Educated in France, Germany and Italy, Leblanc, the son of a wealthy shipping owner, joined his family's firm. He studied law for a time, but was more interested in writing and became a police reporter for various French periodicals. Over the ensuing years, Leblanc contributed numerous crime stories to newspapers and magazines, but it wasn't until he created the character, Arsene Lupin, that his fortunes began to change. In 1907, he published Arsene Lupin, Gentleman Burglar which was an immediate success both at home and abroad. Numerous novels and collections of short stories with Lupin as the central figure followed over the next twenty-five years. A proflific writer, Leblanc produced over 60 novels. He was made a member of the French Legion of Honour. Among his many other works were Une Femme (1887), Arsene Lupin versus Holmlock Shears (1908), The Hollow Needle (1909), The Frontier (1912), The Crystal Stopper (1913), The Teeth of the Tiger (1914), The Golden Triangle (1917), The Three Eyes (1921), Memoirs of Arsene Lupin (1924), Arsene Lupin, Super-Sleuth (1927), The Melamare Mystery (1929), The Return of Arsene Lupin (1933) and Wanton Venus (1934). |
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