Bill's Aviation Log

From Wikipedia: Known as a Western lawman, gunfighter, and boxing referee, he had a notorious reputation for his handling of the Fitzsimmons–Sharkey fight and his role in the O.K. Corral gunfight. This changed only after his death when the extremely flattering biography Wyatt Earp: Frontier Marshal was published in 1931, becoming a bestseller and creating his reputation as a fearless lawman. Since then, Earp has been the subject of films, television shows, biographies, and works of fiction which have increased his fame and his notoriety. Long after his death, he has many devoted detractors and admirers. His modern-day reputation is that of the Old West's toughest and deadliest gunman. Earp died in Los Angeles at the age of 80 on January 13, 1929.

In his later years. Earp often visited the film sets of one of the greatest directors in film history, John Ford. Earp described the gunfight at O.K. Corral to him and even drew it out on paper. Ford later used the sketch to film the fight in My Darling Clementine. Ford hired John Wayne as a prop boy and extra, so the Duke had the opportunity to meet Wyatt Earp. He made an impact on the young actor who later credited his walk, talk, and persona to his acquaintance with Wyatt Earp and on one occasion he reportedly said, “Earp was the man who had actually done the things in his life that I was trying to do in a movie. I imitated his walk; I imitated his talk”.

November 11, 2020 - Arizona History Museum
Lynnette and I checked out the Arizona History Museum which is next to the University of Arizona campus in downtown Tucson. It was small, but informative and interesting. I particularly liked their exhibits. This is a uniform worn by Antonio de Padua María Severino López de Santa Anna y Pérez de Lebrón -- better known as the Mexican General Santa Anna. I believe Santa Anna has to be considered one of the worst generals in history, having lost two important battles: the Battle of San Jacinto on 21 April 1836 in the Texan Revolution (where his forces greatly outnumbered the Texans commanded by Sam Houston) and the Battle of Buena Vista on 22–23 February 1847 in the Mexican-American war (where his forces again greatly outnumbered the Americans commanded by Zachary Taylor). Regardless, Santa Anna was a force to be reckoned with in Mexico. From Wikipedia: His influence on post-independence Mexican politics and government in the first half of the nineteenth century is such that historians of Mexico often refer to it as the "Age of Santa Anna".

A revolver owned by the famous Wyatt Earp. From Wikipedia: Known as a Western lawman, gunfighter, and boxing referee, he had a notorious reputation for his handling of the Fitzsimmons–Sharkey fight and his role in the O.K. Corral gunfight. This changed only after his death when the extremely flattering biography Wyatt Earp: Frontier Marshal was published in 1931, becoming a bestseller and creating his reputation as a fearless lawman. Since then, Earp has been the subject of films, television shows, biographies, and works of fiction which have increased his fame and his notoriety. Long after his death, he has many devoted detractors and admirers. His modern-day reputation is that of the Old West's toughest and deadliest gunman. Earp died in Los Angeles at the age of 80 on January 13, 1929. In his later years. Earp often visited the film sets of one of the greatest directors in film history, John Ford. Earp described the gunfight at O.K. Corral to him and even drew it out on paper. Ford later used the sketch to film the fight in My Darling Clementine. Ford hired John Wayne as a prop boy and extra, so the Duke had the opportunity to meet Wyatt Earp. He made an impact on the young actor who later credited his walk, talk, and persona to his acquaintance with Wyatt Earp and on one occasion he reportedly said, “Earp was the man who had actually done the things in his life that I was trying to do in a movie. I imitated his walk; I imitated his talk”.

Before Ronald Reagan, Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater had laid the foundation for the conservative movement. After being trashed by the biased left-wing media, he lost the 1964 presidential election in a landslide to LBJ. [That worked out so well: Vietnam, the Great Society] Goldwater was quite accomplished in addition to his political career. He was one of the first people to raft the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon, in 1940. He was a private pilot and flew over the great mesas of central Arizona. He was an amateur photographer, and photographed the Navajo and Hopi peoples. He connected with people around the globe as a ham radio operator. Below is a careful reconstruction of Goldwater's ham radio station. His ham radio callsign was K7UGA.

Some fascinating photos of Apache Indians. The famous Geronimo is on the right.

Photo by C. S. Fly of Geronimo and his warriors, taken before the surrender to Gen. Crook, March 27, 1886, in the Sierra Madre mountains of Mexico. Fly's photographs are the only known images of Indian combatants still in the field who had not yet surrendered to the United States.


	Previous	Home	Next

November 11, 2020 - Arizona History Museum