Here is something really special, an original ink drawing for an unfinished political satirical French game. My guess is that it was meant to be published in a magazine, and if I had to gamble my money, I would bet that it actually was, though I have no proof, and of course I do not know in what magazine it could be. However, this is a professional job, and there is too much work in it not to be published. If you have an idea of where it may have been published or any other details about this game, please let me know.

 

The drawing measures 46 x 31 cm, and it was recently bought from an Italian seller, who said he had found it in the Porta Portese flea market some fifteen years ago. However, it seems obvious that the game is French in origin.

The figures depicted on the game, though all of them are riding bikes (and thus the game deserves a place on this website), are French politicians of the 1950s. My first guess is that they were candidates either for the 1958 presidential election or else for the legislative election of the same year. Not being French myself, and not even being born back then, I have difficulties identifying the characters, except the most obvious. I have asked a few French friends, and I have a partial list. Any help/suggestions will be welcome.

 

 

There is no doubt that we have Charles De Gaulle on square 1, and most probably Pierre Mendès-France on square 2, and René Pleven on square 3. So far so good.

 

 

Here things start to get complicated. The character on square 6 may be Georges Bidault. On square 4, the SFIO arrows suggest that the guy could be Guy Mollet (pun intended), though it looks more like Georges Marrane to me. And I have no clue about square 5.

 

Of these three, my only guess is Antoine Pinay on square 8.

 

 

I have been suggested that the character on square 10 may actually be Guy Mollet, which would "free" square 4 for Marrane. No idea about square 11, but on square 12 we may have the writer André Malraux. He is reading Louison Bobet's memories, which Louison never wrote, but we can imagine the book to be Jean Bobet's Vélobiographie, released that same year, 1958.

 

 

Were it not for the two teetotums depicted on the board (in a weird zone, it must be said, if they are meant to be cut up), I would not even be sure that this is a game. Anyway, I have no clue about the intended rules.

Fortunately, we have the signature of the author and the year the game was made. However, I have been unable to identify who that Lebon may be. So, there is still a lot to discover about this game. Help needed/welcome!