Gordon Bennett
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Discussion

k27

Original Poster:

186 posts

305 months

Wednesday 4th December 2002
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Wife wants to know "who the hell is Gordon Bennett anyway?" I offered to turn to the most knowledgeable bunch I know

tuffer

8,994 posts

294 months

Wednesday 4th December 2002
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He was a guy in my class at school, King Edmunds Yate Nr Bristol. Look on www.friendsreunited.co.uk around 1985.

Plotloss

67,280 posts

297 months

Wednesday 4th December 2002
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k27

Original Poster:

186 posts

305 months

Wednesday 4th December 2002
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Hey thanks, I knew you guys know everything about everything.

thepeoplespal

1,692 posts

304 months

Thursday 5th December 2002
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I thought it was a car from the 1960s :-) or was it a Gordon Keeble or something like that. Remember reading about it back in the 1980's, never could remember, it looked pretty nice though.

Tony Hall

23,044 posts

309 months

Thursday 5th December 2002
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Haven't got the info to hand, but believe he was a Newspaper baron in the USA, back at the turn of the last century. Introduced a series of races (Aeroplane?)
Will get back to you if I find anymore. Try the web..

mel

10,168 posts

302 months

Thursday 5th December 2002
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Chancellor ???

fish

4,063 posts

309 months

Thursday 5th December 2002
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Very very hazy on this one, maybe total wrong but it may dust a few cobwebs and somebody will confirm.

something to do with the aeroplane mail deliveries in America probebly in the 20s some bloke called Gordon Bennet Managed to do a drop in record time hence it continued.


Probebly totaly wrong

Bonce

4,339 posts

306 months

Thursday 5th December 2002
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I thought he was Joey Deacon's care worker.

JonRB

79,894 posts

299 months

Thursday 5th December 2002
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The link that Plotloss posted is closest to what I have always understood, and I have heard the "pissing in the fireplace" story from a number of sources, so it may well be true.

He lived a playboy lifestyle and was always doing outrageous things that caused people to roll their eyes , tut, and say "Gordon Bennett!".

One story is that there wasn't a table available for him at his favourite resteraunt, so he bought it on the spot, threw some diners off their table, had his dinner, and then gave the resteraunt to the head waiter on the condition that there was always a table reserved for him.

Gordon Bennett!

K27

Original Poster:

186 posts

305 months

Thursday 5th December 2002
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It's no wonder the rest of the world doesn't understand the British. Gordon Bennett!

nubbin

6,809 posts

305 months

Thursday 5th December 2002
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He was also a Labour councillor in my area, and the village where I work, has the magnificent edifice called, "The Gordon Bennett Memorial Hall"!

deltaf

1,384 posts

284 months

Thursday 5th December 2002
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Aint he related to "killroy was ere"?????

McNab

1,627 posts

301 months

Thursday 5th December 2002
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Gordon Bennett Jr.

American publisher of The New York Herald, 'Bon Viveur', and one of the sponsors of the 1895 Paris-Rouen race. Financed the 'Gordon Bennett Trophy Races' held in France from 1900 to 1906, when the ACF withdrew their support and started the Le Mans series instead, with proper grandstands, etc etc.

And, as already mentioned, he supported the I.O.M 'Trials' from 1905.

Boring stuff - sorry - but that's the motor sport connection.





>> Edited by McNab on Thursday 5th December 21:35

Tony Hall

23,044 posts

309 months

Friday 6th December 2002
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THanks McNab, that sort of fills in my vague reply & saves me the trouble of serfing (I'm a peasant) around. Did he start the Schneider Trophy as well, do you know?

chimburt

751 posts

286 months

Friday 6th December 2002
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i understand that because of his outlandish behaviour he published the Herald remotley from paris.
there was something about pissing in a fireplace ( as somebody mentioned ) and he also fought ( and presumably won ) a dual with the brother of his then fiancee.
he insisted that 1 particular letter to the editor was printed in every edition of the paper.
after 30 years work, the only time that the herald published his name was after his death, in his obituary.