LEMAITRE, le-intiqe. ANTOINE LOUIS PROS PER, known as FREDERICK ( 1800-76 ) . A cele brated French actor; horn at Havre, July 28, 1800. Ile was educated at the Conservatoire, and in 1820 after acting at minor playhouses lie appeared at the Gaon, but his fame began when in 1823 he created at the Ambigu the character of Robert Macaire in the melodrama of L'auberyc des Adrets. His vigorous and original genius soon made him the idol of the boulevards. where he was the leading attraction in a succession of theatres. To the conventional restraints of the Thatre Francais. however, he could not ac commodate himself. He represented on the stage the extreme of the Romantic School. Besides his character of Robert Macaire, which gave the name to a drama of which Lemaitre was joint author in 1834, the record of his achieve ments includes Trente ens on in vie Wan joucur at the Porte Saint-Martin in 1827, Dumas's Kean on (lesordre et genie, at the Varietes in 1836, Victor Hugo's Buy Blas, at the Renaissance in 183S, and Don Cesar de Bazan and Toussaint l'Ourrrturc later at the Porte Saint-Martin. His last appearance was in 1873, and he died in Paris on January 26. 1876. His career has re cently been made the theme of a play by Clyde Fitch. Consult: Souvenirs dr Lemaitre, publics par son fils (Paris. 1879) : Duval, Lemoit•e et son temps 1876) ; De Mirecourt. "FrOhrick Lemaltre," in Les contemporains (lb_ 1856) ; Lewes. On Actors and the Art of Acting (New York, 1878).
LEMAiTRE. Jtams (1853—). An eminent
French critic of the subjective impressionist School. He was born at Venneey (Loiret) , began his career as a teacher at Ilavre (1875-SO), then taught at Algiers (1S80- 82) and Besancon (1882-83), and was professor at Grenoble (1883 84). He was already author of two volumes of verse, and had published some essays and stories, when he resigned his post and gave himself alto gether to letters. He went to Paris and in three months won by essays on °Ilet, Renan, and Zola a place that he has never since been in danger of losing. His Impressions du thetare (9 vols., 1SSS et seq.). and Contentporains (7 vols., 1886 et seq.). group his articles in two constantly extending series that treat criticism as "a repre sentation of the world, like other branches of literature, and hence by its nature, as relative. as vain, and therefore as interesting as they." This profession of literary faith shows Lemaltre to differ from Brunetiere, much as Sainte-Benve dif fered from Nisard in the preceding generation. The same unconventionality marks Lemattre's dramatic essays. some of which have been notably successful : Rero/tee ( 1SS9 ) ; Depute Lerran (1 S91) : ilariage Wane (ISO]) ; Les rois (1893) ; Flipotc ( 1893 ) Myrrh a ( 1394 ) Le pardon (1S95). Three volumes of collected tales, Wye vas (1886), Dia contes (1889) and Les rois (1893), cannot be said to have added anything to his reputation.