Author: Guy GibsonPublisher:
ISBN:
Category : World War, 1939-1945
Languages : en
Pages : 302
Book Description
Dangerously Funny
Author: David BianculliPublisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1439109532
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 418
Book Description
An unprecedented behind-the-scenes look at the rise and fall of The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour -- the provocative, politically charged program that shocked the censors, outraged the White House, and forever changed the face of television. Decades before The Daily Show, The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour proved there was a place on television for no-holds-barred political comedy with a decidedly antiauthoritarian point of view. In this first-ever all-access history of the show, veteran entertainment journalist David Bianculli tells the fascinating story of its three-year network run -- and the cultural impact that's still being felt today. Before it was suddenly removed from the CBS lineup (reportedly under pressure from the Nixon administration), The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour was a ratings powerhouse. It helped launch the careers of comedy legends such as Steve Martin and Rob Reiner, featured groundbreaking musical acts like the Beatles and the Who, and served as a cultural touchstone for the antiwar movement of the late 1960s. Drawing on extensive original interviews with Tom and Dick Smothers and dozens of other key players -- as well as more than a decade's worth of original research -- Dangerously Funny brings readers behind the scenes for all the battles over censorship, mind-blowing musical performances, and unforgettable sketches that defined the show and its era. David Bianculli delves deep into this never-told story, to find out what really happened and to reveal why this show remains so significant to this day.
Dam Busters
Author: James HollandPublisher: Grove/Atlantic, Inc.
ISBN: 0802193064
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 322
Book Description
The story of the British-made bombs, Upkeep and Highball, successfully dropped on Nazi dams “has never been told in such depth before” (Daily Mail, UK). The night of May 16, 1943: Nineteen specially adapted Lancaster bombers take off from an RAF airfield in Lincolnshire, England, each with a huge nine-thousand-pound cylindrical bomb strapped underneath it. Their mission: to destroy three hydroelectric dams that power the Third Reich’s war machine. It was a suicide mission from the outset. First the men had to fly extremely low, at night, and in tight formation over miles of enemy-occupied territory. Then they had to drop with pinpoint precision a complicated spinning cylindrical bomb that had never before been used operationally. More than that, the entire operation had to be put together in less than ten weeks in order to hit the dams when water levels were still high enough for the bombs to be effective. The visionary aviation engineer Barnes Wallis hadn’t even drawn up plans for his concept when the bouncing bomb was green-lighted. What followed was an incredible race against time that, despite numerous setbacks, became one of the most successful and significant bombing raids of all time. “Holland has delved into the new trove” of declassified documents “to shed light on this weapons program, the politics of its development and the eventual mission” (The Wall Street Journal). “An impeccably researched work in the style of a fast-paced techno-thriller.” —Publishers Weekly “Extremely detailed but never dull . . . Holland offers a definitive, nuts-and-bolts history.” —Kirkus Reviews “A well-written study of engineering and invention operating under great pressure. . . . For all World War II history buffs.” —Library Journal, starred review
Enemy Coast Ahead - Uncensored
Author: Guy GibsonPublisher: Crecy Pub
ISBN: 9780859791182
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 288
Book Description
First published in 1944, Enemy Coast Ahead combines Gibson's RAF career, including the famous Dambuster raid which he himself led, with the inside story of life in Bomber Command and is still a riveting read for the immediacy and vibrancy of its writing. Now, for the first time in paperback, Crecy Publishing has published Gibson's original manuscript which was archived for almost 60 years. This uncut edition provides not only details of Gibson's career, but also reveals his true view of the course of the war, of the wartime population, of his pilots and crews and of Bomber Command tactics. Combined with photographs and diagrams Enemy Coast Ahead ? Uncensored remains one of the outstanding accounts of WWII seen through the eyes of one of its most respected and controversial personalities, but now allows the reader to know Gibson's own story in his own words.
M-Mother
Author: Jenny ElmesPublisher: The History Press
ISBN: 0750964529
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 332
Book Description
John 'Hoppy' Hopgood, pilot and 2nd in command in the May 1943 Dambusters raid, died a hero at just 21 years old. Wounded by flak and with his Lancaster M-Mother ablaze, Hoppy had no hope of escape yet managed to gain height for two of his crew to parachute to safety. The plane crashed moments later. Using Hoppy's school diary and letters to his mother and sister, this book tells the story of how a boy from a small Surrey village matured into a gutsy war hero. A veteran of forty-eight bombing sorties and an expert pilot in three Bomber Command Squadrons, this is the man who taught Guy Gibson how to fly a Lancaster.
Author: Williams Neil WilliamsThe Crew
Author: David PricePublisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1789542693
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 446
Book Description
A moving tribute to the sacrifice and bravery of the fliers of RAF Bomber Command. ****************************** The Crew, based on interviews with Ken Cook, the crew's sole surviving member, recounts the wartime exploits of the members of an Avro Lancaster crew between 1942 and the war's end. Gloucestershire-born bomb aimer Ken Cook, hard-bitten Australian pilot Jim Comans, Navigator Don Bowes, Upper Gunner George Widdis, Tail Gunner 'Jock' Bolland, Flight Engineer Ken Randle and Radio Operator Roy Woollford were seven ordinary young men living in extraordinary times, risking their lives in freedom's cause in the dark skies above Hitler's Reich. From their earliest beginnings – in places as far apart as a Cotswold village and the suburbs of Sydney – through the adventure of training in North America and the dread and danger of the forty-five bombing raids they flew with 97 Squadron, David Price describes the crew's wartime experiences with human sympathy allied to a secure technical understanding of one of the RAF's most iconic aircraft. The drama and anxiety of individual missions – to Kassel, Munich and Augsburg as well as Berlin – is evoked with thrilling immediacy; while the military events and strategic decisions that drove the RAF's area bombing campaign against Nazi Germany are interwoven deftly with the narrative of the crew's operational careers. ****************************** Reviews: 'A sensitive account of the bomber's life... Price has given the bomber offensive a human face. This book [...] has a heart and soul' The Times. 'A fascinating and fast-paced account of the exploits of an Avro Lancaster bomber crew from 97 Squadron RAF' The Herald. 'A remarkable insight into the bravery, determination and skill of British Bomber Command crews during WWII' Waterstones.
Wings
Author: Patrick BishopPublisher: Atlantic Books
ISBN: 0857899813
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 385
Book Description
The Royal Air Force is synonymous with its heroic achievements in the summer of 1940, when Winston Churchill's "famous few"—the Hurricane and Spitfire pilots of RAF Fighter Command—held G&öering's Luftwaffe at bay in the Battle of Britain, thereby changing the course of the war. For much of the 20th century, warplanes were fixed in the world's imagination, a symbol of the perils and excitements of the modern era. But within the space of 100 years, military aviation has morphed from the exotic to the mundane. An activity which was charged with danger—the domain of the daring—is now carried out by computers and pilotless drones. Aviators have always seemed different to soldiers and sailors—more adventurous, questing and imaginative. Their stories gripped the public and in both wars and air aces dominated each side's propaganda, capturing hearts and dreams. Writing with the verve, passion and the sheer narrative aplomb familiar to many thousands of readers from his bestselling World War II aerial histories, Fighter Boys and Bomber Boys, Patrick Bishop's Wings is a rich and compelling account of military flying from its heroic early days to the present.
The Tiger Moth Story
Author: Alan BramsonPublisher: Crecy
ISBN: 1800350023
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 296
Book Description
The Tiger Moth is one of the major aviation success stories in the history of British aviation. Developed by Geoffrey de Havilland and flown for the first time on October 26 1931, the biplane became the most important elementary trainer used by Commonwealth forces. More than 1,000 Tiger Moths were delivered before WWII, and subsequently around 4,000 were built in the UK with an extra 2,000 being manufactured in Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Following the end of WWII, pilots could buy and modify a Tiger Moth for recreational use or agricultural crop spraying and use it relatively cheaply. This, combined with its popularity within the aero club movement, provided employment for the Tiger Moths until the late fifties when the more modern closed cockpit aircraft began to force them into retirement. This new edition provides a comprehensive account of the aircraft's origins and its development as a trainer of Commonwealth pilots in times of peace and war. It also looks at some of the other roles which this versatile little aeroplane performed such as a crop duster, glider tug, aerial advertiser, bomber, coastal patrol plane and aerial ambulance. Technical narrative and drawings, handling ability and performance as seen through the eyes of the pilots combine to make The Tiger Moth Story the most comprehensive book of the aircraft.
The Job To Be Done
Author: Clint L. CoffeyPublisher: FriesenPress
ISBN: 1039146546
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 234
Book Description
A unique blend of historical narrative and personal memoir, this is the powerful true story of seven young men, including the author’s father, who served in Bomber Command in World War Two. Based on a pilot’s logbook and years of research, this beautifully crafted historical exploration follows the young airmen through training and then vividly relates their experiences in almost sixty combat operations against targets in Germany and France. The story of their lives after returning home, including the burdens they carried with them, is told with empathy and compassion. The Job To Be Done is a compelling combination of original WW2 records and historical fact with thoughtful analysis and insights. Using unique maps, photographs, logbook pages and interviews and anecdotes, it crafts a deeply personal story that will resonate with fans of both military history and memoir. The Job To Be Done is a heartfelt tribute and a uniquely rewarding reading experience.
