Victorien Sardou (1831 - 1908) French playwright; celebrated his creations that inspired opera librettos; including La Tosca (1887); on which is based the eponymous opera by Giacomo Puccini; Fedora (1882) and Madame Sans-Gêne ( 1893); which provided the subjects for opera dramas of Umberto Giordano. It is here depicted as a writer of little inventiveness that draws on the work of his predecessors; figuratively like a tailor who makes up his rag in a sort of patchwork of scraps of others. Caricature of Croch from "The Trombinoscope" political satirical magazine of Léon-Charles Bienvenu; said Touchatout (1835 -1910); Monograph No. 24; Paris; 1872