Jack D. Hunter
Encyclopedia
Jack D. Hunter was an American
author
and artist
, best known for his novel, The Blue Max, which was made into a film of the same name, The Blue Max
.
, Ohio
, on June 4, 1921, the son of Whitney G. and Irene Dayton Hunter. Ironically, while his father, whose long career with the Du Pont Company began as a paint color evaluator because of his sensitivity to colors, Hunter was red-green blind. He graduated with a BA in journalism from Penn State University in 1943. During World War II
he joined the infantry, but when he could not recognize the color of flares or follow tracer bullet
s he was transferred to counter-intelligence in a move that spared him the fate of most of the others in his infantry class — death on Omaha Beach
during D-Day
.
Because he spoke German
, having taught himself and then studied it in college, Hunter was sent to Germany just after the war ended. The Allies had discovered that some high-ranking Nazis had gone underground and were waiting until the political atmosphere settled down, at which point the Nazis would infiltrate the new German government. As a 24-year-old lieutenant, Hunter, disguised as a Lithuanian black marketeer, engineered a sting called "Operation Nursery" which resulted in the arrest of over 1000 Nazi plotters in a single night. (See Stars & Stripes
article, March 31, 1946.) He was awarded the Bronze Star.
After the war, he worked in various journalistic capacities, as a public relations executive for Du Pont, and as a speech writer in Washington D.C..
His first novel was The Blue Max, and the publisher remarked that, as a new author, they would not spend the money to have an artist paint a color cover for his book. Hunter, who often dabbled in water colors, volunteered to paint it himself. The publisher liked it and used it, and Hunter considered that cover painting to be his first "sale". He then turned what was once a hobby into a second career as an aviation artist.
Hunter was the author of 17 novels, his last being The Ace, which was published on October 1, 2008. Like The Blue Max, which is still popular after 44 years, The Ace deals with World War I aviation, but focuses on the human costs and chaotic conditions that belabored the Americans in their need to build a world-class air force virtually overnight.
During the 1980s, Hunter served as the writing coach for reporters working at the (now defunct) Jacksonville Journal and for the Florida Times-Union, which still publishes in Jacksonville. In this role, which continued three days a week for 10 years, Hunter provided encouragement, tutelage and support to hundreds of journalists, some of whom went on to work at The New York Times, The Denver Post, The Miami Herald and in many other venues.
He lived in St. Augustine
, Florida
, until he died at age 87 on April 13, 2009. He was interred at the Jacksonville National Cemetery
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
and artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
, best known for his novel, The Blue Max, which was made into a film of the same name, The Blue Max
The Blue Max
The Blue Max is an 1966 British war film about a German fighter pilot on the Western Front during World War I. It was directed by John Guillermin, stars George Peppard, James Mason and Ursula Andress, and features Karl Michael Vogler and Jeremy Kemp. The screenplay was written by David Pursall,...
.
Biography
Hunter was born in HamiltonHamilton, Ohio
Hamilton is a city in Butler County, southwestern Ohio, United States. The population was 62,447 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Butler County. The city is part of the Cincinnati metropolitan area....
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, on June 4, 1921, the son of Whitney G. and Irene Dayton Hunter. Ironically, while his father, whose long career with the Du Pont Company began as a paint color evaluator because of his sensitivity to colors, Hunter was red-green blind. He graduated with a BA in journalism from Penn State University in 1943. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he joined the infantry, but when he could not recognize the color of flares or follow tracer bullet
Tracer Bullet
Tracer Bullet can refer to:*Tracer ammunition*Tracer Bullet, a fictional detective, alter ego of Calvin in the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes* Tracer bullet in software development, a method of finding solutions...
s he was transferred to counter-intelligence in a move that spared him the fate of most of the others in his infantry class — death on Omaha Beach
Omaha Beach
Omaha Beach is the code name for one of the five sectors of the Allied invasion of German-occupied France in the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, during World War II...
during D-Day
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
.
Because he spoke German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, having taught himself and then studied it in college, Hunter was sent to Germany just after the war ended. The Allies had discovered that some high-ranking Nazis had gone underground and were waiting until the political atmosphere settled down, at which point the Nazis would infiltrate the new German government. As a 24-year-old lieutenant, Hunter, disguised as a Lithuanian black marketeer, engineered a sting called "Operation Nursery" which resulted in the arrest of over 1000 Nazi plotters in a single night. (See Stars & Stripes
Stars and Stripes (newspaper)
Stars and Stripes is a news source that operates from inside the United States Department of Defense but is editorially separate from it. The First Amendment protection which Stars and Stripes enjoys is safeguarded by Congress to whom an independent ombudsman, who serves the readers' interests,...
article, March 31, 1946.) He was awarded the Bronze Star.
After the war, he worked in various journalistic capacities, as a public relations executive for Du Pont, and as a speech writer in Washington D.C..
His first novel was The Blue Max, and the publisher remarked that, as a new author, they would not spend the money to have an artist paint a color cover for his book. Hunter, who often dabbled in water colors, volunteered to paint it himself. The publisher liked it and used it, and Hunter considered that cover painting to be his first "sale". He then turned what was once a hobby into a second career as an aviation artist.
Hunter was the author of 17 novels, his last being The Ace, which was published on October 1, 2008. Like The Blue Max, which is still popular after 44 years, The Ace deals with World War I aviation, but focuses on the human costs and chaotic conditions that belabored the Americans in their need to build a world-class air force virtually overnight.
During the 1980s, Hunter served as the writing coach for reporters working at the (now defunct) Jacksonville Journal and for the Florida Times-Union, which still publishes in Jacksonville. In this role, which continued three days a week for 10 years, Hunter provided encouragement, tutelage and support to hundreds of journalists, some of whom went on to work at The New York Times, The Denver Post, The Miami Herald and in many other venues.
He lived in St. Augustine
St. Augustine, Florida
St. Augustine is a city in the northeast section of Florida and the county seat of St. Johns County, Florida, United States. Founded in 1565 by Spanish explorer and admiral Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, it is the oldest continuously occupied European-established city and port in the continental United...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, until he died at age 87 on April 13, 2009. He was interred at the Jacksonville National Cemetery
Jacksonville National Cemetery
Jacksonville National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located within the city of Jacksonville, Florida. It encompasses , and began interments on January 7, 2009.- History :The relatively close St...
.
External links
- Official Site
- Over the Front -- the quarterly issued by the League of WWI Aviation Historians. Volume 13, Number 3, Fall 1998. Article, "The Blue Max Revisited," by Jack D. Hunter, in which the author's autobiographical sketch tells how the novel came to be written and the impact it had on his life.