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"Paris has been going through a bigger police shake-up than the Grover Whalen raids in New York, ever since last Spring. Our Grover Whalen—sartorial perfection and all—is Prefect of Police Jean Chiappe [TIME, Jan. 9, 1928]. He has absolutely cleaned up the Paris 'peep shows,' which you might compare to the speakeasies of New York. You can't drop in anywhere and see odd sights in Montmartre nowadays.
"They say that Poincare told Chiappe to raid the peep shows because the Government thought they were giving Paris a bad name. Most of them were run by Algerians or Levantines or Greeks. Of course Chiappe hasn't interfered with the regular, licensed-maisons kept and patronized by the French themselves. He has been out after the tourist show places."
Asked which was now the smartest Paris night club, Editor Gwynne said: "Still the Blue Room — unquestionably! . . . The great hit of the Paris stage this year is Paul Bourget's Vient de Paraître. He has very cleverly dramatized the popular idea that nearly all the great French literary prizes are won through pull with. the judges."
*Any respectable Frenchman may obtain such a license by applying to the police, but loses his citizenship for the period that the license is valid.