ARSENE LUPIN, GENTLEMAN THIEF
Author:
Maurice Leblanc
First edition:
Arsène Lupin, gentleman-cambrioleur, Lafitte, 1907.
In short:
Arsène Lupin, gentleman-cambrioleur is the first adventure of this French hero. Ten novels are included in Lupin's first period, among which L'Arrestation d'Arsène Lupin, Le collier de la reine and Le sept de coeur.
From the very beginning, Leblanc give a strong personality to his character: the perfect thief, who constantly changes his adress, his clothes, his face... He knows all secret passages and has friends everywhere.
In fact, Lupin is a product of his times, La Belle Epoque. He is the ideal romantic and paradoxal hero of the Third Republic. A truly fascinating character, Lupin is the antithesis of Sherlock Holmes, for his anarchism, his sex-appeal and his society life.
Selection of edition:
Arsène Lupin gentleman cambrioleur, illustrated by Oussenko, Livre de poche jeunesse, 1980.
Arsène Lupin, gentleman cambrioleur, illustrated by Matthieu Blanchin, Hachette, 1992.
Arsene Lupin versus Sherlock Holmes-The Mystery Library, originally published in 1910 by J. S. Ogilvie Publishing Company.
The Exploits of Arsene Lupin, translated by Alexander Teixeira de Mattos, The Bodley Head, London, 1960.
Memoirs of Arsene Lupin, The Macaulay Company, New York, 1925.
Adaptations:
Arsène Lupin détective, French film by Henri Diamant-Berge, 1937.
Arsène Lupin contre Arsène Lupin, French film by Edouard Molinaro, 1962.
Arsene Lupin, American film (1932) with John Barrymore as
the Duke of Chamerace/Arsène Lupin; Lionel Barrymore as Detective Guerchard; Karen Morley as Sonia; John Miljan as the Prefect of Police.
On the Internet :
The Extraordinary Adventures of Arsène Lupin, Gentleman-Burglar (in English).