Barnstormer and Charles Lindbergh's oldest friend (1905-1982) who served as a consultant for the 1953 film version of The Spirit of St. Louis. TLS signed “Bud,” one page, 8.5 x 11, October 4, 1971. Letter to Alden Whitman of the New York Times, in full: "I make you a promise that the next anecdotes will be clean and pretty, not smudged, erased and scribbled as this one is and the other have been. We have found a good stenographer who needs to obtain extra earnings in her spare time. We can afford it and we also can afford to have someone known to you, re-type the previous anecdotes [this one too] if you know of such a person. Send us the bill and a check will be in the return mail. Now that things have gone this far, and if you can take it, I am resigned to completing the whole batch. It would help though, if I could stem [ha-ha] a tendency to violate all grammatical rules. In putting words on paper something happens and old faces, names not thought of for years and years; little details like the flags blooming in a forgotten garden, all come back to mind's television. While that is happening, and it isn't imagination, but memory; the words flow, expressing the feelings of that long ago in the words I used then. It's awful! So I have my problems. [I can't spell either!] I hope you like this story of an early air show. Slim will remember this one, but maybe not precisely as I do. After all, I flew the 'pick-off' airplane where I could view everything. He had the harder job. Actually we made five, not three try to make that plane-change. The anecdote tells enough with only three." Gurney has made a few handwritten emendations to the text. Includes a typed 8-page manuscript of the referenced anecdote entitled 'A year of Thirty Seconds,' which also bears several handwritten emendations by Gurney. In fine condition.
We use cookies on this site to improve your experience. By using this site, you accept our use of cookies. To learn more, please see our Privacy Policy.
