Remarkable autograph letter signed by Antoine Blondin, addressed to Roger Nimier at his Paris office at the N.R.F., in which he recounts—perhaps not entirely sober—his misadventures in “marital” cohabitation with a seminarian named Prébende Alexis.
29 lines on a folded sheet.
Envelope included.
Published in À mes prochains: lettres, 1943-1984, ed. Alain Cresciucci, 2009, p. 110.
In a highly humorous and irreverent tone, Antoine Blondin writes to his “dear friend” a list of edifying events from his Mayenne existence, enumerated, as “I believe the time has come to enlighten you about certain things that have happened to me.”
He goes on to describe the spartan accommodations he shares—certainly amidst alcoholic fumes, but also as a means to escape the stifling and pompous social life in Laval that his literary notoriety brings upon him: “We live not far from the viaduct, in a wooden shack... seven metres long and three metres twenty-five wide. It must date from the first American occupation, that of Pershing and Dos Passos.” and the doubts he harbours about his cabin-mate: “I suspect Alexis—I call him Alex—of not being entirely defrocked, for he disappears during mass hours, leaving me—naturally—with all the dishes and the little chores. Should I speak to him about it?”
Nevertheless, he is keen to reassure his friend that he maintains a semblance of social life, though he confides, feigning naïveté, that he is no longer entirely in good standing in Laval: “I have not broken off my ties with the Grand Hôtel, but I only go there to collect my mail, which is handed to me sparingly, for I have become a subject of opprobrium in the city—I wonder why.” and that he still honours official invitations: “The prefect of Mayenne hosted me yesterday with some crayfish and partridges, served with lingonberry preserves (!!). He is an epicurean, like you and me—single and well-read. I allow myself to quote him.”
This pleasant hospitality opens new perspectives, which he shares with Roger Nimier, his companion in memorable drinking and feasting: “There are 93 or 97 departments—in any case, fewer than a hundred. We should live off the prefectures. They are good places. There is a familial atmosphere, the like of which we had already had a taste of, if I may say, in Lille. A prefecture flea, while not a particularly distinguished position, is a waiting game.”
In closing, Antoine Blondin allows himself this half-question, laced with certainty: “Does Alexis trouble me?”
A fine display of the anarchic and whimsical spirit that guided the steps—rarely steady but always spirited—of Antoine Blondin, and of the boisterous and fraternal friendship he shared with Roger Nimier.
On the subject of Blondin’s deep friendship for Roger Nimier and the myth of the Hussards, the author told Emmanuel Legeard: « Ce sont les "hussards" qui sont une invention. Une invention "sartrienne". En réalité, l'histoire, c'est mon ami Frémanger, qui s'était lancé dans l'édition, qui avait un seul auteur, c'était Jacques Laurent, et un seul employé, c'était moi. Laurent écrivait, et moi je ficelais les paquets de livres. Donc on se connaissait, on était amis, et d'autre part... d'autre part, Roger Nimier était mon meilleur ami. Nimier, je le voyais tous les jours. Je l'ai vu tous les jours pendant treize ans. Mais Laurent et Nimier ne se fréquentaient pas du tout. Ils avaient des conceptions très différentes. On n'a été réunis qu'une seule fois. On s'est retrouvés rue Marbeuf, au Quirinal, pour déjeuner. On a discuté de vins italiens et de la cuisson des nouilles. Pendant deux heures."
