Anyone who aspires to lead and be successful in any endeavor will profit from reading the Joe Francis story. No matter what your goals might be, you can bet that Joe Francis would encourage and support them in any way he could, even if you were a competitor of his. His credo, “to make a poor man rich,” came to fruition while he tread his journey and it is indelibly printed in the hearts of many of those who did become rich as a result of following Joe’s lead.

JOE FRANCIS AN AMERICAN ENTREPRENEUR

By EDWIN KLEIN

AuthorHouse

Copyright © 2012 Edwin Klein and Florence Francis
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4670-2646-8

Contents

A Tribute PACKED HOUSE.................................................XVChapter One A SEED IN MAZEPPA, 1933....................................1Chapter Two AGAINST ALL ODDS...........................................19Chapter Three THE FOUNDER'S MARATHON...................................39Chapter Four TIME OUT..................................................57Chapter Five BACK TO WORK..............................................65Chapter Six FRANCHISE GROWTH...........................................73Chapter Seven COST CUTTERS.............................................89Chapter Eight GIVING BACK..............................................113Chapter Nine A NEW DECADE..............................................137Chapter Ten MOSCOW.....................................................143Chapter Eleven GLOBAL GROWTH...........................................157Chapter Twelve WATERING THE TREE.......................................165Chapter Thirteen IN THE SHADOW.........................................187Chapter Fourteen WHO'S THAT KNOCKING?..................................203Chapter Fifteen THE AFTERGLOW..........................................207Chapter Sixteen THANKS FOR THE ROSES...................................209Chapter Seventeen JOE FRANCIS AWARDS & RECOGNITION.....................213

Chapter One

A SEED IN MAZEPPA, 1933

What makes a man? What is it that builds his character? In the case of Joe Francis, he came from good stock. His mother, Sadie George, began her epic voyage to America from Beirut, Lebanon in 1928 on a two-story freighter. She traveled with her brother, Said. She was 16, a 5'3" dynamo with black hair, brown eyes and a fair complexion. Her parents, Joseph and Mary George had immigrated to America 15 years earlier and left Sadie and Said in the custody of grandparents and other relatives. What little money her parents could scrape together to send back for their children, would fall through the cracks. The parents later learned that the money was spent on other family needs and not on Sadie and Said. Needless to say, the children had a difficult childhood.

When Sadie and Said arrived at Ellis Island, they were shocked to learn that they would have to pass an Entrance test. No one had prepared them for this! This wasn't a problem for Said. He could speak fluent Arabic (their native language) and French. He could also read and write and the test was offered in Arabic. Sadie, unfortunately, was not educated. There was no way Sadie could pass this test. They were gripped with fear; they had no money and returning to Lebanon was not an option. Said would not abandon her and he wouldn't accept turning back. His determination and creative juices kicked in as he relentlessly badgered the officials until he convinced them and they finally gave in and allowed them both entry into the United States.

Their parents and siblings were living in McIntosh, South Dakota, so Said and Sadie boarded a train and headed west. When they were settled, since they did not have the skills they would need to be independent in America, it was time for school and learning. Because of their lack of English language skills, they were placed in the 1st Grade. The humiliation of being teenagers in classes with much-younger classmates was unbearable and they quit school soon after enrolling.

For the next few years, Sadie was relegated to household chores, as was the custom in her native country. There were more surprises and tests to come her way soon. In Lebanon, marriages were arranged by the family when a girl reached marriageable age and so her parents betrothed Sadie to be married to a countryman, Joseph Peter Francis. Although Sadie was concerned that Joseph was twenty-five years older than her, they were married in 1932. Within a year, they moved to a small farm he had bought in Mazeppa, Minnesota. She never really made an emotional recovery from the marriage arrangement but survivor that she was, she endured and stayed the course until Joseph's death thirteen years later.

Joe Francis was born into this setting on December 1, 1933, the oldest of four children, in a small farmhouse without the benefit of running water, indoor plumbing or electricity—his childhood could well have been called harsh. The old farmhouse was not well built and seemed to breathe with the wind at night. Far too often, the family was nearly penniless. He later recounted going to the icebox on several occasions when hungry, only to find it empty. What little they had, would have to stretch a long way.

Joe was born with adventure in his heart, and he loved challenges. Once, as a boy, when Joe's dad was helping a neighbor during the threshing season, a cow somehow got out of his dad's fenced pasture. His father told Joe to try to find the cow; he was afraid it might get into the nearby Zumbrota River. Joe, with his cousin Bill tagging along, found the cow. Sure enough, it was in the river. Joe couldn't swim but he did know how to hold his breath and bob up and down from the river bottom. Cousin Bill objected—telling Joe, "That's crazy, are you nuts? You could drown." But Joe was determined and he jumped in, bobbed out to the cow and brought her back. This was good practice for Joe, as he'd be bobbing for air and taking even more daring risks in his future business career!

Joe's childhood certainly wasn't all play and no work. This young man was often up before daybreak to haul pails of milk to the neighbor's farm; pretty ominous trip for a lad of ten or eleven when many times there was not even the benefit of starlight or the moon.

Perhaps the seed of his work ethic was planted while toiling in the fields behind his Dad and the horse-drawn plow. Or, it might have come from observing his Mom fetch wood for the stove, pump water at the outside well for cooking or for washing clothes and hauling it into the house. She also had to bake and prepare meals for the family, sew and mend their clothes and see that the children got their schoolwork done. Schooling, for a woman who never had much of a chance to learn, became a problem between Sadie, and her husband Joseph.

Joe's dad was known to be the hardest-working man around. He felt the farm should come before anything else and he expected the whole family to help. However, he was barely able to eke out even a meager living. He had very little equipment, spoke poor English, the ground was hard, lacked nutrients and crops were poor. The family suffered immensely.

In Mazeppa, the children got to their one room school by horse-drawn cart. The school was miles away and had only one teacher who taught all eight grades. Since this was in the Minnesota "snow belt," their winter ride was by horse-drawn sleigh. Hot bricks for their feet and blankets to cover them were their only comfort.

One day, there was a particularly bad snow storm and while Sadie was bundling the children for school, she noticed that little Joe's shoes had worn so thin they were useless. Without hesitation, she removed her shoes and had him try them on. Not the best fit but at least his feet were protected. Off he went in his Mom's shoes. Because the family lived hand-to-mouth, clothing often had to be shared too. Severe weather and bitter winters would take their toll and the children often missed school as a result.

No doubt, Sadie's childhood flashed back into her mind. Perhaps she relived the fear...