Jean Franco (Acting)

Jean Franco, born July 19, 1914 in Nice and died December 2, 1971 in Montagnat (Ain), is a French mountaineer and writer. He was a high mountain guide and resistance fighter during the Second World War. Co-author in 1944 with his wife of the first ascent of the South Pillar of the Écrins in the Alps, he was appointed, after the war, head of the Praz college in 1946 then, in 1951, coordinator of the French expeditions in the Himalayas. He was the head of the 1954 and 1955 expeditions to Makalu in Nepal. Between May 15 and 18, 1955 his team reached the summit, the 5th highest in the world. This 1955 expedition was also the first in the world in which all the members of the team reached the summit of a peak over 8,000 m. In 1959, he also led the second of three French expeditions to Jannu (the third,...Read More