![]() Post bought the Winnie Mae from Hall after the flight and attempted (mostly unsuccessfully) to convert his newfound fame to economic prosperity. Known as “Mechanical Mike,” the autopilot allowed him to simultaneously fly and navigate. Post used this Sperry Gyroscope Company prototype for the first generation production autopilot on his 1933 around-the-world flight. Because depth perception is often an important part of the pilot’s skill set, his later career as an aviator is all the more remarkable. ![]() An accident at an oil rig cost him his left eye, but the injury payout allowed him to learn to fly and acquire his own aircraft. He entered aviation in the mid-1920s as a parachutist for a flying circus. Wiley Post’s early adulthood consisted of a brief stateside stint in the Army during World War I, work as a roughneck in the Oklahoma oil patch, and being arrested for armed robbery. Unlike many silent film actors, his screen persona translated well to the talkies and at the time of his death he was at the height of his fame. His status as popular culture icon exploded in 1922 when he began to write syndicated columns for the New York Times that embodied an effective blend of folk witticisms and astute commentary on Americans' sensibilities and their place in the world. He steadily grew in prominence through World War I as he expanded his repertoire and by the 1920s he had made a successful transition to silent films. Will Rogers’ rise to fame began on the vaudeville circuit as a trick roper in the early years of the century. Both had dropped out of school, yet had become two of the most beloved faces of American perseverance. Post came from humble roots on a farmstead and Rogers grew up on a ranch, son of a Cherokee who fought for the Confederacy. They were Oklahomans who “made good” from the part of the nation most affected by the Dust Bowl and the economic collapse. Even with the loss of his left eye, Post was able to break numerous aeronautical records before his tragic death alongside Will Rogers in Alaska.īoth Post and Rogers resonated with Americans in the 1930s because they were regarded as being the epitome of the “self-made man” ideal that resonated so strongly at the height of the Depression. Wiley Post became one of America’s greatest aviators at the height of the Great Depression. Hollywood studios attempted to ban their actors from flying – even if not currently filming a picture. He was the most advanced and courageous man aviation has thus brought forth.” Newspaper editorials called on President Roosevelt to declare a national holiday and day of mourning. ![]() He ranked first both as regards positive accomplishments and fruitfulness of new ideas. Famed German aviator Ernst Udet eulogized Post, stating, “I consider Post the greatest flier of all time. 12,000 motion picture theater screens went dark for two minutes at 2:00 pm on August 22 in tribute. Flags were ordered lowered to half-staff by federal and state authorities. The nation entered a state of mourning that it has rarely done outside of the death of presidents. Against Crosson's advice, Post and Rogers pushed on from there and died in an airplane crash near Barrow. From left to right, Rogers, famous Alaskan musher Leonhard Seppala, Post, and famous bush pilot Joe Crosson stand near Post's Lockheed monoplane on a floatplane dock on the Chena River near Fairbanks. During the summer of 1935, Wiley Post and the famous American humorist, Will Rogers, ventured north to the territory. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |