Nestor Burma
Encyclopedia
Nestor Burma is a fictional character
created by French
crime novelist Léo Malet
. In the series of crime novels featuring him one can isolate a subset of novels each set in a different quarter (arrondissement
) of Paris
which Malet dubbed the "New Mysteries of Paris", homaging the most famous feuilleton
of the 19th century, written by Eugene Sue
. Burma is a hardboiled
private detective, in the mold of American
characters such as Sam Spade
and Philip Marlowe
but decidedly more humorous. He works with a secretary, Hélène, who is hopelessly infatuated with Nestor, in what he calls the "Fiat Lux Agency". Burma's nemeses are typically just as much the police investigating the crime as they are the original perpetrators. Specifically, he often matches wits with Commissaire Faroux and Inspector Fabre.
The novels have been adapted numerous times, most notably a television
series starring Guy Marchand
, which began in 1991.
A series of graphic novels by artist Jacques Tardi
have also been published to great critical acclaim. The third in this series was an original story by Tardi.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
created by French
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...
crime novelist Léo Malet
Léo Malet
-Biography:Leo Malet was born in Montpellier. He had little formal education and began work as a cabaret singer at "La Vache Enragee" in Montmartre, Paris in 1925....
. In the series of crime novels featuring him one can isolate a subset of novels each set in a different quarter (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...
) of 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...
which Malet dubbed the "New Mysteries of Paris", homaging the most famous feuilleton
Feuilleton
Feuilleton was originally a kind of supplement attached to the political portion of French newspapers, consisting chiefly of non-political news and gossip, literature and art criticism, a chronicle of the latest fashions, and epigrams, charades and other literary trifles...
of the 19th century, written by Eugene Sue
Eugène Sue
Joseph Marie Eugène Sue was a French novelist.He was born in Paris, the son of a distinguished surgeon in Napoleon's army, and is said to have had the Empress Joséphine for godmother. Sue himself acted as surgeon both in the Spanish campaign undertaken by France in 1823 and at the Battle of Navarino...
. Burma is a hardboiled
Hardboiled
Hardboiled crime fiction is a literary style, most commonly associated with detective stories, distinguished by the unsentimental portrayal of violence and sex. The style was pioneered by Carroll John Daly in the mid-1920s, popularized by Dashiell Hammett over the course of the decade, and refined...
private detective, in the mold of American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
characters such as Sam Spade
Sam Spade
Sam Spade is a fictional character who is the protagonist of Dashiell Hammett's 1930 novel The Maltese Falcon and the various films and adaptations based on it, as well as in three lesser known short stories by Hammett....
and Philip Marlowe
Philip Marlowe
Philip Marlowe is a fictional character created by Raymond Chandler in a series of novels including The Big Sleep and The Long Goodbye. Marlowe first appeared under that name in The Big Sleep published in 1939...
but decidedly more humorous. He works with a secretary, Hélène, who is hopelessly infatuated with Nestor, in what he calls the "Fiat Lux Agency". Burma's nemeses are typically just as much the police investigating the crime as they are the original perpetrators. Specifically, he often matches wits with Commissaire Faroux and Inspector Fabre.
The novels have been adapted numerous times, most notably a television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
series starring Guy Marchand
Guy Marchand
Guy Marchand is a French actor, musician and singer. He is best known for his role as the main character in the French police procedural series Nestor Burma.- Filmography :* 1970 : Boulevard du Rhum, directed by Robert Enrico...
, which began in 1991.
A series of graphic novels by artist Jacques Tardi
Jacques Tardi
Jacques Tardi is a French comics artist, born 30 August 1946 in Valence, Drôme. He is often credited solely as Tardi.-Biography:After graduating from the École nationale des Beaux-Arts de Lyon and the École nationale supérieure des arts décoratifs in Paris, he started writing comics in 1969, at the...
have also been published to great critical acclaim. The third in this series was an original story by Tardi.