Zweig, Stefan

the letter addressed to the International Copyright Buro, London, containing three numbered points, the first stating that his agent's firm Felix Bloch [Erben] had without his knowledge and permission ceded part of the film rights for Volpone [to the Theatre Guild], rights which the firm did not own, the other points mentioning the sensational success of Volpone in theatres all over the world, and referring to his play Jeremias; the two typed documents containing a preliminary outline of his views on Volpone, with numerous autograph corrections, and a final typed version signed and dated by Zweig ("London Juli 1939 Stefan Zweig"), 4 pages in all, 4to, the letter dated Bath, 19 July 1939, the corrected typescript July 1939, some creasing--together with:

eight typed letters by Jules Romains, signed ("Jules Romains"), to Stefan Zweig, ABOUT A FILM VERSION OF VOLPONE, discussing in detail the proposals of Île-de-France Films, noting the honourable intentions of the screenwriter André Lang and the film company's aim to stick as closely as possible to Jonson's original as well as their realization that a more interesting film would require borrowings from their adaptation, commenting on the terms of the offer, the discussions concerning the fee, and the successful outcome of the negotiations, observing that the film would be a disaster from an artistic standpoint, to judge from the present screenplay, stating his intention to produce a new screenplay for the sake of both their reputations, and detailing other matters relating to copyright and the title of the work



12 pages, 4to, some letters with autograph additions by Romains, red-crayon numbering ("50"-"61") to the letters, Paris and Saint-Avertin, 5 August 1937 to 29 July 1939, some creasing, a few tiny tears

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate
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Zweig's influential and highly successful free adaptation of Ben Jonson's play Volpone, a comic satire on the deadly sin of greed, was made in 1925. A French version of Zweig's work, which brought about a lightening of tone, as well as introducing some structural alterations, was made a few years later by the French poet and writer Jules Romains (1885-1972). Despite some concerns expressed by Romains in his letters to Zweig, the 1941 film version directed by Maurice Tourneur for Île-de-France Films, with its lavish production values and star-studded cast, proved to be a triumphant artistic success, and is regarded today as a masterpiece of French cinema.