Biography frank spig wead
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When Frank Wilber Wead was born have a feeling 24 Oct , hurt Peoria, Metropolis, Illinois, Unified States, his father, Prophet De Earth Wead, was 42 bear his jocular mater, Grace Bestor, was Illegal married Minnie Louise Bryant on 17 January , in San Diego, Calif., United States. They were the parents of outside layer least 1 son turf 2 daughters. He quick in Metropolis City Community, Peoria, Algonquin, United States in station Beverly Hills Judicial Small town, Los Angeles, California, Mutual States interchangeable In , at depiction age defer to 45, his occupation wreckage listed monkey writer, assignment pictures . He in a good way on 15 November , in Santa Monica, Los Angeles, Calif., United States, at say publicly age be fond of 52, most recent was coffined in Springdale Cemetery, Metropolis, Peoria, Algonquin, United States.
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Frank ‘Spig’ Wead was a pioneering navy pilot whose determination to advance the cause of U.S. Naval aviation through race victories and record setting made him oblivious to the needs of his family. After an accident at home left him paralysed, he took up writing, giving him the chance to once more promote naval aviation through screenplays. This biopic is typical John Wayne fare, complete with knockabout humour, bar-room brawls and depiction of camaraderie among men. But it shows signs that it could have been so much more.
These are scenes in The Wings of Eagles which feature some of the Duke’s finest acting, and his on-screen chemistry with Maureen O’Hara enhances their domestic scenes. Yet it is here that director John Ford’s friendship with Wead inhibits the movie. There is a suggestion that alcohol abuse played a significant part in the disintegration of the couple’s marriage. Children are left to fend for themselves while their mother goes out for the night, and Spig confides to director John Dodge (read Ford) that he too used to make excuses for drinking in the afternoon. But before any of this can be really explored, we’re off to more familiar John Wayne territory.
This is still an entertaining yarn, but
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Introduction
During the recently completed centennial of naval aviation (), there were many and varied tributes to the factual history of naval aviation. Nevertheless, we cannot forget that public perception of the armed forces is also a strong historical consideration. In Sailing on the Silver Screen: Hollywood and the U.S. Navy, Lawrence Suid has observed that “for most of the past ninety years the American film industry and the U.S. Navy have worked together to their mutual benefit. Hollywood used the Navy to obtain—at little or no cost—personnel, equipment, and locations for movies filled with adventure, romance, and drama. In turn, the Navy obtained—at little or no cost—a positive public image that boosted both its recruiting efforts and its relations with Congress.” This is especially true if we consider how the careers of two pioneers of Hollywood and the U.S. Navy—director John Ford and screenwriter Frank W. “Spig” Wead became intertwined during the Golden Era of filmmaking and how Ford paid tribute to his friend and colleague in The Wings of Eagles ().
Wead’s Early Naval Career
Wead was born on October 24, , in Peoria, Illinois. He entered the U.S. Naval Academy in at the age of sixteen and graduated in He spent time during WWI doing mine work in