoe.
Histoire de la Révolution
Jul 30, 1973
'History of the Revolution' by Jules Michelet.
Alice aux pays des merveilles
Dec 28, 1973
'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!
