ScubaSteve 0 #1 December 5, 2003 Commemorating the 100th Anniversary of Flight (1903-2003) George Putnam It is this reporter's opinion that in the hustle and bustle of our busy lives today, always on a red-eye to somewhere, we take flight all too much for granted. In commemoration of the approaching 100th anniversary of flight, it is only fitting that we take a moment to remember the two men whose insatiable curiosity made the quick travel of today possible: the Wright brothers. They were men of character, wit and curiosity, keen of humor and humility, those inventors of the airplane. Years ago, my Sally Conlon's grandfather, Walter McMurray, a Dayton, Ohio, dealer in antique furniture, recalled to me his memories of the Wright Brothers. Walter would sneak into their bicycle shop and watch Orville and Wilbur as they assembled the first plane. He recalled they were extremely fond of one another, but they argued for the fun of it. The bicycle shop was a fascinating place and as the brothers worked, they seemed to revel in arguing. One would make a statement, the other would immediately disagree, and over the hours that followed the arguments would continue. They were men of few words; Wilbur would say, " 'Tis," Orville would respond, " 'Tisn't either." And away they would go ... " 'Tis too!" " 'Tisn't either!" and for half an hour, these would be the only words they'd utter. And then, to be cantankerous, the brothers would switch to the opposite side of the argument. Walter spoke of their curiosity about all mechanical things, which led to all types of inventions, most of which were never patented. They were in the newspaper business and they invented a gadget for folding newspapers – to save time. When mother Wright was canning fruit in glass jars one day, Orville invented a little gadget to automatically tighten the lid without a strain. Would you believe it – they were such constant tinkerers that they would actually buy an automobile, a refrigerator or a typewriter and take it apart piece by piece ... and put it back together again. It always worked – except once. That was the time Orville bought a new IBM electric typewriter. He fiddled with it for days, but couldn't put it back together again. Finally, he called the local IBM repairman and when the poor fellow entered the room, he just threw up his hands, stood and looked at the dissembled mess, then gathered up all the pieces in a box and shipped it back to the factory. They once bought a car – a Ford – and dissembled it, brought all the pieces inside and reassembled it in the living room. They had a housekeeper who threatened to quit. She said, "This is the last straw!" – so they then had to dissemble it, take it out of the house and put it all together again. Both of the brothers were able pilots, but it was Orville who had the feel for flying. By the way, Orville never did master the skill of driving an automobile. Wilbur refused to drive at all! Orville drove an old air-cooled Franklin and later switched to a Hudson, but there weren't many people who would dare ride with him. One fellow who rode with him jumped out and said, "Never again!" He said Orville spent as much time on the wrong side of the road as he did on the right. The poor fellow was a nervous wreck, but he finally got to Dayton, Ohio. Neither of the Wrights ever married and both dedicated themselves to flying; and history has claimed their wondrous generation for the ages. Now they are buried on a hill in Woodland Cemetery overlooking Dayton. That's where the airplane was born and there rest the remains of Orville and Wilbur Wright. And close by, as though looking adoringly from a vantage point in the bicycle shop, lie the remains of my friend, Walter McMurray. And just as Walter idolized the Wright brothers, so did the kids of the next generation who looked to Lucky Lindbergh ... just as those of today find a hero in Neil Armstrong, our man on the moon. In the magnificence of hero worship, there is no generation gap. I invite you to read on: http://www.first-to-fly.com http://www.wam.umd.edu/~stwright/WrBr/Wrights.html http://www.nps.gov/wrbr http://www.hfmgv.org/exhibits/wright http://firstflight.open.ac.uk http://www.flight100.org/index.cfm * * * * * * The legendary George Putnam is 88 years young and a veteran of 68 years as a reporter, broadcaster and commentator ... and is still going strong. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
