Monte-Carlo - Panorama. And Ringo Starr.

            The Postcard

A postally unused carte postale that was published by CAP of Strasbourg. The image is a glossy real photograph, and the card has a divided back.

Monte Carlo

Monte Carlo refers to an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco.

Monte Carlo (literally "Mount Charles") is situated on a prominent escarpment at the base of the Maritime Alps. Near the quarter's western end is the world-famous Place du Casino, the gambling center which has made Monte Carlo an international byword for the extravagant display and reckless dispersal of wealth. 

It is also the location of the Hôtel de Paris, the Café de Paris, and the Salle Garnier (the casino theatre which is the home of the Opéra de Monte-Carlo).

The quarter's eastern part includes the community of Larvotto with Monaco's only public beach, as well as its new convention center (the Grimaldi Forum), and the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort. 

At the quarter's western border, one crosses into the French town of Beausoleil (sometimes referred to as Monte-Carlo-Supérieur), and just 8 kilometres (5 mi) to its east is the western border of Italy.

Monte Carlo is host to most of the Circuit de Monaco, on which the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix takes place. 

The Opéra de Monte-Carlo or Salle Garnier was built to designs of the architect Charles Garnier, who also designed the Paris opera house. 

Although much smaller, the Salle Garnier is very similar in style, with decorations in red and gold, and frescoes and sculptures all around the auditorium. It was inaugurated on 25 January 1879 with a performance by Sarah Bernhardt dressed as a nymph.

Monte Carlo has featured in numerous films and television series, most recently in the 2011 movie of the same name.

 Monte Carlo was the setting for the 1922 Erich von Stroheim silent film Foolish Wives, although it was filmed in California.

The casino featured in the James Bond films Never Say Never Again (1983), and GoldenEye (1995). 

The Car Crash

'To Catch a Thief' (1954) was an Alfred Hitchcock film with Monte Carlo and its famous casino as the setting. It featured Cary Grant and Grace Kelly, the future Princess Grace of Monaco, as the stars. 

There is a scene in the movie where the-then Grace Kelly drives a car very quickly—and dangerously—along the steep winding roads of Monaco that surround the heights of Monte Carlo; a tragic precursor to her actual fate in 1982.

On the 13th. September 1982, Kelly was driving back to Monaco from her country home in Roc Agel. She lost control of her 1971 Rover P6 and drove off the steep, winding road down the 120 foot (37 m) mountainside. 

Her daughter Stéphanie, who was in the passenger seat, tried but failed to regain control of the car. Kelly was taken to the Monaco Hospital (later named the Princess Grace Hospital Centre) with injuries to the brain and thorax and a fractured femur. 

Doctors believed that she had suffered a minor stroke while driving. She died the following night aged 52 at 10:55 p.m. after Prince Rainier chose to take her off life support.

Stéphanie suffered light concussion and a hairline fracture of a cervical vertebra, and was unable to attend her mother's funeral.

Notable Residents of Monte Carlo

Notable residents of Monte Carlo include:

- Shirley Bassey (singer) United Kingdom
- Bono (singer with U2) Republic of Ireland
- Jenson Button (former Formula One driver) United Kingdom
- David Coulthard (former Formula One driver) United Kingdom
- Mohamed Al-Fayed (ex-Harrods owner) Egypt
- Matthew Goss (professional cyclist) Australia
- Philip Green (entrepreneur) United Kingdom
- Stelios Haji-Ioannou (owner of EasyJet) Cyprus Greece United Kingdom
- Lewis Hamilton (Formula One driver) United Kingdom
- Justin Hayward (singer with the Moody Blues) United Kingdom
- Gina Lollobrigida (actress) Italy
- Helmut Newton (photographer) Germany Australia
- Mike Oldfield (musician) United Kingdom
- Paula Radcliffe (marathon world record holder) United Kingdom
- David Shilling (milliner) United Kingdom
- Ringo Starr (drummer with the Beatles) United Kingdom.

   
Taken on: June 26, 2023
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