Frédéric Beigbeder
Encyclopedia
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
and literary critic. He won the Prix Interallié
Prix Interallié
The prix Interallié , also known simply as l’Interallié, is an annual French literary award, awarded for a novel written by a journalist.- History :...
in 2003 for his novel Windows on the World
Windows on the World (novel)
Windows on the World a novel written by Frédéric Beigbeder was first published in France in 2003. The English translation by Frank Wynne was released March 30, 2005 by Miramax Books.-Plot summary:...
and the Prix Renaudot
Prix Renaudot
The Prix Théophraste-Renaudot or Prix Renaudot is a French literary award which was created in 1926 by ten art critics awaiting the results of the deliberation of the jury of the Prix Goncourt....
in 2009 for his book Un roman français. He is also the creator of the Flore and Sade Awards.
Biography
Beigbeder was born into a privileged family in Neuilly-sur-SeineNeuilly-sur-Seine
Neuilly-sur-Seine is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris.Although Neuilly is technically a suburb of Paris, it is immediately adjacent to the city and directly extends it. The area is composed of mostly wealthy, select residential...
, Hauts-de-Seine
Hauts-de-Seine
Hauts-de-Seine is designated number 92 of the 101 départements in France. It is part of the Île-de-France region, and covers the western inner suburbs of Paris...
. His mother, Christine de Chasteigner, is a translator of mawkish novels (Barbara Cartland et al.); his father, Jean-Michel Beigbeder, is a headhunter. He studied at the Lycée Montaigne
Lycée Montaigne
The Lycée Montaigne is a famous French public secondary school. It is located in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, near the Jardin du Luxembourg, and was founded in the 1880s....
and Louis-le-Grand
Lycée Louis-le-Grand
The Lycée Louis-le-Grand is a public secondary school located in Paris, widely regarded as one of the most rigorous in France. Formerly known as the Collège de Clermont, it was named in king Louis XIV of France's honor after he visited the school and offered his patronage.It offers both a...
, and later at the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris. Upon graduation at the age of 24, he began work as an advertising executive, author, broadcaster, publisher, and dilettante.
In 1994, Beigbeder founded the "Prix de Flore
Prix de Flore
The Prix de Flore is a French literary prize founded in 1994 by Frédéric Beigbeder. The aim of the prize is to reward youthful authors and is judged by a panel of journalists. It is awarded yearly in November, at the Café de Flore in Paris. The prize only applies to French-language literature, even...
", which takes its name from the famous and plush Café de Flore
Café de Flore
The Café de Flore, at the corner of the Boulevard Saint-Germain and the Rue St. Benoit, in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, has long been celebrated for its intellectual clientele....
in Saint-Germain-des-Prés
Saint-Germain-des-Prés
Saint-Germain-des-Prés is an area of the 6th arrondissement of Paris, France, located around the church of the former Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés....
. The prize is awarded annually to a promising young French author. Vincent Ravalec, Jacques A. Bertrand, Michel Houellebecq
Michel Houellebecq
Michel Houellebecq , born Michel Thomas, 26 February 1958—or 1956 —on the French island of Réunion, is a controversial and award-winning French author, filmmaker and poet. To admirers he is a writer in the tradition of literary provocation that reaches back to the Marquis de Sade and Baudelaire;...
are among those who have won the prize. In 2004, the tenth anniversary of the prize, it was awarded to the only American to ever receive it, Bruce Benderson
Bruce Benderson
Bruce Benderson is an American author, to Jewish parents of Russian descent, who lives in New York. He attended William Nottingham High School in Syracuse, New York and then Binghamton University...
. Two of Beigbeder's novels, 99 Francs and Windows on the World
Windows on the World (novel)
Windows on the World a novel written by Frédéric Beigbeder was first published in France in 2003. The English translation by Frank Wynne was released March 30, 2005 by Miramax Books.-Plot summary:...
, are being adapted for the cinema. The film of Windows on the World will be directed by the French/English director Max Pugh
Max Pugh
Max Pugh is a French-English filmmaker who divides his time between London, England and France. He was born in the North of England and studied at Durham School and the University of Leeds....
.
In 2002, he presented the TV talk show "Hypershow" on French channel Canal +, co-presented with Jonathan Lambert, Sabine Crossen
Sabine Crossen
Sabine Crossen is a French/American actress and model who grew up in New Zealand.-Biography:She lived her early years in New Zealand, and also started acting on stage quite young, working on productions of Jesus Christ Superstar, Robin the Hood, and Around the World in 80 Days. After attending a...
and Henda. That year he also advised French Communist Party
French Communist Party
The French Communist Party is a political party in France which advocates the principles of communism.Although its electoral support has declined in recent decades, the PCF retains a large membership, behind only that of the Union for a Popular Movement , and considerable influence in French...
candidate Robert Hue
Robert Hue
Robert Hue, in full Robert Georges Auguste Hue , is a French politician who was National Secretary of the French Communist Party from 1994 to 2001 and President of the PCF from 2001 to 2002...
in the presidential election.
He worked for a few years as an editor for Flammarion
Groupe Flammarion
Groupe Flammarion is the fourth largest publishing group in France, comprising many units, including its namesake, founded in 1876 by Ernest Flammarion, as well as units in distribution, sales, printing and bookshops . Flammarion became part of the Italian media conglomerate RCS MediaGroup in 2000...
. He left Flammarion in 2006.
His novel Un roman français was awarded the Prix Renaudot
Prix Renaudot
The Prix Théophraste-Renaudot or Prix Renaudot is a French literary award which was created in 1926 by ten art critics awaiting the results of the deliberation of the jury of the Prix Goncourt....
in November 2009.
Private life
Beigbeder has admitted that many of his novels are broadly autobiographical, and that the character of Octave in both 99 francs and Au secours, pardon is in many ways his avatar. On the other hand he contends that "I am more normal in real life than in my books" and that he is not like the characters in his books because he is too normal.He is divorced and has a daughter, Chloé.
In 2008, he was arrested for snorting cocaine from the hood of a car in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in the 8th Arrondissement
Arrondissements of Paris
The city of Paris is divided into twenty arrondissements municipaux administrative districts, more simply referred to as arrondissements . These are not to be confused with departmental arrondissements, which subdivide the 101 French départements...
. He was also in possession of 2.6 grams of cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
.
Beigbeder is working with Volkswagen to shape an urban car model.
Cinema
He is the co-author with Jean-Marie PérierJean-Marie Périer
Jean-Marie Périer is a French photographer and film director.On 22 June 1963, the magazine Salut les copains organised a concert on Place de la Nation in Paris, with singers such as Johnny Hallyday, Richard Anthony, Eddy Mitchell and Frank Alamo...
of L'Attrape-Salinger, a documentary about J. D. Salinger
J. D. Salinger
Jerome David Salinger was an American author, best known for his 1951 novel The Catcher in the Rye, as well as his reclusive nature. His last original published work was in 1965; he gave his last interview in 1980....
. He plays himself in Les ruses de Frédéric (2007), an average film by Louis Skorecki and also appears in Les infortunes de la beauté by John Lvoff (which he co-wrote), Comme t'y es belle ! by Lisa Azuelos
Lisa Azuelos
Lisa Azuelos , born 6 November 1965, is a French director and writer. She is the daughter of singer Marie Laforêt.- Filmography :* Classe mannequin, two episodes written for the television series:** Héritage amoureux...
, Tu vas rire, mais je te quitte by Philippe Harel
Philippe Harel
Philippe Harel is a French film director, actor and screenwriter born in 1956.-Selected filmography:* La femme défendue * Extension du domaine de la lutte -External links:...
and La personne aux deux personnes by Nicolas and Bruno. He also appeared in the pornographic film La fille du batelier, by Patrice Cabanel.
He makes several appearances in 99 Francs
99 Francs
99 Francs is a 2007 film by the French director Jan Kounen based on a novel with the same title written by Frédéric Beigbeder.-Plot:The film is a satire on the modern advertisement business...
, the film adaptation of his novel.
Novels
- 2000: 99 francs (Retitled 14,99 euro after the introduction of the euroEuroThe euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
), Grasset (translated into English as £9.99 by Adriana Hunter) - 2003: Windows on the WorldWindows on the World (novel)Windows on the World a novel written by Frédéric Beigbeder was first published in France in 2003. The English translation by Frank Wynne was released March 30, 2005 by Miramax Books.-Plot summary:...
, Grasset (translated under the same title by Frank WynneFrank WynneFrank Wynne is an Irish literary translator and writer.Born in Co. Sligo, Ireland, he worked as a comics editor at Fleetway and later at Deadline magazine . He worked for a time at AOL before becoming a literary translator...
) - 2005: L'égoïste romantique (The Romantic Egoist), Grasset
- 2007: Au secours pardon, Grasset
- 2009: Un roman français, Grasset
Discussions
- 2004: Je crois Moi non plus : Dialogue entre un évêque et un mécréant Calmann Levis
Comic books
- 2002: Rester Normal DargaudDargaudLes Éditions Dargaud is a publisher of Franco-Belgian comics series, headquartered in the 18th arrondissement of Paris. It was founded in 1943 by Georges Dargaud.Initially, Dargaud published novels for women...
- 2004: Rester Normal à Saint-Tropez Dargaud