DOUBLE ASSASSINAT DANS LA RUE MORGUE (ORTF, 1973)

In the 19th century Paris, a man named Dupin investigates two horrible crimes the police cannot solve.

Double assassinat dans la rue Morgue is a black and white 92-minute French film for television produced by ORTF (Office de radiodiffusion-télévision française) and aired by the Première chaîne on June 2, 1973. It is based on The Murders in the Rue Morgue, a short story by American writer Edgar Allan Poe first published in 1841. Amateur detective Chevalier Auguste Dupin, its main character, appeared again in The Mystery of Marie Rogêt (1842) and The Purloined Letter (1844). Dupin is one of the influences of Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes. In France, poet Charles Baudelaire translated some of Poe's tales, including this one and The Purloined Letter, and compiled them in Histoires extraordinaires (1856) (1). The Murders in the Rue Morgue was adapted several times for the cinema and TV.

Double assassinat dans la rue Morgue was penned by novelist and scriptwriter Albert Simonin (Les Tontons flingueurs) with writer and director Jacques Nahum, who helmed it. After a collaboration on a movie adaptation of Leslie Charteris' The Saint (Le Saint mène la danse, 1960), Nahum suggested they could do The Murders in the Rue Morgue. Although they submitted a scenario to ORTF in 1963, they had to wait for eight years to start the filming. In the meantime, Jacques Nahum co-produced season 1 of the hit series Arsène Lupin (1971-1974), starring Georges Descrières, with his company Mars International Productions (MIP), Pathé and a handful of foreign broadcasters. Albert Simonin contributed to the writing. Paris in 1842, under the reign of Louis-Philippe. Two women, Madame de L'Espanaye and her daughter, are brutally murdered in their Rue Morgue apartment. They were killed in a room locked from the inside but their invisible attackers managed to escape. And nothing was stolen.

The residents of the street and then the entire Parisian population are terrorized. The Préfet de police, irritated by the confusion of his men in front of this mystery, assigns the young and ambitious Commissaire Gauffier on the case. Dupin, a wealthy idler with extraordinary deduction abilities, challenges the Préfet. Followed by his friend Le Dandy, he begins his own investigation. Best known at the time for the popular sitcom Les Saintes Chéries (1965-1970), Daniel Gélin is excellent as Dupin. Georges Descrières, between the two seasons of Arsène Lupin, brings his distinction to Le Dandy. Nadine Alari plays Madame de L'Espanaye. Alari and Gélin guest-starred in the first episode of Arsène Lupin. Double assassinat dans la rue Morgue was shot in November 1971 on location in Paris and in studio. Georges Descrières is also the voice of Charles Baudelaire at the beginning.

Philippe Ogouz (Commissaire Gauffier) played amateur sleuth Rouletabille in the namesake 1966 series. With Henri Gilabert (Sial IV) as The sailor, Jean Danet (Préfet), Jacques Duby (Lebon), Catherine Rich (Mademoiselle de l'Espanaye), Geneviève Fontanel (Mathilde), Eva Damien (Pauline), Edmond Tamiz (Montani), etc. Produced by Marie-Françoise Gay, Charles Jameux and Maurice Teboul. Original music by Dino Castro (Les Thibault). Complainte de la rue Morgue performed by Cora Vocaire. Lyrics by Marie-Hélène Bourquin (Albert Simonin's wife) and music by Jean Mahel. Cinematography by Jean Limousin. Editing by Maurice Rosé and Annie Callot. Production designed by Armand Braun and Jacques Bataille. Past the performances of Daniel Gélin and Georges Descrières, Double assassinat dans la Rue Morgue suffers from budget contraints. The black and white doesn't help (2). 

Albert Simonin declared that he was more interested in the era of Poe's story than in the plot (3). Later, Jacques Nahum did The Purloined Letter (with Laurent Terzieff as Le Chevalier Dupin) for Les Grands Détectives. Besides Dupin, this 6 x 60-minute anthology co-produced by MIP for ORTF in 1973 adapted stories featuring Inspector Wens, Slim Callaghan, Sherlock Holmes, Inspector Lecoq and Nick Carter. Nahum couldn't get the rights of Hercule Poirot. Les Grands Détectives was shown in 1975 by Antenne 2 (4). Arsène Lupin was brought back to television by Jacques Nahum with Arsène Lupin joue et perd (1980, starring Jean-Claude Brialy), Le retour d'Arsène Lupin (1989) and its follow-up Les Nouveaux Exploits d'Arsène Lupin (1995), both with François Dunoyer. Georges Descrières played Sam Kramer alongside Corinne Le Poulain and later Nicole Calfan in Sam et Sally (1978-1980), based on the books of M.G. Braun and produced by Nahum.  

Double assassinat dans la rue Morgue, Arsène Lupin and Les Grands Détectives are available on Madelen, the streaming service of INA.

(1) Baudelaire translated some other stories written by Edgar Allan Poe for Nouvelles histoires extraordinaires (1857).

(2) The Première chaîne only switched to colour in January 1975 after ORTF was dismantled (1974) and the 1st channel was renamed TF1.

(3) Télé 7 jours.

(4) The Deuxième chaîne was renamed Antenne 2 in 1975 after the dismantlement of ORTF. Antenne 2 became France 2 in 1992.

https://madelen.ina.fr/content/double-assassinat-dans-la-rue-morgue-68853?locale=fr 

See also:

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2015/11/arsene-lupin-season-two-french-region-2.html
https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2015/01/arsene-lupin-season-one-french-region-2.html

ARSÈNE LUPIN - SEASON 1, EPISODE 1: LE BOUCHON DE CRISTAL (ORTF, 1971)

In the Netflix series Lupin, Omar Sy follows the steps of Arsène Lupin, the literary gentleman thief created by Maurice Leblanc (1864-1941). Amongst the previous adaptations of the author's work, the best known is Arsène Lupin (1971-1974). Starring Georges Descrières in the title role, this version is one the most popular series in the History of French television. 

Europe at the end of the 1920s. Charming and elegant, Arsène Lupin steals without violence. He's a master of disguise who ridicules the authorities and the best sleuths, though himself enjoys to play the detective. Especially if a beautiful woman is involved. 

Maurice Leblanc's iconic character first appeared in 39 short stories and 17 novels between 1905 and 1939. Several actors portrayed Arsène Lupin for the cinema, including Robert Lamoureux in 1957 and 1959. In 1960, Jean Gascon played Lupin in a 13 x 25-minute adaptation of the novel L'Aiguille creuse for Canadian TV (1). During the decade, writer and director Jacques Nahum tried to convince French state television about an Arsène Lupin series. Nahum, who adapted The Saint with the film Le Saint mène la danse (1960), actually had Simon Templar in mind but couldn't get the rights.

 

At the end of 1968, L'Office de Radiodiffusion-Télévision Française (ORTF) commissioned Jacques Nahum's Mars International Productions and Pathé to produce 13 one-hour episodes of Arsène Lupin with them. Stage and movie actor Georges Descrières (of the Comédie-Française) was chosen for the role in 1969. Germany's WDR, Radio-Canada, Austria's ORF, Belgian TV, Dutch pubcaster NCRV, Italy's RAI and Swiss TV joined as co-producers. International funding ensured classy production values and allowed Lupin to travel occasionally in Europe with his chauffeur Grognard (French Canadian actor Yvon Bouchard) (2). 

 

The writers loosely based their scripts on Leblanc's books to favour a lighter Arsène. The ORTF 2nd channel aired Arsène Lupin from March to June 1971 and its reception prompted the commission of a second 13-episode season (1973-1974). Le bouchon de cristal, the impeccable series premiere, was adapted by Jacques Nahum with René Wheeler (L'inspecteur Leclerc enquête, Rififi) and helmed by Jean-Pierre Decourt (Rocambole). Arsène Lupin, his protégé Gilbert and their accomplice Sébastiani break in the villa of the wealthy banker Daubrecq to steal a Flemish triptych painting.

The burglary goes bad when Sébastiani shoots Daubrecq's butler before being wounded and Gilbert is caught by the police right after giving Lupin a crystal stopper. Now Arsène must save Gilbert from the guillotine and discover what makes the stopper so precious for the young man. Posing as Michel de man Beaumont, he meets the unpleasant Daubrecq. This hated individual collects crystal carafe stoppers and he's feared by a deputy, the Marquis d'Albuflex. A distinguished woman searches the appartment of de Beaumont/Lupin and the préfet is embarassed by what happened at the villa.

Daniel Gélin (Les saintes chéries) delivers a stunning performance as Daubrecq. Stage, movie, TV and dubbing actress Nadine Alari, who frequently worked with director Jean-Pierre Decourt, plays Clarisse de Mergy. Gélin, Alari and Descrières also played in Double assassinat dans la rue Morgue, an ORTF adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe directed by Jacques Nahum and aired in 1973. With Yves Brainville (Préfet Prasville), François Chantenay (Gilbert), Jean-Paul Cisife (Albuflex), Nathalie Piel (Aimée) and François Jaubert (Sébastiani - Uncredited).

 

Repeats helped to establish Georges Descrières as the definitive Lupin for generations of viewers, although Leblanc's fans may disagree. His nonchalant charisma and his disguises make the series a special treat. Arsène Lupin's popularity also owes to the music composed by Jean-Pierre Bourtayre. The theme, arranged by José Bartel, is on a Bondian title sequence designed by Jean Fouchet for Eurocitel. L'Arsène, the sublime end title song, was composed by Bourtayre and Jacques Lanzmann for French hit singer Jacques Dutronc.

 

Cinematography by Pierre Petit. Production designed by Lucien Aguettant with Charles Finelli. Editing by Francine Grubert, Claude Pérol and Anne-France Marboeuf. André Deroual is the production manager. Costumes of Georges Descrières designed by Création Georges Bril. Cars provided by the Autorama museum. After Arsène Lupin, Jacques Nahum produced Les grands détectives. This 6 x 60-minute anthology about great literary sleuths (Inspector Wens, Slim Callaghan, Sherlock Holmes, Inspector Lecoq, Nick Carter and Auguste Dupin) was shown on Antenne 2 in 1975.

 

Jacques Nahum brought back the gentleman thief to television with Arsène Lupin joue et perd (1980, starring Jean-Claude Brialy), Le retour d'Arsène Lupin (1989) and its follow-up Les Nouveaux Exploits d'Arsène Lupin (1995), both with François Dunoyer. Descrières played Sam Kramer alongside Corinne Le Poulain and later Nicole Calfan in Sam et Sally (1978-1980), based on the books of M.G. Braun and produced by Nahum.

 

(1) From 1960 to 1961, stage, movie, TV and dubbing actor Michel Roux lent his distinctive voice to Arsène Lupin for the French state radio. 

(2) Yvon Bouchard is dubbed by Francis Lax in some episodes.

 

http://arsenelupingc.free.fr/index.php 
http://www.ina.fr/video/CPF86626021/les-coproductions-a-l-ortf-une-interview-d-yves-jaigu.fr.html  

 

See also:

 

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2015/01/arsene-lupin-season-one-french-region-2.html

https://tattard2.blogspot.com/2015/11/arsene-lupin-season-two-french-region-2.html

http://www.ladyteruki.com/2021/01/08/le-premier-amour-darsene-lupin/