BAPTISTE

born June 18, 1761, Bordeaux, France died Nov. 30/, Dec. 1, 1835, Les Batignolles original name Nicolas Anselme one of the leading actors of sentimental comedy (comdie larmoyante) in France. After two provincial engagements, Baptiste went to Paris in 1791. In 1793 he joined the Thtre de la Rpublique and in 1799 the Comdie-Franaise, from which he retired in 1828. He was not successful in tragedy. Parisians of the Napoleonic era primarily associated him with the noble fathers in such plays as Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais's Eugnie (1767) and Denis Diderot's Pre de famille (1758). His greatest achievement was in the title role of Philippe-Nricault Destouches's masterpiece Glorieux. Known as Baptiste the Elder, he was survived by his brother Paul-Eustache Anselme, called Baptiste the Younger, who had made a name for himself as a comedian.