Frank Jay Gould

Frank Jay Gould (December 4th 1877 - April 1st 1956) was a American Business man , the last wire of the financier Jay Gould.

Private life

Frank Jay Gould inherits at 15 years a sixth the immense fortune acquired by his/her father thanks to the exploitation the American railroads. In 1902, it marries Helen Margaret Kelly of which it has two children then divorce in 1908. It remarie with the actress Edith Kelly which he also divorces.

He marries in 1923 the California of French origin Florence Caze (1895-1983).

Professional life

He comes in France with the ambition of launching several vacation resorts with Hôtel S and casino S. To the difference of other investors, he does not carry out a creation ex nihilo, but develops the resources of a place by the construction of the buildings necessary to holiday.

Towards 1910, with Houses-Laffitte, it installs an immense field around its racehorses and is invested in the development of the horse activities as much as in the installation of certain places of the site.

Of Granville, he wants to make “the Monaco North” and with this intention, order in 1911 a casino and 1912 a de luxe hotel, Normandy.

He settles with Juan-the-Pines or he repurchases the villa “the Watchtower” (painted by Picasso in 1924) located 37 boulevard Edouard-Baudoin. Vis-a-vis its field, it makes arrange the Pinède and makes build in 1926 the hotel “the Of Provence one”, an establishment of 290 rooms which will be one of the large de luxe hotels of the Riviera. His wife, Florence, will receive there all that the time counts celebrities: Andre Gide, Roger Martin of Gard, Jean Paulhan, Cocteau, Chaplin, Estée Lauder will be invited to its famous lunches. Built in a style “Art orientalizing Déco”, the Of Provence one was one of the most elegant hotels of Europe. One lunched there in the shade of the parasols by contemplating the luxuriant pine forest and the intense blue of the Mediterranean. No the chart, but a menu which claimed to avoid with the hosts the tiredness of the choice. The Gotha of the whole world was made there admire.

Gould also launches in Juan the first casino of summer. It innovates by opening its establishments as from spring rather than in winter as that was practiced at the 19th century. All the young jet set of Europe comes to have fun there, followed by the stars of Hollywood. Cole Porter makes dance Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford, Mistinguett and Maurice Chevalier.

In 1927, it entrusts the construction of the second Casino of Motor-in-the Orne to the architect Auguste Bluysen. This building constitutes one of the showpieces of the life and the animation of the station, which still reflects its beautiful frontages art Déco in water of the lake.

With Nice, it makes build another masterpiece of architecture Art déco, the Palais of the Mediterranean inaugurated on January 10th 1929 which, after being closed during more than 20 years, reopened in 2004.

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