Von Richthofen and Brown
Encyclopedia
Von Richthofen and Brown (1971
) also known as The Red Baron, is a film directed by Roger Corman
, and starring John Phillip Law
and Don Stroud
as the titular characters.
Although the names of real people are used, the story by Joyce Hooper Corrington
and John William Corrington
is essentially fictionalised.
(John Phillip Law) is a German cavalry officer newly assigned to an air squadron under the command of Oswald Boelcke
who quickly becomes an ace. His career is presented on screen intercut with scenes of another pilot across the lines, a Canadian pilot named Roy Brown who arrives at a British squadron, where the top scoring pilot is a Victoria Cross
holder named Lanoe Hawker
.
The two pilots are very different; Brown ruffles the feathers of his squadron mates by refusing to drink a toast to von Richthofen, while von Richthofen awards himself silver trophies in honour of his kills and clashes with fellow pilot, Hermann Göring
, when Boelcke is killed after a mid air collision and Richthofen assumes command of the squadron. While Brown becomes moody and depressed by his war service, Richthofen becomes outwardly energized by the war. Outraged by an order to camouflage his squadron's aircraft, he paints them in bright conspicuous colours, claiming that gentlemen should not hide from their enemies.
The toll on both squadrons is highlighted when Richthofen is wounded during an aerial battle and Lanoe Hawker is killed. The war becomes personal for both when Brown and his squadron attack von Richthofen's airfield, destroying their aircraft on the ground. Revenge comes when von Richthofen, with the help of a batch of new fighters from Anthony Fokker
launches a counter attack on the British airfield.
The climax of the film (April 21, 1918) pits Brown and von Richthofen in an aerial combat with each other from which only one survives.
supplied the aircraft, crews and facilities for Von Richthofen and Brown and personally coordinated the flying sequences for Corman’s film. Garrison had purchased the collection of hangars, aircraft, vehicles and support equipment accumulated for filming 20th Century’s top grossing film, The Blue Max
, in 1965. The collection included replica Pfalz D.III
's, S.E.5
s, Fokker D.VII
's, Fokker Dr.I
's, plus Tiger Moth
s, and Stampe SV4C
's.
Corman used an Alouette helicopter, along with a Helio Courier
, for aerial photography, supported by a number of specialized camera mounts Garrison developed for use on individual aircraft. This allowed footage of actors, such as John Philip Law, and Don Stroud “flying” the aircraft. In actual fact, Lynn Garrison trained Law and Stroud to the point where they could take off, land the Stampe, and fly basic sequences themselves, from the rear seat, filmed with a rear-facing camera. Stunt pilots were still used for the more complicated sequences, one such pilot being famed New Age author Richard Bach
. Bach wrote about his experiences with the film production in a short story entitled "I Shot Down the Red Baron, and So What", which is reproduced in his short story collection, "A Gift of Wings".
Corman used a filming schedule that included so-called Blue Days, Grey Days and Don’t Give a Damn Days so that the aircraft were used no matter what the weather presented.
On September 15, 1970, Charles Boddington, veteran of The Blue Max
and Darling Lili
shoots, was killed when his SE-5 spun in during a low-level maneuver over the airfield. The next day, during the last scheduled flight on the shooting schedule, Garrison and Stroud were involved in a low-level sequence across Lake Weston, in the Stampe, when a jackdaw
struck Garrison in the face, knocking him unconscious. The aircraft then ran through five powerlines, snap rolled and plunged into the lake inverted. Garrison and Stroud were rescued from the waters. Stroud was uninjured while Garrison required 60 stitches to close a head wound.
Corman did not direct another film until Frankenstein Unbound
.
Some of the interior shots were filmed at Powerscourt House, a famous stately home in County Wicklow Ireland. Powerscourt had been designed by a German architect (Richard Cassels) and the entrance hall had a Germanic feel to it, making it a suitable location. It was also used for scenes in Stanley Kubrick's "Barry Lyndon" a few years later. The house was destoyed in an accidental fire in 1974, so these films serve a record for the lost interiors, and valuable artifacts, including some left there by Oliver Cromwell.
1971 in film
The year 1971 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*February 8 - Bob Dylan's hour long documentary film, Eat the Document, premieres at New York's Academy of Music...
) also known as The Red Baron, is a film directed by Roger Corman
Roger Corman
Roger William Corman is an American film producer, director and actor. He has mostly worked on low-budget B movies. Some of Corman's work has an established critical reputation, such as his cycle of films adapted from the tales of Edgar Allan Poe, and in 2009 he won an Honorary Academy Award for...
, and starring John Phillip Law
John Phillip Law
John Phillip Law was an American film actor with over one hundred movie roles to his credit. He was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of actress Phyllis Sallee and the brother of actor Thomas Augustus Law .He was best known for his roles as the blind angel Pygar in the science fiction cult...
and Don Stroud
Don Stroud
Donald Lee Stroud is an American actor and surfer who appeared in many films in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, and has starred in over 100 films and 175 television shows to date.-Early life:...
as the titular characters.
Although the names of real people are used, the story by Joyce Hooper Corrington
Joyce Hooper Corrington
Joyce Hooper Corrington is an American television writer. She was married to fellow soap opera writer John William Corrington who died in 1988. She is best known for creating the short-lived soap opera Texas along with her husband John and fellow soap opera colleague Paul Rauch...
and John William Corrington
John William Corrington
John William Corrington was an American movie and television writer, novelist, poet and lawyer. He received a B.A. degree from Centenary College, in 1956 and his M.A. from Rice University in 1960, the year he took on his first teaching position in the English Department at Louisiana State University...
is essentially fictionalised.
Plot summary
Manfred von RichthofenManfred von Richthofen
Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen , also widely known as the Red Baron, was a German fighter pilot with the Imperial German Army Air Service during World War I...
(John Phillip Law) is a German cavalry officer newly assigned to an air squadron under the command of Oswald Boelcke
Oswald Boelcke
Oswald Boelcke was a German flying ace of the First World War and one of the most influential patrol leaders and tacticians of the early years of air combat. Boelcke is considered the father of the German fighter air force, as well as the "Father of Air Fighting Tactics"; he was the first to...
who quickly becomes an ace. His career is presented on screen intercut with scenes of another pilot across the lines, a Canadian pilot named Roy Brown who arrives at a British squadron, where the top scoring pilot is a Victoria Cross
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
holder named Lanoe Hawker
Lanoe Hawker
Lanoe George Hawker VC, DSO was a British flying ace, with seven credited victories, during the First World War. He was the first British flying ace, and the third pilot to receive the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded...
.
The two pilots are very different; Brown ruffles the feathers of his squadron mates by refusing to drink a toast to von Richthofen, while von Richthofen awards himself silver trophies in honour of his kills and clashes with fellow pilot, Hermann Göring
Hermann Göring
Hermann Wilhelm Göring, was a German politician, military leader, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. He was a veteran of World War I as an ace fighter pilot, and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite, also known as "The Blue Max"...
, when Boelcke is killed after a mid air collision and Richthofen assumes command of the squadron. While Brown becomes moody and depressed by his war service, Richthofen becomes outwardly energized by the war. Outraged by an order to camouflage his squadron's aircraft, he paints them in bright conspicuous colours, claiming that gentlemen should not hide from their enemies.
The toll on both squadrons is highlighted when Richthofen is wounded during an aerial battle and Lanoe Hawker is killed. The war becomes personal for both when Brown and his squadron attack von Richthofen's airfield, destroying their aircraft on the ground. Revenge comes when von Richthofen, with the help of a batch of new fighters from Anthony Fokker
Anthony Fokker
Anton Herman Gerard "Anthony" Fokker was a Dutch aviation pioneer and an aircraft manufacturer. He is most famous for the fighter aircraft he produced in Germany during the First World War such as the Eindecker monoplanes, the Fokker Triplane the and the Fokker D.VII, but after the collapse of...
launches a counter attack on the British airfield.
The climax of the film (April 21, 1918) pits Brown and von Richthofen in an aerial combat with each other from which only one survives.
Production
Ex-RCAF pilot Lynn GarrisonLynn Garrison
Lynn Garrison is a Canadian pilot and political adviser. He was an RCAF fighter pilot from the 403 City of Calgary Squadron, commercial pilot, film producer, director and mercenary...
supplied the aircraft, crews and facilities for Von Richthofen and Brown and personally coordinated the flying sequences for Corman’s film. Garrison had purchased the collection of hangars, aircraft, vehicles and support equipment accumulated for filming 20th Century’s top grossing film, 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,...
, in 1965. The collection included replica Pfalz D.III
Pfalz D.III
|-See also:-Bibliography:* Gray, Peter and Owen Thetford. German Aircraft of the First World War. London: Putnam, 1962. ISBN 0-93385-271-1.* Grosz, Peter M. Pfalz D.IIIa . Berkhamsted, Herts, UK: Albatros Publications, 1995. ISBN 0-94841-425-1.* Guttman, Jon. Balloon-Busting Aces of World War 1 ...
's, S.E.5
Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5
The Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 was a British biplane fighter aircraft of the First World War. Although the first examples reached the Western Front before the Sopwith Camel and it had a much better overall performance, problems with its Hispano-Suiza engine, particularly the geared-output H-S...
s, Fokker D.VII
Fokker D.VII
The Fokker D.VII was a German World War I fighter aircraft designed by Reinhold Platz of the Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. Germany produced around 3,300 D.VII aircraft in the summer and autumn of 1918. In service, the D.VII quickly proved itself to be a formidable aircraft...
's, Fokker Dr.I
Fokker Dr.I
The Fokker Dr.I Dreidecker was a World War I fighter aircraft built by Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. The Dr.I saw widespread service in the spring of 1918...
's, plus Tiger Moth
De Havilland Tiger Moth
The de Havilland DH 82 Tiger Moth is a 1930s biplane designed by Geoffrey de Havilland and was operated by the Royal Air Force and others as a primary trainer. The Tiger Moth remained in service with the RAF until replaced by the de Havilland Chipmunk in 1952, when many of the surplus aircraft...
s, and Stampe SV4C
Stampe SV.4
-Bibliography:* Pacco, John. "Stampe & Vertongen SV-4B" Belgisch Leger/Armee Belge: Het Militair Vliegwezen/l'Aeronautique Militaire 1930-1940. Aartselaar, Belgium, 2003, pp. 85-86. ISBN 90-801136-6-2....
's.
Corman used an Alouette helicopter, along with a Helio Courier
Helio Courier
The Helio Courier is a light C/STOL utility aircraft designed in 1949.Around 500 of these aircraft were manufactured in Pittsburg, Kansas from 1954 until 1974 by the Helio Aircraft Company. During the early 1980s, new owners made an attempt to build new aircraft with direct-drive Lycoming engines,...
, for aerial photography, supported by a number of specialized camera mounts Garrison developed for use on individual aircraft. This allowed footage of actors, such as John Philip Law, and Don Stroud “flying” the aircraft. In actual fact, Lynn Garrison trained Law and Stroud to the point where they could take off, land the Stampe, and fly basic sequences themselves, from the rear seat, filmed with a rear-facing camera. Stunt pilots were still used for the more complicated sequences, one such pilot being famed New Age author Richard Bach
Richard Bach
Richard David Bach is an American writer. He is widely known as the author of the hugely popular 1970s best-sellers Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah, and others. His books espouse his philosophy that our apparent physical limits and mortality are merely...
. Bach wrote about his experiences with the film production in a short story entitled "I Shot Down the Red Baron, and So What", which is reproduced in his short story collection, "A Gift of Wings".
Corman used a filming schedule that included so-called Blue Days, Grey Days and Don’t Give a Damn Days so that the aircraft were used no matter what the weather presented.
On September 15, 1970, Charles Boddington, veteran of 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,...
and Darling Lili
Darling Lili
Darling Lili is a 1970 American musical film. The screenplay was written by William Peter Blatty and Blake Edwards, who also directed. The cast included Julie Andrews, Rock Hudson, and Jeremy Kemp.-Plot:...
shoots, was killed when his SE-5 spun in during a low-level maneuver over the airfield. The next day, during the last scheduled flight on the shooting schedule, Garrison and Stroud were involved in a low-level sequence across Lake Weston, in the Stampe, when a jackdaw
Jackdaw
The Jackdaw , sometimes known as the Eurasian Jackdaw, European Jackdaw or Western Jackdaw, is a passerine bird in the crow family. Found across Europe, western Asia and North Africa, it is mostly sedentary, although northern and eastern populations migrate south in winter. Four subspecies are...
struck Garrison in the face, knocking him unconscious. The aircraft then ran through five powerlines, snap rolled and plunged into the lake inverted. Garrison and Stroud were rescued from the waters. Stroud was uninjured while Garrison required 60 stitches to close a head wound.
Corman did not direct another film until Frankenstein Unbound
Frankenstein Unbound
Frankenstein Unbound is a 1990 horror movie based on Brian Aldiss' novel of the same name. This film was directed by Roger Corman, returning to the director's chair after a hiatus of almost twenty years.- Cast :...
.
Some of the interior shots were filmed at Powerscourt House, a famous stately home in County Wicklow Ireland. Powerscourt had been designed by a German architect (Richard Cassels) and the entrance hall had a Germanic feel to it, making it a suitable location. It was also used for scenes in Stanley Kubrick's "Barry Lyndon" a few years later. The house was destoyed in an accidental fire in 1974, so these films serve a record for the lost interiors, and valuable artifacts, including some left there by Oliver Cromwell.
Reaction
In its day and after, the film received mixed to negative reviews from both viewers and critics, mainly on the grounds that it was low budgeted and had no distinctive stars. Another factor was the fictional approach the story took on the two main characters. The fiction and facts of the film will now follow.Factual Errors
The film contains so many factual errors (a selection of which are listed here) that it is effectively almost completely fictionalised:- Richthofen is shown flying a Fokker D.VIIFokker D.VIIThe Fokker D.VII was a German World War I fighter aircraft designed by Reinhold Platz of the Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. Germany produced around 3,300 D.VII aircraft in the summer and autumn of 1918. In service, the D.VII quickly proved itself to be a formidable aircraft...
before flying the Fokker Dr.IFokker Dr.IThe Fokker Dr.I Dreidecker was a World War I fighter aircraft built by Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. The Dr.I saw widespread service in the spring of 1918...
, when in fact the Dr.1 came out earlier than the D.VII. Von Richthofen died (just) before the D.VII entered service. - The aircraft of the Flying CircusJagdgeschwader 1 (World War 1)The Jagdgeschwader 1 of World War I, was a fighter unit comprising four Jastas or 'fighter squadrons', originally raised by combining Jastas 4, 6, 10 and 11, on 24 June 1917 with Manfred von Richthofen as commodore...
are shown as being painted in a uniform scheme of blue and silver - in fact they were painted in varied individual colours, with red predominating. - Hermann GöringHermann GöringHermann Wilhelm Göring, was a German politician, military leader, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. He was a veteran of World War I as an ace fighter pilot, and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite, also known as "The Blue Max"...
was not in the Flying Circus until he took over command some time after von Richthofen's death. Wilhelm ReinhardWilhelm ReinhardWilhelm "Willi" Reinhard was a German pilot during World War I. Reinhard was born in Düsseldorf and became a flying ace during the war, credited with 20 victories....
was Richthofen's immediate successor. - Hawker died in November 1916, flying a D.H.2Airco DH.2|-DH.2 aces:Distinguished pilots of the DH.2 included Victoria Cross winner Lanoe Hawker , who was the first commander of No 24 Squadron and ace Alan Wilkinson. The commander of No. 32 Squadron, Lionel Rees won the Victoria Cross flying the D.H.2 for single handedly attacking a formation of 10...
. Brown did not begin flying combat missions until March 1917, and in any case never belonged to the Royal Flying CorpsRoyal Flying CorpsThe Royal Flying Corps was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of the First World War. During the early part of the war, the RFC's responsibilities were centred on support of the British Army, via artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance...
(see next point). Thus the two never served in the same squadron, and probably never met. - Brown's squadron had just ceased to be part of the Royal Naval Air ServiceRoyal Naval Air ServiceThe Royal Naval Air Service or RNAS was the air arm of the Royal Navy until near the end of the First World War, when it merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps to form a new service , the Royal Air Force...
, which had just amalgamated with the Royal Flying Corps to form the Royal Air ForceRoyal Air ForceThe Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
in April 1918. He and his squadron mates would still have been wearing naval uniforms. - Roy Brown and his squadron flew Sopwith CamelSopwith CamelThe Sopwith Camel was a British First World War single-seat biplane fighter introduced on the Western Front in 1917. Manufactured by Sopwith Aviation Company, it had a short-coupled fuselage, heavy, powerful rotary engine, and concentrated fire from twin synchronized machine guns. Though difficult...
s, not S.E.5s, as depicted in the film. - Brown almost certainly did not actually shoot Richthofen down.
- Lothar von RichthofenLothar von RichthofenLothar-Siegfried Freiherr von Richthofen was a German First World War fighter ace credited with 40 victories...
did not join Jasta 11Jasta 11Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 11 was founded on 28 September 1916 from elements of 4 armee's Keks 1, 2 and 3 and mobilized on 11 October as part of the German Air Service's expansion program, forming permanent specialised fighter squadrons, or "Jastas"...
until 1917. - Anthony Fokker and Oswald BoelckeOswald BoelckeOswald Boelcke was a German flying ace of the First World War and one of the most influential patrol leaders and tacticians of the early years of air combat. Boelcke is considered the father of the German fighter air force, as well as the "Father of Air Fighting Tactics"; he was the first to...
were both still in their twenties at the time - not balding men in their 40's. Boelcke never served in the Flying Circus, which was formed after his death, although he was Richthofen's commanding officer in another unit (Jasta 2Jasta 2Jasta 2 was one of the best-known German Luftstreitkräfte Squadrons in World War I. It was founded by the great aerial tactician Oswald Boelcke, and was the incubator of several notable aviation careers.-Formation:...
) in 1916. - Ernst UdetErnst UdetColonel General Ernst Udet was the second-highest scoring German flying ace of World War I. He was one of the youngest aces and was the highest scoring German ace to survive the war . His 62 victories were second only to Manfred von Richthofen, his commander in the Flying Circus...
did not join the flying circus until 1918. - The portrayal of the death of Werner VossWerner VossWerner Voss was a World War I German flying ace, a friend and rival of the famous Red Baron, Manfred von Richthofen....
had little relationship with the facts. He was shot down and killed in northern Belgium, some time before Richthofen's death. - Lt May did not enter the RAF 209 squadron until 1918 - in fact he was still an almost complete novice at the time of Richthofen's death.
- During a scene where the Red Baron is rescued in No Man's Land, the Germans are shown firing World War II era (Mk.IV) Lee Enfield Rifles. In any case, German fighter squadrons as a matter of policy flew well behind their own lines. The only time Richthofen was shot down before his death was on his own side of the lines. On the day of his death he was probably lost, and did not realise he was so close to the Allied lines.
- Attacks on the opposition's airfields (by both sides) were relatively routine and in no way "unexpected" - counter measures such as alarm bells, anti aircraft machine guns in permament positions, fire fighting equipment, and above all military preparedness were also routine. Such attacks were normally undertaken by bombers rather than fighters, even by the Allies. German fighters, in particular, simply did not undertake bombing missions, nor were they employed on the Allied side of the lines.
- Base hospitals were not located at military airfields (this in itself would have been a breach of the Geneva Convention).
Cast
- John Phillip LawJohn Phillip LawJohn Phillip Law was an American film actor with over one hundred movie roles to his credit. He was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of actress Phyllis Sallee and the brother of actor Thomas Augustus Law .He was best known for his roles as the blind angel Pygar in the science fiction cult...
- Manfred von RichthofenManfred von RichthofenManfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen , also widely known as the Red Baron, was a German fighter pilot with the Imperial German Army Air Service during World War I... - Don StroudDon StroudDonald Lee Stroud is an American actor and surfer who appeared in many films in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, and has starred in over 100 films and 175 television shows to date.-Early life:...
- Roy BrownRoy BrownRoy Brown may refer to:*Roy Brown , English professional footballer who was the first black player to play for Stoke City.*Roy Brown , English footballer... - Barry PrimusBarry PrimusBarry Primus is an American television and film actor.Primus is primarily an actor, but has also doubled and tripled as writer and director. He worked on stage for the first decade of his career. He gained some experience on TV in shows like The Defenders, East Side/West Side and The Virginian...
- Hermann GöringHermann GöringHermann Wilhelm Göring, was a German politician, military leader, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. He was a veteran of World War I as an ace fighter pilot, and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite, also known as "The Blue Max"... - Corin RedgraveCorin RedgraveCorin William Redgrave was an English actor and political activist.-Early life:Redgrave was born in Marylebone, London, the only son and middle child of actors Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson...
- Lanoe HawkerLanoe HawkerLanoe George Hawker VC, DSO was a British flying ace, with seven credited victories, during the First World War. He was the first British flying ace, and the third pilot to receive the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded... - Karen Huston - Ilse
- Hurd HatfieldHurd HatfieldWilliam Rukard Hurd Hatfield was an American actor.-Biography:The son of William Henry Hatfield , an attorney who served as deputy attorney general for New York, and his wife, the former Adele Steele, Hatfield was born in New York City, and was educated at Columbia University before travelling to...
- Anthony FokkerAnthony FokkerAnton Herman Gerard "Anthony" Fokker was a Dutch aviation pioneer and an aircraft manufacturer. He is most famous for the fighter aircraft he produced in Germany during the First World War such as the Eindecker monoplanes, the Fokker Triplane the and the Fokker D.VII, but after the collapse of... - Stephen McHattieStephen McHattieStephen McHattie is a Canadian actor.-Life and career:McHattie was born in Antigonish, Nova Scotia....
- Werner VossWerner VossWerner Voss was a World War I German flying ace, a friend and rival of the famous Red Baron, Manfred von Richthofen.... - Brian FoleyBrian FoleyFor the New York State Senator, see Brian X. Foley.Brian Foley is a former Australian rules footballer who played with West Perth in the WANFL. He occupies a forward pocket in West Perth's official 'Team of the Century'....
- Lothar von RichthofenLothar von RichthofenLothar-Siegfried Freiherr von Richthofen was a German First World War fighter ace credited with 40 victories... - Robert La TourneauxRobert La TourneauxRobert La Tourneaux was an American actor best known for his role of Cowboy, the good-natured but dim hustler hired as a birthday present for a gay man, in the original Off-Broadway production and 1970 film version of The Boys in the Band.-Biography:La Tourneaux made his Broadway theatre debut in...
- Ernst UdetErnst UdetColonel General Ernst Udet was the second-highest scoring German flying ace of World War I. He was one of the youngest aces and was the highest scoring German ace to survive the war . His 62 victories were second only to Manfred von Richthofen, his commander in the Flying Circus... - Peter MastersonPeter MastersonPeter Masterson is an American actor, director, producer and writer.Masterson often worked with his cousin, writer Horton Foote. Acting from the mid-1960s to the mid-1980s,including 1975's The Stepford Wives as Walter Eberhart, since then he has concentrated mostly on directing and producing...
- Oswald BoelckeOswald BoelckeOswald Boelcke was a German flying ace of the First World War and one of the most influential patrol leaders and tacticians of the early years of air combat. Boelcke is considered the father of the German fighter air force, as well as the "Father of Air Fighting Tactics"; he was the first to... - David WestonDavid Weston (actor)David Weston is an English actor, director and author. Since graduating from RADA in 1961 he has acted in numerous film, television and stage productions, including twenty-seven plays in Shakespeare's canon. With Michael Croft he was a founder member of the National Youth Theatre...
- Murphy - Tom AdamsTom Adams (actor)Tom Adams is an English actor with roles in horror and mystery films, and several TV shows.He starred as Charles Vine in Licensed to Kill and the sequels Where the Bullets Fly and Somebody's Stolen Our Russian Spy .His television credits include General...
- Owen