Jean-Louis Bory.

Jean-Louis Bory (1919-1979) was a French teacher, writer, journalist, and screenwriter. Born in Méréville on June 25, 1919, to a mother who was a schoolteacher and a father who was a pharmacist with a love of gardening, music, and theater, he studied literature in Paris before becoming a teacher in Haguenau.

In 1945, his novel Mon village à l’heure allemande (My Village in German Time) won the Prix Goncourt. This success enabled him to buy back the family property in Méréville, which he renamed La Calife. He then divided his time between Paris and Méréville, alternating between teaching, writing, journalism, and film criticism. A contributor to the weekly Arts, Le Nouvel Observateur, L’Express, and a columnist for Masque et la Plume on France Inter, he stood out for his taste for offbeat culture and his committed stance, particularly against the Algerian War and in favor of gay rights.

Jean-Louis Bory also published biographies and studies on Balzac, Eugène Sue, and other authors, and was a notable influence as a literary and film critic. Passionate about cinema, theater, and literature, he cultivated his garden and vast library of 40,000 volumes in Méréville.

He is the author of Paris aux cents visages, published by Éditions du Pacifique.