Hector-Jonathan Crémieux

Hector-Jonathan Crémieux was a French librettist and playwright. His best-known work is his collaboration with Ludovic Halévy for Jacques Offenbach's Orphée aux Enfers, known in English as Orpheus in the Underworld.
In 1887, Crémieux became the secretary-general of the bank Société des Dépôts et Comptes Courants, and ceased writing. In April 1891, the bank collapsed and it was subsequently absorbed in 1892 by the Comptoir national d'escompte de Paris. In 1893,
Crémieux committed suicide by gunshot.

Life

Crémieux was born in Paris to a Jewish family - he was related to the lawyer Adolphe Crémieux. He studied law and then worked in the civil service. His first play, Fiesque was a historical drama, but before long he started to write comedies and then, in collaboration, operetta and opéra comique librettos. His collaborations with Halévy were often written under the joint pseudonym Paul d'Arcy.
In 1887, Crémieux became secretary-general of the Société des Dépôts et Comptes Courants, and ceased writing. Five years later, the Société collapsed and he committed suicide by gunshot in Paris.

Le savetier et le financier - with E AboutUne demoiselle en loterie - with Louis-Adolphe JaimeOrphée aux enfers - with Ludovic HalévyGeneviève de Brabant - by Louis-Adolphe Jaime and Etienne Tréfeu La chanson de Fortunio - with Ludovic HalévyLe pont des soupirs - with Ludovic HalévyM. Choufleuri restera chez lui le... - with M de Saint Rémy, Ernest L'Épine and Ludovic HalévyLe roman comique - with Ludovic HalévyJacqueline - with Ludovic Halévy, with common pseudonym Pol d’ArcyLes bergers - with Philippe GilleRobinson Crusoé - with Eugène CormonLa jolie parfumeuse - with Ernest BlumBagatelle - with Ernest Blum La foire Saint-Laurent - with Albert de Saint-Albin

Amongst the plays written by Hector-Jonathan Crémieux are:

Fiesque: drame en cinq actes et huit tableaux, en vers, d'après Schiller - with his brother, Émile Crémieux, and based on Friedrich Schiller's play Die Verschwörung des Fiesco zu Genua
Germaine: drame en cinq actes et huit tableaux - with Adolphe d'Ennery and based on Edmond About's novel of the same name
La voie sacrée, ou, Les étapes de la gloire: drame militaire en cinq actes - with Eugène Woestyn and Ernest Bourget
Le pied de mouton - with Charles-Théodore Cogniard and Jean-Hippolyte Cogniard
L'Abbe Constantin - with Pierre Decourcelle and based on Ludovic Halévy's novel of the same name
Autour du mariage - with the Comtesse de Martel and based on her novel of the same name