“ COLLIN D’HARLEVILLE, JEAN FRANÇOIS (1755–1806) , French dramatist, was born at Mévoisins, near Maintenon (Eure-et-Loire) , on the 30th of May 1755. His first dramatic success was L’Inconstant, a comedy accepted by the Comédie Française in 1780, but not produced there until six years later, though it was played elsewhere in 1784. This was followed by L’Optimiste, ou l’homme toujours content (1788) , and Châteaux en Espagne (1789) . His best play, Le Vieux Célibataire, appeared in 1793. ”