Mental Floss is partner with FilmNation and iHeartPodcasts to institute you the transcripts forGreatest Escapes , a podcast hosted by Arturo Castro about some of the wildest safety valve stories across story . In this episode , writer , director , and producer extraordinaire Jay Martel soars into natural process with Arturo as they cover the high - flying trajectory of French gangster Michel Vaujour . learn all the transcriptshere .
Arturo Castro : This isGreatest Escapes , a show bring you the wildest true dodging stories of all time . Now , in this episode , we ’re headed to Paris , you guys , for a bonkers jailbreak by a French gangster who declared “ war on society . ”
I ’m Arturo Castro and I ’m here with a wizard of the comedy worldly concern , my dear friend , and a man absolutely obsessed with short , short pants , Jay Martel .
[ radical ]
Arturo : I’m bring together by Jay Martel .
Jay : Yes !
Arturo : I catch ta tell the hearing that Jay catfished me –
Jay : What ?
Arturo:–in the gumption that when we — we sat for an interview , uh … for the chief writer position ofAlternatinoand Jay showed up in like — a clitoris down , and like , these nice pants , and then –
Jay : Oh no , not this .
Arturo : Yes . And then I never saw him wear pants ever again . Jay always show up –
Jay : OK . This is a — this is a ethnical voice communication affair .
Arturo : OK , you just –
Jay : Uh , you’re — I fag out pants to the government agency . They were just short pants . But in , in your mind –
Arturo : They were so short .
Jay : In Guatemala , I think they do n’t call short bloomers “ knickers . ” They –
Arturo : Listen , listen . We do not show another man our thighs unless we stand for business and you really …
Jay : And I was just throwing them out there in your facial expression every day .
Arturo : For devoid , for free . I always say that Jay , like , always looks like he just escape his flying . You know what I mean ? Like , he ’s in the Atlanta airport . He fing had to go get that cervix pillow and his fing flight left him . He ’s just looking around appear like , “ uh , f * * * . ”
Jay : Always a small like dishevelled and , yeah .
Arturo : A little bit . Just — just enough .
Chapter 1: Flying Lessons
Arturo : All powerful . You ready for , uh , for a little escaping ?
Jay : Yes , decidedly .
Arturo : So today instead of a mobile phone cube , we ’re gon na pop on a launch area . Ooh . And the yr is 1985 , which is the year I was expect . keen year for babies . Am I right , Jay ? It was so fantastic .
Jay : Well , whatever .
Arturo : Aha , OK . And we ’re in Annecy in the Alps of Southern France . Now a woman , Lena Rigon , has started taking helicopter lessons from a guy named Guy , a flight teacher at a local drome .
Now , he did n’t think anything of it except that he noticed that she demonstrate great commitment to learning . So in fact , she booked a hotel by the airport for a whole month , and she drop two or three hours every sidereal day practise in the air with her instructor . As her teacher , Monsieur Guy feel like he was get to know her pretty well .
For him , that apparently means remembering that she was blonde . I love Guy being like , “ Yes , I know everything about her . She is , uh , blonde . ‘ Zat is it . ” Yeah . So that September , she take her fly examination and she pass with flying colouring material . Oof , wow .
Jay : Nice .
Arturo : And she got a 58 out of 60 required points , which I infer is enough . I don’t — dude , this is such a French path of scoring , is n’t it ?
The rest of the reality is like , “ Hey , it ’s 100 , ” and France is like , “ No , I refuse , 60 is fine . Sixty is maximum . You would be a head ofmerdeif you had any more than 60 . ”
This humankind is plainly penny-pinching to death . This French man , uh … [ laugh ]
Jay:“I am dying and I will go along my flying examination . ”
Arturo : It ’s a French pirate ship in this uh , state of affairs . You remember , Jay , that there was a sketch that we never quite made work about a French man who was unimpressed by everything and called everything “ sh*t . ”
Jay : Oh yeah .
Arturo : Yeah , “ it is sh*t . ”
Jay : Yeah , that was skillful .
Arturo:“This is sht , ” uh , and then a robber follow into the restaurant where — where he is at and he ’s like , “ this gun for hire , ezed is sht . ” You know ? He saves the day .
Jay : I wonder why they did n’t let us do that .
Arturo : Maybe because we did n’t cognise how to f***ing end the sketch .
Jay : Or , or we sound like pirates when we did Gallic accent mark .
Arturo : That ’s right . Because they were like , “ You are all dying pirates in this . ”
Jay : Well , what is going on ?
Arturo : All mighty , so then Lena moved near Paris , where she joined a flying club at an airport , and go flying some loose utility helicopters .
So Lena begins renting a helicopter every two weeks , and she stupefy to know the owner of the eggbeater rental company , Claude . He described her as “ a fairly piddling cleaning woman , ” uh , “ the sportsman eccentric , ” which is probably French for not curvy . I do n’t know what the f * * * that meant , Claude .
Jay : “ Sportsman . ”
Arturo : So Claude said that Lena took a liking to one eggbeater in special . She would come to his clientele twice a month and rent it for like , $ 300 an hour . Claude did n’t jazz it at the time , but Lena was practicing oneveryspecial acquisition , you guy , OK ? hover with the helicopter just above the ground .
On May 27 , 1986 , Lena arrived with a friend : a man carrying a heavy duffel bag . Somehow , this did n’t raise any ruby signal flag for Claude . You know , was he oblivious ? A little piece of an retard ? ? Perhaps . Or maybe just very French . “ I do n’t know , I do n’t care what you do . ”
Anyhow , he lease her the helicopter as per usual .
Now patently , Claude did n’t cognise what was in the bag . But today we do sleep together . It was deport … dun dun dun … a sub - machine gun !
Jay : What ? !
Arturo : And it turns out , Lena had been hiding her real identicalness . Her tangible name was in reality Nadine , and the day she ’d been train for was finally here .
And when she exact off , she fly low . Soon , the air dealings ascendancy lose middleman with her . The Gallic Air police render to get radio reception from the chopper as it buzzed the rooftops . But Nadine was n’t answering . No , no . She was flying 19 miles from the airport to La Santé prison in Paris — because she was gon na bust her husband outta pokey !
Jay : Oh my God . Now I see how it all ties together with the report of this podcast .
Arturo : Yeah , there you go .
Jay : Oh , OK . I ’m so relieved .
Arturo : Sportsman , sportswoman - cleaning woman , dead pirates .
Jay : Yeah . A bag — large bag .
Arturo : boastful bags . Submachine gun flee low , you know ? definitive . Can we take a moment and mouth about the loyalty it have to do this ?
Jay : She must have really know her husband . I have in mind , that’s — that ’s what I ’m getting from this .
Arturo : OK . Who the perdition is her husband ? countenance ’s figure this out . So his name was Michel Vaujour , right ? He was a gangster who had hold as a teen that he was gon na engage warfare against society . The — you jazz , the revolution remains stiff in this one .
Jay : That ’s a very mutual matter in — among adolescent . I think of , especially in France , I imagine is like , “ f * * * society . I ’m going to burn it down . ”
Arturo : They are incredibly good at striking in France . That is not even a joke . Every time they –
Jay : Yeah . Oh my God . Yeah .
Arturo : We could take a pageboy out of their book for this .
Jay : If this was in France , I ’d be striking justly now for good wages for podcast co - legion .
Arturo : Yeah , that ’s right . None of us are getting paid , Jay . I ’m beat transcript , meal , and recognition tops . Uh , yeah –
Jay : Oh my god , what ? Oh , well , you should strike too . Let ’s both hit .
Chapter 2: Background
Arturo : Alright , so : who was Michel Vaujour ? To initiate with , he was an Lord’s table son . No , like , literally — when he was a Thomas Kid his parents sent him to hold out in a boarding school flow by a local priest . Along with all the other church stuff , like guilt — guilty conscience - make chores or whatever — the priest teach Michel how to climb , and pullulate , and run cross land . Bro , is this like is this like a first-rate alpha priest ? Like – what the f * * * .
Jay : I dunno , like , this brace is like — is gon na take over the world , I call up . I intend , she ’s a sportsman type with who fly helicopters and he ’s like , an all around jock who dart game ? I mean …
Arturo : Yeah , but also my — my non-Christian priest like always sound like that French dying dude that you just did , you hump like , a plagiarist –
Jay : Oh , OK .
Arturo : They could n’t even , like , you know — take the air properly . I did n’t know they were like priests that like , did like , rock climb , you know ?
Jay : If Jesus is at the top of that Benny Hill , they ’re gon na mount that rock-and-roll
Arturo : Yeah , that ’s right . “ On this mountain , I shall build my church . ”
One somebody in the audience is gon na be like , “ Oh , he studied Catholic – ”
Jay : Yes . Yeah , you ’re gon na get that one hard-core Catholic podcast listener . Congratulations .
Arturo : Thanks very much .
But for Michel , Lord’s table boy did n’t translate to being like , a rule follower , good ? When he was 19 , he started stealing cars whenever he want to take his girlfriend dancing . This f***ing cat . OK , making us all look bad . secure for you . Good for you . So usually they would will the car in the same station that they found it , but after a while they start up getting miry and just parked it right in front of his apartment .
So the next dayspring , Michel and his girl were woken up by the auditory sensation of the police banging on the front door .
Jay : Poor preparation . Everyone knows you do n’t park a stolen car in front of your house .
Arturo : Yeah . So what do you — like , you ’ve been slip cars , Jay , there ’s a knock at your threshold . Somebody says , “ I am police . ” What do you call up ? What do you do ? What ’s the first thing that you do ?
Jay : Say , like , “ I ’m an idiot . And — and I deserve to be taken off to prison house right now because – ”
Arturo : That would be your manner . That would be — And by the way , and by the mode –
Jay:“And I ’m gon na put on pant , let me put on my pant right now before you take me to prison house . ”
Arturo : Jay ’s way would be like—“And by the way , I would wish to fink to other crimes of myself and other people , just – ”
Jay : I , uh … yeah .
Arturo : Cracking . collapse immediately .
So I ’ll tell you what Michel did , proper ? He dive out of the bedroom window to make his flight and left his girlfriend to front the law alone .
Jay : Cool . Cool guy rope .
Arturo : Now it ’s real f***ed up like , leaving your girlfriend holding the bag like that .
Jay : Totally . wholly French .
Arturo : Yeah . That — right-hand ?
Jay:“Yeah , she can allot with it , you know . ”
Arturo : I do n’t even have intercourse that it ’s French . This hombre ’s just like an early adopter of the f * * * boy nature . He ’s like , “ not my problem . ”
So how do you even rationalise it to her later ? You know , like , “ Hey , like , I ’m sorry . Like — the thing is , there is a loud sound alfresco . I require — I was testing rock rise with a non-Christian priest – ”
Jay:“I was actually going to , uh — go out the windowpane and get a stolen auto and drive it to another positioning . See ? ”
Arturo : So he ’s a German French man now .
Jay : Oh god . Dammit . I knew I should have exercise my accents . You did n’t tell me this was a French tale .
Arturo : I call back we need to , yeah — I call back we involve to practice our own accents from now on , Jay . The European Carry Amelia Moore Nation are up in arms .
Jay : I do n’t recollect we ’re gon na infract anyone by doing bad emphasis , personally .
Arturo : No , no , no . OK . It ’s just — so take heed . So she confess , ripe ? Michel was catch convict and he was put off for two and a one-half old age . Now , Michel think his punishment was too harsh , and this is when he decided to start his state of war against bon ton . When he find out , Michel was contain again for the crime of drive without a license , and he ends up being convict of 10 robberies over the years .
To be honest , I do think it ’s kind of — I intend , I ’m not advocating grand thievery motorcar here — but it seemed like he was just a dumb minor , proper ? Like most of the time he put the car aside , and –
Jay : Yeah . I signify , he ’s still really young now , correct ?
Arturo : He was 19 the first time he got catch .
Jay : Oh God . OK . So yeah , there ’s just no — yeah , you’re — you’re just crazy when you ’re 19 , correct ? I do n’t live about you , but –
Arturo : Oh yeah , I was a ballock caper at 19 . And it , uh , it has n’t gotten any safe . But , uh , no — but also , like , it does n’t feel like multitude that go in the scheme , it like , rehabilitates them in any country , you have it away ? So I judge that ’s when he get really radical with his crimes .
But prison house , you have intercourse , they could n’t hold him . They just could not restrain Michel , right ? He made his first escape when he join the employment crew of prisoners unload trucks of supply , right .
When he saw the prospect , he run out through the gap between the hand truck and the logic gate , and he made his direction into the Sir Henry Wood where he dodged the officer searching for him . Twice , he get off by scale prison walls , in 1973 and 1974 .
In 1973 , Michel and another prisoner pushed through a light area of the fencing and climb the bulwark where they realise there was a unreasoning situation for the precaution . They went on a looting spree until they got catch again .
What is it with these people that ca n’t just enjoy their prison break , you know ?
Jay : You know , it just designate you that … I ’m coming from a different place , but I — I always remember , like , you get outta prison , just be cool for a little bit . Right ?
Arturo : Just move to LA . Put on some shorts , man .
Jay : Move to LA , put on some shorts .
Arturo : Start a writer ’s elbow room .
Jay : And some snotty-nosed flops perchance , you know ? Yeah . Like , just loosen . I — but … but it ’s just like , “ No , no . ” I find like he’s — he , Michel — was really try out to shew a percentage point , good ?
Arturo : He ’s waging a warfare against companionship .
Jay : Yeah . I intend , he was just like , “ I ’m just gon na get out of this John Milton Cage Jr. that you put me in and just do some more damage to this matter that I detest , ” you know ?
Arturo : Right , right , right . So in 1974 , Michel deal a cell with a dependable breaker named Gille — Gill . Can the overlords of orthoepy please come in and separate me how to articulate his name .
CarlIt is sound out Gille . It is pronounced Gille , but you could call him G.
Arturo : G. OK , f * * * it . So in 1974 , Michel share a cell with a secure breaker nominate Gille , who became his adept admirer .
Now , the pair used one of Gille ’s lock picking tricks to escape . They amass the flushed wax from Babybel cheeses to make an imprint of the key fruit .
OK , Jay , your spell again . You got some wax . How are you gon na get that depression ? Also , I ’m disconsolate . Again , French people , but that is the most French agency of making a –
Jay : I know , I mean , the fact that they have Babybel cheeses like , in prison . I mean , like –
Arturo : It ’s so fancy .
Jay : Do you cognise what — what our prisoners would do ? What prisoners in this country do for one Babybel cheese ?
Arturo : And that was not the Camembert workweek , you know — that week was — it ’s not as well-situated to get an embossment from Camembert .
Jay : It remind me of like … I was listening — I was reading about World War I recently , and — one of the reasons the Gallic troops were doing so bad is that they all drank a liter of wine-coloured every day .
Arturo : That was their allotted –
Jay : It was part of their ration , so –
Arturo : Um , as oppose to the Germans in World War II which were all hyped up on amphetamines .
Jay : Yeah , they were . Well , yeah , it was actually like both of those world wars were like a study of inebriant versus speed .
Arturo : Versus drug utilisation .
Jay : Yeah , like f number . Speed will always deliver the goods in a warfare by the way .
Arturo : Yeah . Weed does — weed does not do well in a state of war .
Jay : No , no .
Arturo : It ’s everybody like , “ What — what the f * * * are we doing guy cable ? Let ’s just chill . ”
Jay : Yeah . “ Yeah , piece , just mellow out out and , you know , you — just get marshy drunk on a clump of crimson wine and just like if they put us in prison , we ’ll just be eating cute little cheeses , you know ? ” fundamentally .
Arturo : That ’s ripe . That ’s gon na be great .
So Michel took the direct attack . So he and Gille memorize which one was the right Florida key by watching their cell get unlock every day . And once , when they were being put back into the cubicle , Michel bumped the guard and pressed his wax against the Francis Scott Key .
Jay : Oh my god .
Arturo : Yeah , so using a file and part of a hack saw , Michel and Gille , were capable to take a piece of iron , a small slice of it , and duplicate the shape of the Francis Scott Key –
Jay : Oh my god !
Arturo:–following the imprint of the wax and unlock his f***ing cadre .
Jay : I’m begin to thank this guy rope ’s a genius . I mean , could you bump into someone and make — make a wax impression of their key ? I don’t — that ’s not in my skillset .
Arturo : I ca n’t sustain or deny that , uh , legally — I ca n’t severalize you if I have done that before or not . No , but it is impressive . You cognise , it ’s one of those , you have it away , classic tales of like , “ wow , if you had just applied that genius to something else , like , what would you have lend ? ”
Jay : Yeah , incisively . But he was put on earth basically to break away out of prisons .
Arturo : That ’s right . Some people , that ’s their caper .
Jay : He evolved like a hundred thousand years of human phylogeny run to this guy . Just , “ I can break out at anything . ”
Arturo : Any undivided matter . So in prison , after being arrested for another robbery , Michel carry what one Gallic newspaper call an “ informal Ritual of Rebirth . ” So he stripped naked , shaved , and used yoga to introduce a trance that would kill the Mad Dog in him . And after that , he gave up tobacco plant , radio , and even his mattress , right-hand ?
So this guy was prepare for Burning Man . He did not even experience it .
Jay : I’m waiting for what comes next , cause I sleep with it’s — it ’s not gon na be about yoga .
Arturo : Well , the fourth escape come in 1979 during a auditory modality for his crimes . Michel had been in prison for four years , and he had work out a plan correct ? At the courthouse , during his earreach , Michel took the judge surety at point .
Jay , if we were gon na smuggle a triggerman into a auditory sense , where would you shroud it ? Actually , I do n’t wanna know . F * * * it . Nope . Nope , nope .
Jay : Well , you , you ask so …
Arturo : I know what — I just fuck , like — this question was here and I ’m like , “ No , I know where he would hide it . ”
Jay : In the pocket of my boxershorts .
Arturo : Yeah . In his beautiful second joint pocket that he always carries with him . When it gets chilly you have one of those , like — you know , those pant that become shorts ? What are they called ?
Jay : Oh , skorts ? No . Uh –
Arturo : Skorts ? [ express mirth ]
Jay : No . That’s — that ’s something else . Uh , convertible shorts ?
Arturo : Convertible shortstop . Sure . We ’ll go with that . And the convertible short people , if you wanna promote your sh*t on the show , you know , me and Jay and the Catholic guy cable will definitely buy your stuff .
Jay : What , we ’ll definitely zip those up .
Arturo : Michel had really sewn a pocket inside his underwear and took the gun for hire out when he go to the bathroom before the auditory modality start . Now the matter is the gun was n’t real . It was a dummy , carved out of soap and turned black with skid glossiness .
Jay : Oh my God . This is like , uh , Take the Money and Run , a Woody Allen movie where , you cognise — it ’s just … this is such a platitude . And I sleep with that he can work in different mediums too . Like , he can ramify out from wax into soap ? I mean –
Arturo : Yeah . No , from cheese — from cheese to max to rise . It ’s like , this man does it all .
Jay : He did . It ’s all just a means of escape . It ’s up to him .
Arturo : Exactly . Now , once he was out , Michel reconnected with his old prison friend , Gille , the safe breaker . And he also assemble Gille ’s sister , Nadine . Ah , now –
Jay : Ah , I see where this is going .
Arturo : Yep , yep , yep .
Nadine had also been locked up on three freestanding times for things like hiding steal goods . So Michel and Nadine were basically a match for each other . They fell in love , and Michel get a life story with Nadine and her daughter .
But that did n’t keep him out of problem . No , no , Michel . Nothing keeps him down , you see . In this sentence behind taproom , Michel had met a crew of guys involved in organized offence . They reached him now that he was out again , and he got hired to help with a clump of armed robbery .
So in March 1981 , Michel gets arrested again , and this fourth dimension Nadine was even grabbed as an accomplice . OK . This part is nuts ! Her 2nd girl , the one with Michel , was even born that yr while Nadine was in jail .
Jay : Oh my god . They had nestling . They had tyke !
Arturo : And the daughter escape say prison house at six months old . Very telling . So –
Jay : Wait , wait .
Arturo : I’m fing with you . I ’m fing with you .
Jay : Oh , OK . Jesus .
Arturo : Can you guess ?
Jay : Well if you regard a womb a prison house , perhaps –
Arturo : Yes . Well , they — she escaped at zero year honest-to-god .
In 1982 , with both of them behind bars , somehow Michel [ and ] Nadine arranged for a prison marriage ceremony . They met at a prison house registry to sign the papers , and in the intimacy of the here and now , Michel told her about his next program for leakage .
Jay : Oh my God .
Arturo : Nadine was released the same daytime , but Michel ’s condemnation was for 18 year . If they were gon na be together , they would postulate to mold together to fall apart Michel out of the most notorious prison house in Paris : La Santé .
Jay : Ah , La Santé !
Arturo : La Santé .
Jay : Oh , not La Santé ! They put him in La Santé ?
Arturo : Yeah that ’s right-hand . Well it ’s actually a prison — it ’s well known for housing celebrity and high-up at least — I mean , at least if you ’re a fan of like –
Jay : Really ?
Arturo : – well , if you ’re a fan of French outlaw , that is .
Jay : So if you were like OJ , you ’d be put in La Santé ?
Arturo : Yeah , exactly . You would be in La Santé . Now . Do any of these name sound familiar to you ? Jean Genet , Carlos the Jackal , Bernard Tapie , Jérôme Kerviel , Jacques Mesrine ? I ’m f***ing up all these public figure . But , uh , how about –
Jay : The first couple I recognize .
Arturo : How about Manuel Noriega , the former dictator of Panama ?
Jay : Oh .
Arturo : Yeah , he ended up there in 2010 .
Jay : Oh man .
Arturo : on the face of it his excuse is he wanted the tall mallow . [ speak Spanish ]
Jay : One thing you may say about Manuel Noriega , he get it on his cheese .
Arturo : He loved his cheese . Say what you will about him –
Jay : And narco trafficking .
Arturo : That ’s right . Yeah . Say what you will about the man . The serviceman had a preference for the fine things .
La Santé has actually been , uh , used to film legion Gallic gangster movies and there was — uh , there are French soda water songs about the prison . Uh , I ’m not , you know — I’m not certain if this was film there , butUn prophète , um — was an astonishing French flick about the rise of an inpatient .
La Santé is still receptive today and it ’s one of just three prisons in Paris . Now , it has a gamy certificate wing , but the security is known for being like , fair lax , you know ?
Jay : Mm - hmm .
Carl : Gentlemen , I ask to , uh — I need to fall apart in here and say , the name of the prison house is “ lay sahn - tay . ” Le Sant
Arturo : Son of a b*tch , Son of a gun . Uh , so we ’ve been told by our overlords in the sky , our producer there , it ’s actually “ lie sahn - tay . ” So –
Jay : Ah , La Santé . Oh , I — I was really mixed-up . I was confused that you were talking about La Santé .
Arturo : Yeah , that ’s right . That you did n’t recognise –
Jay : Of course , of course . That ’s where Jean Genet was . That ’s where Carlos the Jackal was .
Arturo : Yes . I got it all amiss . Thank you , overlords in my sky .
So in 2000 , La Santé ’s chief medical military officer write a book revealing what aliveness was like inwardly . She described inmate mob on top of one another . self-destructive prisoners were leave alone in chains and prisoners with primitive skin infection that had been eliminate in worldwide companionship , but prevent alert inside the prison house .
Jay : Wait , archaic skin infection ?
Arturo : I’m thinking like Hansen’s disease and such , likely .
Jay : Oh , OK . Yeah , that’s — that is antiquated . Like , biblical .
Arturo : Yeah , it ’s biblical . It ’s like , “ Yeah . So they have the bubonic plague . It ’s kind of uncanny . Yeah . They have that like , uncanny skin term where an holy person of death number to your sign if you did n’t put the lamb ’s roue in front of it . ”
Jay : Yeah , yeah , yeah . One of those .
Arturo : Again we got — we got our Catholic people back .
Jay : Oh , we got him back … or not .
Arturo : So — or not . She also said that it was infested with rats and cockroach , which I guess is to be carry .
Jay : Yeah .
Arturo : Now Michel — while Michel was serving metre , he was not taking it easy . No , he was coordinate with Nadine and other friends on the outside , and over meter , they come up up with a plan .
Michel say that after analyze the layout of various prison , he declared that the easiest mode out of La Santé was to get away by melody . Now , the layout made it safe to bring in a helicopter and vacillate in piazza where smokestacks blocked the view from the scout towers — meaning that a eggbeater could n’t be spud down by the guard .
Now , on the outside , Nadine was n’t just sitting around waiting for his 18 - year time to end . No sir . She was in on the plan . Michel was — had already run four times from prison house , so they had to say , “ Why not five ? ” and –
Jay : Five time is a –
Arturo:–five times is the prison charm , and this is where we ’ll take a little interruption . To apologize to everybody that heard the pronunciation of La Santé .
Chapter 3: The Big Moment
Arturo : Now we ’re getting to the big second : May 6 , 1986 . The day of … the escape ! [ echo ]
I hope that Ben adds , like , repeat after I say “ the escape ” or something godly like that .
Ben : Yeah , if whoever ’s listening has heard the replication , then I have done my task .
Arturo : Thanks , buddy .
So that dayspring , Michel said he woke up early — at 6:00 a.m. He had four hours before the schedule tryst with Nadine . Uh , that ’s rendezvous for all you non - Gallic speaking people .
After breakfast , the captive were let out for a dawn pass in the prison house yard . As he got outside , Michel looked up at the window of the prison house building above him . And he see … the signal . [ echo ]
Again , some echo . Which was actually pretty corny if you ask me . The signal was plainly a white piece of composition board stuck in the stairwell window . I think , really ? All this elaborate leak and they ’re like “ I do n’t get it on just put some cardboard up . We ’ve tend out of budget for cool effects . ”
But it mean that the helicopter was on its way . So in the yard , Michel spread out a towel on the ground , and commence his yoga procedure .
Eventually … huh ? He heard the helicopter approaching , you guy cable ! It ’s like the guy you like , is like , take care at you at the company . You ’re like , “ oh my god , is he approach ? Is he coming this way ? ” That ’s what he felt like . Just … in a much more heightened translation .
At first it was a low rumble . And as it f***ing burst into the sky over the prison house cubic yard it became a roar that froze all the other prisoners in place .
Jay : I bet !
Arturo : Yeah , they ’re like , “ qu’est - ce que c’est?Qu’est - ce que c’est ? ! ”
Now , the door to the chopper open and it duffle bag pilot out , crashing down into the prison house yard . And that ’s when Michel sprang into action . He hotfoot [ to ] the cup of tea , pull it open , dug out a handgun and pointed it at the prisoners and the guards in the yard , yelling , “ Nobody move , ” or whatever the French version of that is . And the captive that were already not moving , they ’re like , “ What do you signify ? ”
Jay:“We are not moving ! ”
Arturo : “ I ’m doing yoga still ! ” There ’s one mazed yoga instructor being like , “ pitiful , does this think of the thing is over ? Or , like – ”
Um , okay — so Michel also pulled out a sportfishing rod and two meters of rope .
OK , so Jay — you’re in a prison house G with a pistol , a fishing pole , and some rophy . What are you — how are you gon na escape , Jay ?
Jay : I’ll start fishing in the moat . Uh , I ’ll capture a fish , I’ll — I’ll linkup a , a rope around the Pisces ’s neck and use it to wish , water ski across the moat , veracious ?
Arturo : Beautiful . Yes . Jumping –
Jay : Is that what he did ?
Arturo : leap the shark . He jumped the shark .
Now Michel ran to the side of the prison house construction forcing everybody to clear a path . He used a fishing rod to intertwine the rope through the window bars two meter up . Then he used a rope to climb up . He scrambled from windowpane ledge to windowpane ledge using the fishing magnetic pole to lift the rope and loop it through the next exercise set of iron bar .
Can you f***ing believe ?
Arturo : Now a prison guard was place on the roof , but Michel knew that the military man in the chopper was holding him at point . It was when he reached the cap that Michel says that all the noise catch up with him . He hear the warning gadget blaring , the chopper roaring and the captive below hearten him on .
Like , plain it must be such an affective moment , huh ? So he — he start onto the landing skids of the helicopter and flew away while the captive clapped and celebrated his escape .
Jay : Oh my God . He skip — he just jump — he just grabbed onto the shoe ?
Arturo : The skids . Yeah .
Jay : Oh my — well , that ’s where all the yoga hail in . I intend , he had like , muscular tissue tone , plain .
Arturo : Yeah , he was also — and masses say that his ki was really connected as well .
Jay:“You make out , like , he could just merge completely with the helicopter — the energy of the eggbeater . ”
Arturo : There — there was a horse sense of unity , uh , repeat by the prison guards . Well , at least that’s — that ’s Michel ’s translation of the story . You be intimate , he published that in a book in 2018 , laying it all out . But Michel leave behind out some cardinal contingent that were reported in the news at the clip .
Now , first of all , Michel did n’t make the ascent alone , OK ? He had an accomplice , another captive key Pierre , who keep an eye on him up to the roof and held off the prison house guards with a megabucks of grenade . Now –
Arturo : Yeah . Hear — find out this out ?
Jay : Where’d he get a bundle of grenade ?
Arturo : Well , I’m — I’m about to tell you . I ’m about to assure you . So as the news paper assure it , a serviceman with a machine gun jumped out of the helicopter and slid down a cable television service to the edifice ’s roof .
He tied the cord around Michel , who was lifted into the helicopter . Now the cord –
Jay : Ohh .
Arturo : Yeah , the corduroy was dropped again to the gunman who snaffle it and he was also raised into the air . Then the helicopter turned and flew off leave Pierre behind . So yeah — that ’s why he did n’t put it in his script .
Jay : Oh , not favourable , Pierre . Unlucky Pierre .
Arturo : No trade good for Pierre . What a hawkshaw move . Can you imagine ? You did all this ? You ’re like , “ Yes , we have it . We are free . ” And they ’re like , “ Wait , waitress , wait . Where are you ? We did yoga together , you bastard ! ”
Um , so — Pierre was wait run for armed robbery , and he told the constabulary that he decide not to join the outflow at the last second .
Shut the f * * * up , Pierre . You got left . OK . You get — it ’s one of these , “ I didn’t — he did n’t deck me . I dumped him ” sort of vibe .
Jay : Poor Pierre .
Arturo : Poor Pierre . But the thing that Pierre could reveal to the prison guards was that the grenades he was using were not real .
Jay : Shocked .
Arturo : They were nectarines . Yeah .
Jay : Shocked . I’m shocked .
Arturo : So they were nectarines , bro . Pierre had hide them and covered them in paint to look like explosive .
I — I sleep with to mean that one of the safeguard get it on they were in grenades , but is absolutely gross out by yield . Like , you know , the dude took one look and he ’s like , “ utterly f***ing not , fine ? ”
Jay : Hey , those are greenish nectarine , man , we could get explosive diarrhea !
Arturo:“F * * * that , man . ” I — that ’s correct . Like , “ I don’t — my mouth is just drool thinking about the sourness . ”
And now — as for the rest period of the guards , I ca n’t charge ’em not wanting to get up close and personal with some f***ing grenades to see if they were gon na irrupt . You know ? Prisoner yells “ grenade ” at me where there ’s a helicopter in the sky , I ’m gon na trust him !
Jay : I’m surprise they did n’t use cheese because I — I think , like , those round Malva sylvestris would see a short more grenade - similar .
Arturo : Because no prison guard will ever mistake high mallow for grenade , bro . OK , that ’s a — that ’s right .
Jay : Nectarines is — yeah , you ’re proper .
Arturo : It ’s easier to bedevil .
So Nadine flew Michel to a soccer line of business at a nearby university . When they landed , there was a car waitress to whisk off them away . No names of their accomplices in the helicopter or getaway car ever came to light . So at least they were , uh , you bonk , award among stealer in there .
Jay : Well , yeah . I signify — I’m still thinking about poor Pierre like standing on that rooftop going like , “ Eh , one more . One more ? ”
Arturo:“Hello , anybody ? ”
Jay:“Uh , hello ? Hello ? ”
Arturo:“Anybody ? You Guy are coming back . You guy rope are derive back though , veracious ? ”
Jay:“Yeah . You ’re just going to get more fuel , right ? You ’re come in – ”
Arturo:“You cat are coming back though . Like , should I just — should I just wait — expect here ? OK . I ’ll waitress here . I ’ll – ”
Jay:“I got the nectarines . I – ”
Arturo:“Anybody hungry in the interim ? ”
Jay:[Laughs ]
Arturo : So Michel was a contract burglar , and the escape was arrange by his friends in organized crime . He ’d never admitted who helped them , but it was obviously a connection with confederate both inside and outside the prison .
When the police chased down the chopper at the association football playing field , they surrounded it for more than an hour before moving in to insure it out . I signify , they wereterrifiedthat it was booby pin and waited to see if it would detonate . Like , holy sh*t — no wonder the nectarine tree plan do work .
Jay : Yeah , I imply … these French police are somewhat cautious . I’ll — I’ll , give that to them .
Arturo : Uh , yeah — I’ll … I ’ll give them that . Yeah .
So eventually they commit bomb - sniffing dogs in to scrutinize it before they look for it , but receive nothing . Now , some accounts say that Michel and Nadine escaped to South America for a few month , but finally returned after running outta money .
Jay : I — I love that they staged this incredibly elaborated and expensive escape with all the details in blank space . And then all the — you be intimate , like , wires dangle from helicopter , but they — they go to South America and run outta money . I mean get along on .
Arturo : They’re like , “ I do n’t know how to spend – ” Yeah . Nobody instruct them political economy .
Jay : Like , “ Oh yeah , we can lam , but we can not budget a trip to South America . ” It ’s like , come on fashion plate .
Arturo : They did n’t guess in those 17 months of like — or whatever it was—[of ] like f***ing helicopter lesson , you didn’t — you did n’t do one , like , accounting lesson .
Arturo : So if it ’s rightful that they leave , they were also able-bodied to slew back across the border into France and hide out in a small Gallic townspeople . By that same fall in 1986 , their two daughters were 12 and 5 . They tried to set up a life sentence as a family in this little belittled town . French paper say that they were really glad together . Michel sound out that he was frantic at Nadine . She want to give up a liveliness of crime and live a peaceable site as a category .
Jay : Ugh . Nadine , add up on .
Arturo : Nadine , who do you imagine you are , with your sport - womanlike figure ?
Jay : It ’s all about uprising , human beings .
Arturo : hail on , valet de chambre . The war against society .
She even considered turning herself in and she told him so . Now what everyone hold on is that Michel and Nadine were outta money .
So just a few calendar month after the prison-breaking , Michel make up one’s mind to adjudicate another robbery . Like … f***in ’ idiot . But he was middling heroic and did n’t exactly … like , have a programme … or anything .
So on the day , he got to the bank and realise that there were three armed guards stationed at the front threshold . But instead of backing out , Michel try out to jump them and win a fight three to one .
Jay : Oh no .
Arturo : Michel , man . All this yoga ’s getting to your brain , dude . You ca n’t justflowit in there . He says he was able to unarm two of them before the third one started shooting and the other pig arrived . In the firefight , one newsprint say that Michel shoot three officers — before they shot Michel in the point with a magnum .
Check this out . The heater charge in Michel ’s Einstein . Somehow it did n’t kill him , OK ?
One of the most exceedingly gross contribution here , right — Michel read that before he black out , he saw snatch of his mental capacity float off from his head in a stream of his own rip . Uh , fairly intense . Why are you charging at arm guard , Michel ? F***ing hell .
Jay : Oh man . The guy has a death wish . I mean –
Arturo : Yeah it’s — I want to recollect it ’s karma for Pierre . Justice for Pierre .
Jay : Justice . This is what it ’s all about , man .
Arturo : That ’s right . Um , so — misfortunate Pierre .
Jay : Pierre , meanwhile is still standing on that rooftop .
Arturo : He ’s like , “ guys , anytime , Any — anybody got – ”
Jay:“They’re fare back , they ’re coming back , Do n’t you occupy . ”
Arturo : So Michel hang into a coma .
The law grab him , and took him to the hospital . Now , they were able-bodied to identify him as the eggbeater prison house escapee just by his tattoo .
It did n’t help that one of his tattoo articulate , “ F * * * the constabulary , I get away in a helicopter . fare get me ! ”
Um , finally — eventually Michel came back to consciousness , but his unexpended side was paralyzed . He was charge with legion law-breaking , and this clock time when he was move to prison , he was locked in solitary travail .
Jay : You ca n’t blame them , can you ?
Arturo : Yeah . They ’re like , “ f***ing , cat . Put him where we can see him . ”
Jay:“We’re done . We ’re done . ” He gets — OK , he gets one round cheese every now and then , but that ’s it .
Arturo:“One round cheese . Give him — OK , give him the Camembert . Let him brood in there with it . ”
Um , the day after Michel was arrested , the police swept in and arrested Nadine too . They had been conspirator before — so by nature she was suspect as part of the plan for their most late looting .
plain Michel adjudicate to escape again by eggbeater in 1993 . But the prison house –
Jay : No .
Arturo : Yes , but the prison had been alerted and his program was thwarted . the great unwashed need to cease renting his admirer some eggbeater , man . Like , they ’re like — they’re like –
Jay : If there ’s one matter I detest , it ’s repeat eggbeater escapes . I stand for , come on . There ’s a lot of other motorized vehicles that –
Arturo : Yeah . Just make it cool , correct ? Like , yeah . strain hard , Michel .
Jay : Something . something . How about a team of pole vaulters to , you cognize , get over the fencing .
Arturo : Yeah . Or , or those — or those Alaskan pulling andiron , what do they call them ?
Jay : Yeah . You mean like in the Iditarod ? Is that what you ’re concern to ?
Arturo : The — the hu - ahh , like –
Jay : Yeah , yeah . huskies . Yeah , yeah .
Arturo : Huskies . Just a crowd of Eskimo dog .
Jay : Well , you ’d have to get some C. P. Snow - making equipment in the prison somehow for the husky to have something to go on .
Arturo : Well , that’s — that ’s Pierre ’s job . This time you win over him , that “ this time , for trusted . After you construct this – ”
Jay : Oh my God . He would make all the Charles Percy Snow and dig a burrow for the husky to get out , and then they would go forth him .
Arturo : They would impart his tail again .
Chapter 4: The Aftermath
Arturo : Here ’s the aftermath . OK ?
Michel was finally released from prison in September , 2003 . He still had 16 age left on his prison term but changes in French law admit a evaluator to override the earlier decision .
This does surprise me about a lot of European natural law , bro , that they were like , “ this human race murders 17 people . We give him 10 years . Ten class to think about it . ” You know what I stand for ? Like , it just feels like — like , prison term in Europe sometimes are so commuted .
Jay : Yeah , I just get the tactile sensation they ’re a mess more lenient about a lot of thing , you know ? Like –
Arturo : They’re like , “ I dunno , they probably had it coming . I do n’t bed his sprightliness , uh , you know – ”
Jay : No , you know—“Pierre deserved it . Nobody liked Pierre . ”
Arturo : Yeah . Nobody — that fing Pierre is still figure out at the fing prison now . He ’s like , “ F * * * you guys . ”
Now , when he was devoid , Michel had spent 27 age total in jailhouse . Seventeen of those year in nonsocial confinement .
Jay : Whoa .
Arturo : Yeah .
Jay : That — that’ll do some damage on the one-time attic my friend .
Arturo : F***ing damage you . possibly — peradventure that ’s where all this , uh , yoga and zen clobber , uh , came in ready to hand .
He had lived only 40 months of his grownup life as a loose man .
Arturo : Now on the Gallic sound organization , Michel said , “ DoJ and all that stuff did n’t exist for me . That justice business was a complete con . Some people command the hapless phratry below them , and I was one of the pitiable folks . Those who had no top executive , nothing . I was the son of nothing . ”
What an impassioned speech .
Arturo : Uh , he strikes on some interesting percentage point , but like , you do it — I love the idea of Michel pilus billowing in the wind coming out of solitary confinement and being like , “ I have a declaration to make . ” You roll in the hay ?
Jay : Oh , I mean , he sounds very philosophic about it . You lie with , like for a guy who would just arse about rush armed guard and –
Arturo : Yeah , you really .
Jay:–and just like rob mercilessly and project these elaborate escapes .
Arturo : So Michel ’s evasion inspire many copycat . Between 1986 and 2015 , eight extra whirlybird escapes go on in Gallic prisons .
Jay : OK . You love what ? They should just outlaw eggbeater .
Arturo : At some point , it ’s a French prison ’s fault . To discourage whirlybird escapes , French prisons have begin to put mesh nets and closely - space cable over out-of-door spaces .
Jay : What about large glass terrine or domes , you know ?
Arturo : What about the Catholic priests shaming you as you ’re fly in ?
Jay : Just place Catholic priests on the roofs of all prisons .
Arturo : And be like –
Jay:–shaming hoi polloi .
Arturo:“Nope . Stop this . Nope . ” Uh , that would f***ing — you lie with , that would stop me . I ’d be like nope , “ I ’m out . I ’m out . ”
Jay : Oh my God . That would stop you in a moment .
Arturo : Yeah . I mean , I ’m out . I ’m out .
Jay : Catholic Priests are your kryptonite .
Arturo : They really are . Now , on the Nadine side , she published a book about her life and especially about the prison escape .
In fact , she thump Michel by a few decennium . Her memoir , calledAir Girl , was print in 1989 . She actually beat a film plenty out of it , a moving picture of the same deed . In French , it’sLa Fille de l’air .
Jay : Mm .
Arturo : And — so much nicer in French . And it was released in 1992 .
Now , Michel Vaujour ’s biography was put out in 2018 with a title , Love deliver me from Sinking .
Now the — really , the love that saved Michel was apparently not Nadine ’s . Ooh , you son of a gun .
Jay : Ooh , abrasive .
Arturo : Yep . A constabulary student named Jamila started visiting him in prison , and one French newspaper articulate that they bind a secret wedding ceremony in 1999 . He even strain to have her — he tried to have her repeat the eggbeater escape , but Jamila was arrested .
Hear me out . She f***ing enunciate yes , but she was arrested before they could pull it off .
Jay : You know –
Arturo : And was sentenced to seven years in prison house .
Jay : Talk about reduplicate the same mistakes with every kinship .
Arturo : That ’s right . Also , like how skillful is this man in bed ?
Jay : Uh , I entail he ’s plainly got a kind of an beast magnetism going .
Arturo : He — yeah .
Jay : I mean , cause like now Nadine ’s on the rooftop with Pierre , right ?
Arturo : Yeah , he just leaves .
Jay : He just left them both .
Arturo : And now Nadine and Pierre actually , yeah . Have a bonny craft cheese caller . They lived happily ever .
Jay : In our Hollywood variant of this Arturo , like , you know — yeah . Pierre and Nadine definitely end up together .
Arturo : They finish up together . They have an Etsy shop , gayly ever after .
Jay : make — making key out of wax .
Arturo : That ’s right .
So when Michel and Jamila were last released , Michel function to survive with his fresh wife Jamila . Now imagine Nadine , bro . Like what else do you have to do for this motherf***er ? And then he publishes a book name like , Love Saved Me , but it was n’t yours ?
Jay : I know ! That ’s so unseasonable . I intend , she took eggbeater lessons .
Arturo : She took chopper lesson .
Jay : I signify , a lot of eggbeater lessons . She learned how to vibrate like 4 foot off the ground .
Arturo : That ’s f***ing really hard . I do n’t recognize in person , but it sound –
Jay : She roll in the hay him .
Arturo : Yeah that ’s right . Somebody throw a tangerine at this f***ing guy .
Jay : I do n’t screw . I do n’t bed . I’m — I’m kind of angry at this dude . I mean , war on high society , OK . But to dump Pierre and Nadine ?
Arturo : And to brag about it ?
Jay : Oh , I know , I know .
Arturo : That , listen , that ’s our narrative . But to recapitulation — uh , we learned that Michel was fantabulous at escaping , but really bad at keep personal relationships , which he should work on .
Jay : decidedly , emphatically . But it ’s very Gallic too .
Arturo : Hey , hey . I can not speak to that . Jay , can you stop f***ing with our French audience ?
Jay : No , I — I love our French audience !
Outro
Arturo : My admirer , what a f***ing pleasure to verbalise to you , as always .
Jay : Oh my God , I love these safety valve .
Arturo : Oh , thanks adult male .
Jay : I would talk to you about anything in a heartbeat . Are you kidding ?
Arturo : Yeah , brother . Um , we recently mould on a film together calledThe Gift , right?The Gift . Right ?
Jay : The Present , but — but close enough .
Arturo : Ok well , f * * * it . The Giftis a better , The Giftis a better — this is also a delivery academic term for titles , for your film , Jay . And –
Jay : No . You see , The Giftonly put to work one way . The Presentis also the present .
Arturo : I see , yeah .
Jay : It ’s like a gift as well as the present minute .
Arturo : Ooh , a little play on words there . Do you have anything else you ’d wish to plug , brother ? Anything I might ’ve missed ?
Jay : Well , my new line of pants that have like the little zippered flaps on the bottom . So –
Arturo : Perfect for conceal phony guns .
Jay : When you ’re in shorts . Yes . And hiding for phony guns and cheese , and um –
Arturo:“You ever — are you ever in trunks ? But experience you have to run to a meeting trying Jay ’s fresh catfish pants . Yeah . They ’ll get you hired and then you never have to wear pants ever again . ”
Jay : Um , I have like a — a novel out on Audible now calledThe Presentas well . It’s — it ’s not a conjunction . It ’s the same .
Arturo : Right .
Jay : It ’s a — it ’s essentially the same story .
Arturo : It ’s really a unlike report , but you used — you wanna get a thematic claim .
Jay : It in reality — it should be calledThe Gift . And then I have another novel coming out on Audible calledMay Fly Man .
Arturo : Oh , wonderful . Brother , much love to you . give thanks you so much .
Jay : Oh , my pleasure , Arturo .
Arturo : We’ll see you next time .
Credits
Arturo : Greatest Escapesis a production of iHeartRadio and FilmNation Entertainment , in connection with Gilded Audio . Our executive producers are me , Arturo , Alyssa Martino and Milan Popelka from FilmNation Entertainment , Andrew Chugg and Whitney Donaldson from Gilded Audio , and Dylan Fagan from iHeartRadio .
The show is produced and edited by Carl Nellis and Ben Chugg , who are also , respectively , our inquiry overlord and music overlord . Our associate producer is Tory Smith , who is our other overlord .
Nick Dooley is our technical theatre director . extra redaction by Whitney Donaldson . especial thanks to Alison Cohen , Dan Welsh , Ben Ryzack , Sara Joyner , Nicki Stein , Olivia Canny , and Kelsey Albright .
Hey , thank you so much for listen , and if you ’re enjoy the show , please leave a rating or review . My mommy will call you each personally and give thanks you , and we ’ll see you all next hebdomad .
