About

Known credits:
26
Birthday:
1911-01-24
Place of birth:
Nyons, Drôme, France
Website:
N/A

René Barjavel

Overview

René Barjavel (24 January 1911 – 24 November 1985) was a French author, journalist and critic who may have been the first to think of the grandfather paradox in time travel. He was born in Nyons, a town in the Drôme department in southeastern France. He is best known as a science fiction author, whose work often involved the fall of civilisation due to technocratic hubris and the madness of war, but who also favoured themes emphasising the durability of love.

René Barjavel wrote several novels with these themes, such as Ravage (translated as Ashes, ashes), Le Grand Secret, La Nuit des temps (translated as The Ice People), and Une rose au paradis. His writing is poetic, dreamy and sometimes philosophical. Some of his works have their roots in an empirical and poetic questioning of the existence of God (notably La Faim du tigre). He was also interested in the environmental heritage which we leave to future generations. Whilst his works are rarely taught in French schools, his books are very popular in France.

Barjavel wrote Le Voyageur imprudent (1943), the first novel to present the famous Grandfather paradox of time travel: if one goes backwards in time and kills one of their ancestors before he had children, the traveller cannot exist and therefore cannot kill the ancestor.

Barjavel died in 1985 and was buried with his ancestors in Tarendol (commune) cemetery, opposite Mount Ventoux in Provence. He used these place names in his books; Mount Ventoux appears as the site of the space base in Colomb de la lune, for example, and Tarendol is the name of the hero in the eponymous novel.

Source: Article "René Barjavel" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.

Known for

Acting
1969 D'un Céline l'autre Actor Self 59
Average

Writing
1989 Le Grand Secret Writing Writer N/A
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1989 Le Grand Secret Writing Author N/A
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1969 Katmandu Writing Novel 58
Average
1966 How I Learned to Love Women Writing Dialogue 58
Average
1963 Highway Pick-Up Writing Dialogue 59
Average
1963 Highway Pick-Up Writing Adaptation 59
Average
1962 The Devil and the Ten Commandments Writing Dialogue 58
Average
1960 The High Life Writing Writer 58
Average
1959 An Angel on Wheels Writing Screenplay 58
Average
1958 Love on the Riviera Writing Screenplay 58
Average
1958 Love on the Riviera Writing Story 58
Average
1958 Toto in Paris Writing Story 59
Average
1958 Toto in Paris Writing Screenplay 59
Average
1958 Les Misérables Writing Writer 60
Fair
1957 The Case of Dr. Laurent Writing Screenplay 59
Average
1957 The Man in the Raincoat Writing Dialogue 59
Average
1956 The Terror with Women Writing Adaptation N/A
N/A
1956 Bold Adventure Writing Writer 58
Average
1956 Goubbiah and the Gipsy Girl Writing Writer 59
Average
1955 The Ragpickers of Emmaus Writing Scenario Writer 59
Average
1954 Nuits andalouses Writing Writer N/A
N/A
1954 Strange Desire of Mr. Bard Writing Writer 58
Average
1953 The Return of Don Camillo Writing Screenplay 63
Fair
1952 The Little World of Don Camillo Writing Screenplay 65
Fair
1947 Télévision, œil de demain Writing Writer N/A
N/A