Pierre-Joseph Alary

Pierre-Joseph Alary was a French ecclesiastic and writer.
Prior of Gournay-sur-Marne and sous-précepteur to Louis XV, he attended the salon of Anne-Thérèse [de Marguenat de Courcelles|Madame de Lambert], was elected to the Académie française in 1723 and was the main founder of the Club de l'Entresol, an early modern think tank that operated until 1731.
Louis [Petit de Bachaumont|Bachaumont] commented on Alary's election to the Académie française:
Alary's successor in the Académie, Gabriel-Henri Gaillard, gave a completely different portrait: