Leroux, Gaston

Entry updated 18 November 2024. Tagged: Author.

(1868-1927) French author of mystery novels who remains best known for Le Fantôme de l'Opéra (23 September 1909-8 January 1910 Le Gaulois; 1910; trans Alexander Texeira de Mattos as The Phantom of the Opera 1911), a tale of horror filmed in 1925 (re-released with sound 1930), 1943, 1962, 1983 (for television), 1989 and 1990 (for television) and used as the basis for the highly successful 1986 musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber (1948-    ) (see The Encyclopedia of Fantasy on this title and on Leroux in general). In crime fiction he is also noted for Le mystère de la chambre jaune ["The Mystery of the Yellow Room"] (September-November 1907 L'Illustration; 1908), an early locked-room mystery highly praised by John Dickson Carr and others. Le Roi Mystère ["The Mystery King"] (1908 Le Matin; 1910), deeply influenced by Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo (1844-1845), has supernatural moments. His first novel of direct genre interest, La Double Vie de Théophraste Longuet (5 October-22 November 1903 Le Matin as "Le Chercheur de trésors"; 1904; trans anon as The Double Life 1909; new trans Edgar Jepson as The Man with the Black Feather 1912), is a horror tale of supernatural possession. Balaoo (9 October-18 December 1911 Le Matin; 1912; trans Alexander Texeira de Mattos 1913) is an sf tale featuring a Missing Link in a detective role (see Apes as Human), filmed as The Wizard (1927) and as Dr Renault's Secret (1942); a sequel, Les Fils de Balaoo ["The Sons of Balaoo"] (1937), has not been translated. L'Espouse de Soleil (March-August 1912 Je Sais Tout; 1913; trans anon November 1914 Blue Book as "The Bride of the Sun"; same trans as The Bride of the Sun 1915; new trans as The Bride of the Sun 2021) ventures into Lost-World territory.

Rouletabille chez Krupp (September 1917-March 1918; 1918; trans Brian Stableford as Rouletabille at Krupp's 2013 chap), which is the last of his otherwise nonfantastic tales to feature the reporter and adventurer Joseph Rouletabille, is a World War One thriller involving the Invention of a super Weapon. The two episodes of Aventures effroyables de M Herbert de Reinich: 1) Le Capitaine Hyx: 2) La Bataille invisible (coll 1920; part 1 trans Hannaford Bennett as The Amazing Adventures of Carolus Herbert 1922; part 2 trans Hannaford Bennett as The Veiled Prisoner 1923) recount the exploits of a mysterious captain and his super-submarine in World War One. Leroux's last sf of interest – a novel published in two parts as La Poupée Sanglante: Roman d'aventures et de mystere (1 July-9 August 1923 Le Matin as "La Poupée sanglante, 1ere partie: La Sublime Aventure de Bénédicte Masson"; 1924; trans anon as The Kiss That Killed 1934) and Le Machine à assassiner: Roman d'aventures et de mystere (10 August-19 September 1923 Le Matin as "La Poupée sanglante, 2 partie: Gabriel"; 1924; trans anon as The Machine to Kill 1935) – features a Robot murderer and Identity Exchange. Leroux's use of sf material was opportunistic; a fair estimate of his skill as a novelist almost certainly awaits better translations. [JC]

Gaston Louis Alfred Leroux

born Paris: 6 May 1868

died Nice, France: 15 April 1927

works (selected)

works

• La Double Vie de Théophraste Longuet (Paris: Flammarion, 1904) [first appeared 5 October-22 November 1903 Le Matin as "Le Chercheur de trésors": binding unknown/Maurice de Lambert]
  • The Double Life (New York: John E Kearny, 1909) [anon trans of the above: hb/]
  • The Man with the Black Feather (London: Hurst and Blackett, 1912) [new trans Edgar Jepson of the above: hb/]
• Le Fantôme de l'Opéra (Paris: Pierre Lafitte, 1910) [binding unknown/]
  • The Phantom of the Opera (London: Mills and Boon, 1911) [trans by Alexander Texeira de Mattos of the above: hb/]
• Le Fauteuil hanté (Paris: Pierre Laffitte, 1911) [hb/]
  • The Haunted Chair (New York: E P Dutton, 1931) [anon trans of the above: hb/]
• Balaoo (Paris: Pierre Laffitte, 1911) [first appeared 9 October-18 December 1911 Le Matin: binding unknown/Charles Donzel]
  • Balaoo (London: Hurst and Blackett, 1913) [trans by Alexander Texeira de Mattos of the above: first appeared 23 November-21 December Cavalier Weekly as "Balaoo: Or the Footprints on the Ceiling": hb/]
• L'Espouse de Soleil (Paris: Pierre Laffitte, 1913) [first appeared March-August 1912 Je Sais Tout: hb/Poso]
  • The Bride of the Sun (New York: McBride, Nast, 1915) [anon trans of the above: first version appeared November 1914 Blue Book: hb/]
  • The Bride of the Sun (Tarzana, California: Black Coat Press, 2021) [new trans of the above by Jean-Marc Lofficier and Randy Lofficier: pb/Mike Hoffman]
• Rouletabille chez Krupp (Paris: Pierre Lafitte, 1918) [first appeared September 1917-March 1918 Je Sais Tout: hb/]
  • Rouletabille at Krupp's (Encino, California: Hollywood Comics/Black Coat Press, 2013) [trans by Brian Stableford of the above: introduction by translator: pb/Genkis and Sev]
• Aventures effroyables de M Herbert de Reinich: 1) Le Capitaine Hyx: 2) La Bataille invisible (Paris: Pierre Laffitte, 1920) [coll: binding unknown/]
  • The Amazing Adventures of Carolus Herbert (London: Mills and Boon, 1922) [trans by Hannaford Bennett of part 1 of the above: hb/Richard Ogle]
  • The Veiled Prisoner (London: Mills and Boon, 1923) [trans by Hannaford Bennett of part 2 of the above: hb/Richard Ogle]
• Le Coeur cambriolé (Paris: Pierre Lafitte, 1922) [coll: binding unknown/]
  • The Burgled Heart (London: John Long, 1925) [coll: trans by Hannaford Bennett of the above: hb/]
    • The New Terror (New York: The Macaulay Company, 1926) [vt of the above: hb/]
• La Poupée Sanglante: Roman d'aventures et de mystere (Paris: J Tallandier, 1924) [first appeared 1 July-9 August 1923 Le Matin as "La Poupée sanglante, 1ere partie: La Sublime Aventure de Bénédicte Masson": hb/]
  • The Kiss That Killed (New York: The Macaulay Company, 1934) [anon trans of the above: hb/]
• Le Machine à assassiner: Roman d'aventures et de mystere (Paris: J Tallandier, 1924) [first appeared 10 August-19 September 1923 Le Matin as "La Poupée sanglante, 2 partie: Gabriel": hb/]
  • The Machine to Kill (New York: The Macaulay Company, 1935) [anon trans of the above: hb/]
• The Gaston Leroux Bedtime Companion: Weird Stories by the Author of "The Phantom of the Opera" (London: Victor Gollancz, 1980) [coll: anonymous trans from various sources: edited by Peter Haining: hb/]
  • The Real Opera Ghost and Other Tales (Stroud, Gloucestershire: Alan Sutton Publishing, 1994) [exp vt of the above: hb/Jean Beraud]

links

• Gaston Leroux (site mostly in French)
• Internet Speculative Fiction Database
• Project Gutenberg
• The Encyclopedia of Fantasy: Gaston Leroux; Phantom of the Opera.
• Picture Gallery

previous versions of this entry

• Internet Archive