Tag: Helmut Knochen

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American “Grande Horizontale” and Nazi Collaborator

From the time she was a very small girl living in San Francisco, Florence Juliette Antoinette Lacaze knew she wanted a special place in life. Florence quickly determined that because she wasn’t born into that “special place,” she would have to develop it on her own. From that day on, everything Florence did was a calculated move to enhance her position in society, create wealth, and as we’ll see after France’s liberation, protect her physical self and reputation (Florence perfected the art of lying to enhance her life story). In other words, Florence built her entire life around her. While Florence was a benefactor to her friends, she was ruthless towards her enemies. She shared several common traits with her deceased father-in-law, Jay Gould, the notorious 19th-century “Robber Baron.”

Did You Know?

Many of us were required to read F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby while in junior high or early high school. Remember those days reading about East Egg and West Egg? East Egg was the aristocratic section of town while West Egg belonged to the nouveau rich. The character social types were in love with money, social standing, and generally created a lot of messes in their lives (and others). Fitzgerald finished the first draft and sent it to his editor. It was promptly sent back to the author because Fitzgerald “had not sufficiently developed the characters with any believability.” Fitzgerald and his wife, Zelda were, at the time, fixtures on the French Riviera staying in Frank and Florence’s hotel, in Juan-les-Pins. They were first hand observers of mid-1920s high society and the exploits of the crowd which included Florence. So, when the draft was sent back for revisions, Fitzgerald fleshed out his characters using the group of people orbiting around Florence. When the novel was published, it met lukewarm reviews but more revealing was the fact that none of the Riviera crowd recognized themselves.

Let’s Meet Florence

You’ve probably never run across the subject of our blog today. Florence Lacaze Gould (1895−1983) was and is to this day, an enigma. Very little has been written about her, much to the delight of her estate and foundation. In fact, the availability of images of Florence is tightly controlled by her foundation. Her legacy (and that of her husband, Frank Gould) are nowhere to be seen in written accounts of the numerous properties they founded or developed into very successful businesses. Read More American “Grande Horizontale” and Nazi Collaborator

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The Roundup and the Cycling Arena

It began on 14 June 1940 when the Germans marched into Paris to start their four-year occupation of the city. Initially, the Occupation was rather benign. Soldiers were ordered to be on their best behavior with the locals. For the most part, Paris citizens did not experience large changes in their daily routines other than the presence of the occupier.

Then it all began to change.

By 1942, the most dreaded sound was a knock on the door in the evening (click here to read the blog Night and Fog). Chances are it was either the French police or Gestapo agents. They were there for one reason: to make arrests. The apartment occupants could have been Jewish, suspected Resistance members or their families, black market participants, criminals, or known undesirables (e.g., Communists, Roma, Polish, Masons, or other Eastern Europeans).

Rafle du Vélodrome d’Hiver or Rafle du Vél’ d’Hiv

“The  Vél’ d’Hiv Roundup”

On 16 July 1942, the knock came to the apartment door of Rabbi Bereck Kofman and his family. The rabbi of the small synagogue located on the Rue Duc was arrested by a French policeman. The entire family (his wife and six small children) accompanied Rabbi Kofman to the police station. They never saw him again. His daughter, Sarah Kofman, became a noted French philosopher and writer. She wrote about her wartime experiences during the occupation in her moving book Rue Ordener, Rue Labat. Shortly after writing the book, Ms. Kofman committed suicide. Read More The Roundup and the Cycling Arena