28 replies to this topic

[HistoryFan]

who in racing had famous forefathers?

Alfonso de Portago of course with some of his forefathers were very famous.
Rob Walker was grand-grand-grandson of Johnny Walker

Who else?

Edited by HistoryFan, 09 July 2011 - 04:29.

[Tim Murray]

Prominent dads...

[David McKinney]

Not quite the same thing, Tim

You could add Prince Bira, HF, and in fact virtually anyone with a title

[Gary Davies]

The last President of the FIA?

[Catalina Park]

Tom Sulman.

[kayemod]

The last President of the FIA?

Yes, but the thread title is "famous", not "notorious".

[Red Socks]

Yes, but the thread title is "famous", not "notorious".

Famous before he was notorious.

[Zeroninety]

Longtime CART backmarker Hiro Matsushita was the grandson of Konosuke Matsushita, famous in Japan as the founder of Panasonic, and one of the nation's wealthiest men.

[Zeroninety]

Oh, and Johnny Dumfries, the 7th Marquess of Bute, was descended from the 3rd Earl of Bute, prime minister under George III.

[kayemod]

Famous before he was notorious.

Mosley junior managed to achieve that the other way around.

[wenoopy]

Denis Hulme's father, Clive Hulme was awarded the Victoria Cross in World War 2.

[David McKinney]

Tom Sulman.

Why?

[Geoff E]

Why?

This I suppose (the second "hit" when googling his name) - Tom Sulman was born in Sydney, Australia on 25 December 1899. He was the son of architect Sir John Sulman.

[Allan Lupton]

This I suppose (the second "hit" when googling his name) - Tom Sulman was born in Sydney, Australia on 25 December 1899. He was the son of architect Sir John Sulman.

I think you are getting into shallow water here. I'm not worried that the men you refer to are known in Australia but not here but in a parallel case it is hard to be sure if the architect Halsey Ricardo was the famous father of Harry Ricardo or if Harry was Halsey's famous son.

[David McKinney]

...and anyway we've already done a fathers and sons thread

I imagined the intention of this thread was to be more remote

A famous Lea-Francis owner, for example, is descended from - no, we won't go into that

[D-Type]

Lieutenant the Honourable William Coleridge, better known as Bill Coleridge who was one of the winning crew in the 1961 Safari was a descendant of the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

[Vitesse2]

I imagined the intention of this thread was to be more remote

Me too. And anyway, as any genealogist can tell you, we are all descended from Charlemagne.

[ensign14]

Ferdinand de Lesseps is descended from the chap who designed the Panama Canal.

Given that Bobby Verdon-Roe had an heraldic fret on his helmet, I assume he comes from an armigerous family. Quite apart from A.V. Roe of Avro fame, who was a supporter of someone notorious in this very thread...

[David McKinney]

Ferdinand de Lesseps is descended from the chap who designed the Panama Canal.

...but didn't complete it. He had however been more successful with the Suez Canal

[ensign14]

Did he have any success with the Far Canal?

[Vitesse2]

My favourite palindrome: A man, a plan, a canal. Panama!

[Jack-the-Lad]

My favourite palindrome: A man, a plan, a canal. Panama!

I quite like that one!

[Catalina Park]

Why?

Sorry, I should have expanded a bit!

Tom Sulman was the son of Sir John Sulman who was a leading and very influential architect in Australia. He was the chairman Federal Capitol Advisory Committee responsible for the design of Canberra. His name lives on in the annual Sir John Sulman prize which is one of Australia's most coveted art prizes and also in the annual Sir John Sulman Medal for architecture.
There is also going to be a new suburb in Canberra named Sulman in his honour.

Edited by Catalina Park, 10 July 2011 - 02:18.

[David McKinney]

Thanks Michael

[brucemoxon]

I only have one father, who's well-known, if not famous.

But one grandfather was a professor at Sydney University and was an expert in fungal diseases in cereal crops (Oy - such an expert!) and the other was the Sec-Gen of the Communist Party of Australia



Bruce Moxon

[plannerpower]

Any relation to Les Moxon? He was & is very well-known in the radio communications field;

http://www.eham.net/articles/7960

[brucemoxon]

Any relation to Les Moxon? He was & is very well-known in the radio communications field;

http://www.eham.net/articles/7960

Apparently all the Moxons (and Moxtons, Moxhams, and so on) are related through a common ancestor in the Sheffield area about 1,000 years ago. So yes, in one way.

But no, not really. Same goes for Martyn, who opened the batting for England. My branch of the Moxons has been in Australia since the 1840s or so - Joshua Moxon was the first of our line.

There's also a rather notorious Moxon who's the Lawyer for the 'Church' of Scientology. And Lew Moxon killed Bruce Wayne's parents.



Bruce Moxon

[ensign14]

My favourite palindrome: A man, a plan, a canal. Panama!

Satan, oscillate my metallic sonatas!

[Stephen W]

I only have one father, who's well-known, if not famous.

Bruce Moxon

I would have thought if someone had four fathers it would be their mother who would be famous!