André

"on August 20, journalist Pierre Giffard from the Petit Journal, the most read and influential daily newspaper of the time, organizes a great race for velocipedes over the Paris-Brest-Paris distance: twelve hundred kilometers! The event is scheduled to start fifteen days later, on Sunday, September 6. New correspondence exchange between the two brothers: André: “That would make a fantastic launch. We need to win it.” Edouard: “The deadline is too short, we will never be ready.” André: “We are the only ones with a detachable. It’s an advantage we have and we may never find it again. There are no deadlines to hold us back. Figure it out.”"

"André gave the character a voice, made him practice every sport, every profession, every clownish act. He inflated or deflated at will, smoked cigars, danced the waltz, transformed into a puppet, spoke in front of a blackboard. He conducted an orchestra in London, entered the arena in Spain, or participated in a rodeo in America. Always good-natured, full of humor, in dazzling form—thanks to the Michelin Exerciser—and devilishly pedagogical."

"In Paris, André, who sees the first “horseless carriages” traveling the beautiful avenues of the Bois de Boulogne, suggests: Why not also put these strange vehicles that make a hellish noise and crawl like turtles on removable tires?” Since Panhard-Levassor bought the rights to Daimler engine patents in 1887, the automobile remains in France a pastime for a few wealthy, sporty, and somewhat crazy snobs. Its prices are astronomical, its performance unconvincing, its robustness questionable, its comfort appalling, its nuisances dreadful."

"In Parisian circles, André will soon repeat that “with one hundred million, it is possible to manufacture five thousand airplanes, and this can be done in a year.” Later, the Michelin brothers will explain the deep reasons for their campaign: “By our profession and thanks to our Frankfurt am Main subsidiary, we were in the front row to know the Germans well. In direct competition with them every day in France and abroad, we were struggling worldwide against their travelers, whom we always found supported — happy merchants — by the German consul of their region. We could not doubt that the war was wanted, prepared by the leaders, and that the rest of the population would follow by discipline, as one man. Even the socialists, even the Rhinelanders, naturally peaceful. It is because the war seemed certain and imminent to us that we felt compelled to make all our efforts to hasten the development of aviation.”"

"In 1921, André and Edouard proposed the “million prize” to promote long-endurance engines. In 1922, they created a prize of fifteen thousand francs “for the development of gliding.” André multiplied conferences on “the German danger” or on “chemical warfare and aviation.”"

"On March 6, 1908, André and Edouard took their finest pen to write to the President of the Aero Club of France:   Mr. President, Desiring to contribute to the development of aviation, this new industry that has also taken root in France, we take pleasure in offering you: a Cup and a Special Prize intended for devices referred to as “heavier than air.” 1. The Cup, which will represent an artistic object valued at at least ten thousand francs, will be endowed with an annual sum of fifteen thousand francs in cash, for ten years. 2. The special prize will be one hundred thousand francs in cash. These prizes will bear our name. They will be awarded under the following conditions. ANNUAL CUP (fifteen thousand francs per year for ten years). Each year, before January 31 (and exceptionally for 1908, before the current March 31), the Aero Club of France will finalize the contest program, which will close on the following January 1*er*. It will determine the dimensions of the track, the significance of the turns, the heights of ascents, etc., as well as the conditions under which this track must be covered, which must be a closed circuit."

"In the autumn of 1978, I had the chance to meet one of his closest collaborators: Antoine Aupetit. Antoine’s father, Albert Aupetit, had been the intimate friend and associate of Marcel Boussac. His own brother, André, had married the magnate’s only daughter. I learned that Marcel Boussac wanted to gather his memories, to look back, to take stock one last time of himself and his time…"

"Boussac had told his cousin André that he was informed of the devaluation a few days before the official announcement and took the opportunity to place continuous purchase orders on foreign exchanges, both in securities and raw materials, for two days. In fact, since the trip that Emmanuel Monick, governor of the Bank of France, took to the United States at Léon Blum’s request to gauge President Roosevelt’s reactions, and especially after the enthusiastic telegram, quickly leaked, that he sent to the President of the Council after their meeting, the devaluation had become an open secret. Many speculators were able to take advantage of the information."

"To his cousin André, who asks him why he always rushes to his jockey at the end of the event, he answers: “Because it’s in the fifteen seconds following the race that a jockey tells you exactly how it went. A few minutes later, he will have had time to concoct a completely different story.” Success is there to prove him right. Boussac carries success with great confidence. No one would dare to challenge his credit. He is one of those to whom, at twenty as at sixty, authority fits like a glove."