The Magic Villages - Collierbar.fr

Who remembers the Magic Village Club today? No one, except perhaps the older generation, but what about online? The name Magic Villages hardly ever appears. Yet, the Magic Village Club (or Magic Villages) made its mark on the history of holiday clubs from 1950 to 1956, alongside the Club Med association.

March 17, 1950: The beginning of the story:

It is the end of summer 1949. The Olympic Village club, located in Calvi, Corsica, is closing. During this season, as you now know, Gérard BLITZ was invited by his sister Judith BLITZ and her husband Mario LEWIS, the manager of the village bar, to come and "discover" this type of holiday.

On February 11, 1950, Gérard Blitz, along with a few friends who were swimming champions and water polo players like Tony Hatot, founded the Club Méditerranée association, modeled after the one he had seen the previous year at the Olympic Village club. They took the opportunity to refine the concept. At the same time, Paul Morihien and Edith Filipacchi joined forces with Pierre and Hélène Lazareff (whom they had met in 1949 through Jean Cocteau) to found the Village Magique club. Dimitri Philippoff, Mario Lewis and his wife Didy (Judith Blitz) also joined the venture, as did Henri Vidal.

Many people may not know this, but the Magic Village Club almost ended up being called the Canvas Village Club. Indeed, it was under this name that, on March 17, 1950, the association, whose aim was to promote and encourage outdoor sports and camping, was registered with the Paris Police Prefecture before being changed, again at the prefecture, on April 7 of the same year to the Magic Village Club.

2 Villages:

Starting in the summer of 1950, the Magic Village offered two locations. The first Magic Village was established in the Austrian Tyrol on the shores of Lake Plansee. Activities offered included horseback riding, canoeing, and water skiing. Mario Lewis served as mayor of the village in 1951.

As for the second village, it would become legendary over the decades. Even today, every good GM or GO knows its name, but back then, on June 1, 1950, who would have guessed! This second village opens onto the northern coast of Sicily. Jean Cocteau suggested the idea for the site to Paul Morihien. And yes, if you didn't know, we owe him the famous Cefalù in the Magic Villages series.

In 1953, the magical village of Cefalù served as the filming location for the Franco-Italian film "Le Village Magique" (The Magic Village) by Jean-Paul Le Chanois and Francis Aliatas. The lead male role was played by a young actor and comedian named Robert Lamoureux. The film was released in 1954 but did not make a significant impact at the box office.
Cefalù also attracted crowds curious to discover this holiday concept: 41,000 visitors in 1951, 70,000 in 1957!
The Magic Villages also opened a third village in Andalusia, near Torremolinos. The film "Le Désir et l'Amour" (Desire and Love), starring Martine Carol, was partly filmed in this village in 1951.

In 1951, Dimitri Philippoff left the group and joined the Club Med association. The following year, 1952, it was Judith Blitz's (Didi's) turn to join her brother Gérard. She took the reins as village chief of the brand-new Corfu village established in Ipsos Bay.

Let's compare the two associations:

The common points:

Villages Magiques and the Club Med association are both non-profit organizations under the 1901 law and were founded in 1950.
The people who founded the two clubs knew each other very well.
Both associations are based on the same concept: offering two weeks of all-inclusive holidays (travel, accommodation, food and sports).
By sheer coincidence, the supplier of the tent canvases is the same for both associations: the company Trigano father and son.

The Differences:

This holiday club was aimed at readers of ELLE magazine. The magazine would periodically feature articles about the Club des Villages Magiques (Magic Villages Club). These articles, along with the "magic voucher," would promote the villages where film and theater stars were invited or act as patrons. At the same time, the Club Med association advertised in the sports daily L'Équipe and its Antwerp counterpart. Marcel Hansenne was its ambassador.
Club Med has its village chief and its GMs, Les Villages Magiques has its village mayor, its villagers!

Competition, yes, if we can say that, but rather friendly competition.

1955 The merger of Club Med and Village Magique:

The January 1956 issue of Le Trident magazine announced on its front page the sale of the Villages Magiques association due to financial problems (just as Club Med was also experiencing difficulties at the time!). The story goes that both associations had substantial outstanding bills with the Trigano company for tent rentals.

At the initiative of Gilbert Trigano, who became treasurer of the Club Méditerranée association in 1953, the two organizations merged at the end of the 1955 season. In 1957, the company Club Méditerranée SA, with variable capital, was created. Paul Morihien became responsible for advertising and publishing the Trident magazine for several years before becoming involved in the YOTEL project in Cogolin Plage, but that's another story.