Byte Sized Biographies…

On July 19, 1989, United Air Lines pilot Captain Al Haynes was confronted with a mechanical failure that threatened all 296 passengers aboard his flight, United Flight 232. The response of Haynes and his crew and the ensuing landing provided one of the most remarkable stories in the history of commercial aviation.

Part Hank Williams and part Spinal Tap, Gram Parsons' influence on popular music can be heard every day. Gram Parsons Fifty years after his death, Gram Parsons has achieved respect as an influence on many prominent musicians and is perceived as musically way ahead of his time.  The Byrds, Chris Hillman, left, Roger McGuinn, center For three years, beginning with their 1965 hits, one band, the Byrds, dominated the Los Angeles music scene.  What original music they produced was usually written by lead vocalist Gene Clark and the huge royalties generated by his writing credits, rankled the other band members, especially, David Crosby, whose personality could best be described as toxic.  After contributing the single “Eight Miles High,” Clark quit the band, officially over his fear of flying but also as a result of increasing tension within the group.  Crosby lasted longer, but his egomania and substance abuse resulted in his dismissal in late 1967.  The remaining original members, Roger McGuinn and Chris Hillman were initially looking to hire sidemen, in drummer Kevin Kelley and Gram Parsons, Gram having the same business manager as Hillman.  That Parsons was contractually entangled with Lee Hazlewood, actually worked for the pre-existing Byrds as Gram could only remain on salary and not demand to be included as a full-fledged member of the band, important as the Byrds renewed a seven-year contract with Columbia Records in February, 1968. Chris Hillman, circa Flying Burrito Brothers Unpredictably, when Gram began looking for musicians for his own group he began speaking again with Chris Hillman.  Although it angered the other band members, the timing of Gram’s departure from the Byrds seemed almost prescient, based on subsequent events.  The group took tremendous criticism when they played to all white crowds in South Africa and attendance was sparse in any case.  The promoter stiffed them on fees and they returned to the States, broke, with Roger McGuinn making personnel changes designed to reestablish his complete control.  To Chris Hillman, Gram eventually appeared practically benign by comparison.  Reunited, they scoured the LA sessions scene and assembled a country oriented roster that even included a pedal steel guitar player, the legendary Sneaky Pete Kleinow.  Gram expropriated the Flying Burrito Brothers name with the blessing of his former ISB mates who had left LA and had never signed a recording contract.  Roger McGuinn, 1976 A subtle tug of war was now playing out between Roger McGuinn and Gram and Chris Hillman.  The latter were intent on heading full tilt in a country direction, McGuinn wanted to focus on past hits that centered on him as the leader of the band. Gram Parsons' infamous Nudie suit, on display in the Country Music Hall of Fame To help build the band’s image as a new kind of country mixed with glam, Parsons came up with the idea to get the legendary Hollywood tailor Nudie Cohn to design suits for the band to wear on the cover.  Nudie Cohn born Nuta Kotlyarenko in Kiev, Russia, was a unique individual in his own right, a tailor who designed the outrageous outfits sported by country and western music stars of the 50’s and 60’s and actors like Roy Rogers and John Wayne.  Heavy on the bright colored satin and rhinestones, perhaps Nudie’s most famous creation was Elvis Presley’s gold lame suit that even Elvis thought was so over the top he eventually refused to wear the pants.  For the Flying Burrito Brothers album, entitled the Gilded Palace of Sin, Nudie was especially imaginative.  For Hillman, Parsons and the two other band members, Kleinow and bassist Chris Etheridge, he designed four very different outfits.  Kleinow got a black velvet shirt and pants with a gold pterodactyl on the front and a T-Rex on the back of the shirt, Etheridge had a white colored jacket and pants embroidered liberally with roses.  Chris Hillman’s outfit was neon blue, festooned with peacocks and a blazing sun on the back of his jacket.  Gram Parsons suit was white, flames paralleling his bell bottom pants, poppies on both pants pockets.  Red poppies are everywhere on the jacket, the torso emblazoned with marijuana leaves.  The sleeves feature identifiable pharmaceuticals, including Tuinals and Seconals and even a sugar cube.  Typically contradictory, the back features a large red crucifix with circular shafts of yellow and blue emanating from its center.  Today, this remarkable garment hangs in the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Part Hank Williams and part Spinal Tap, Gram Parsons’ influence on popular music can be heard every day.

Part Hank Williams and part Spinal Tap, fifty years after his death, Gram Parsons' influence on popular music can be heard every day. Gram Parsons' Nudie suit Country Music Hall of Fame Whatever discipline that drove Parsons and Hillman to compose the music that appeared  on their first album completely disappeared once they had to perform live.  Most observers of their early LA club dates described them as under rehearsed, sloppy and with some members, frequently Gram, under the influence.  The band did themselves no favors when they appeared at the Whiskey, performing so poorly that the upper echelon of A and M walked out in disgust in the middle of the Burrito’s performance. Emmylou Harris in the seventies For his first solo album, he came up with the idea of hiring Elvis Presley’s Las Vegas backing band, which he did, paying musicians like Glen D. Hardin and James Burton out of his own pocket when Warner Brothers refused their steep rates.  Much of the record consists of duets with Emmylou Harris.  With rehearsals taking place at Phil Kaufman’s house, a surreal place furnished with strange antiques and vintage junk, the process was predictably slow moving.  Eventually, Gram got it together and got the album recorded.  Called “GP” with a cover photo of Gram sitting in the lobby of the Chateau Marmont, the album’s release prompted kind words from the critics but not much of a popular reaction. Emmy Lou Harris, 2012 Gram couldn’t afford the Elvis musicians for the tour and the assembled band was so weak that the lead guitar player was fired after only one show.  Kaufman frequently had to separate the two, husband and wife sitting as far away as possible.  But there were high points; Jock Bartley, who eventually became part of the successful group Firefall was a competent replacement.  In Houston, EmmyLou Harris met and performed with Linda Ronstadt for the first time.  On Long Island, a performance on radio station WLIR was eventually released in 1983 as a live album of great quality that holds up well almost fifty years later. But it was the same story for the solo album, positive reviews but lackluster sales.   Keith Richards, 1976 Whatever interest Gram had in his own music was completely undermined by acting practically as a groupie around the Stones.  When he began to emulate the Stones onstage in both wardrobe and theatrics, it especially irritated Chris Hillman.  Mick Jagger also began to see Parsons as a detriment, another distraction that kept Keith Richards from focusing on the business of music.  Room Eight, Joshua Tree Inn, the room where Gram Parsons died

Part Hank Williams and part Spinal Tap, fifty years after his death, Gram Parsons’ influence on popular music can be heard every day.

The creator of 1984 and Animal Farm lived a life that was as original and strange as the books themselves. George Orwell
Eric Arthur Blair was born in Motihari, Bihar, India on June 25, 1903.  He would not assume the pen name of George Orwell until the age of 30.  Blair was the son of an English civil servant father and a mother who was the daughter of a French colonial entrepreneur operating in Burma. Passport photo en route to Burma
Even today, the catalyst for Eric Blair’s employment in Burma remains unclear.  Classmates do recall an interest in the region and his father’s career in India and his mother’s connection to Burma most likely made him aware of such a position.  But for an alumnus of Eton to apply for such a position was literally unprecedented.  Perhaps he was attempting to blot out a failed romance, perhaps it was a feeling that he had little alternative, but in October of 1922, Eric Blair, aged 19, set sail for what was then known as Rangoon. Orwell's wife, Eileen Blair Through his stint at the bookstore, Orwell did expand his social circle and at a party in March of 1935, he met his future wife, Eileen O’Shaughnessy, a graduate student completing her masters in psychology at the University College London.  Having studied at Oxford and at one time an aspiring academic, Eileen had a love of literature and intellectual firepower that George Orwell immediately found very attractive.  Although he quickly began to discuss marriage, he also confessed that he was so broke, he couldn’t even afford an engagement ring.  He would also continue sleeping with other girlfriends from his bookshop employment days, even after his eventual proposal.  "The Stores," today, in Wallington
Orwell did not want to return to London and instead decided to rent a cottage in the hamlet of Wallington, only 35 miles north of the capital but rural and isolated from any public transportation.  Orwell was thrilled with the bucolic setting which was perfect for a writer and he was eager to plant a fruit and vegetable garden, tend to the hens and goats that came with the place, reopen the country store that had recently closed and quickly finish his latest project.  The house was nicknamed “The Stores,” from its occasional status as a grocery.  However, the out of the way location meant that his fiancé Eileen would have to abandon any plans she had to begin a career as a child psychologist. Orwell , with his son Richard
Despite their desire to have children, George and Eileen had never been able to conceive a child.  In 1944, they decided to adopt and through Eileen’s sister were able to acquire a three- week-old boy who they named Richard.

The creator of 1984 and Animal Farm lived a life that was as original and strange as the books themselves.

The creator of Animal Farm and 1984 lived a life as original and strange as the books themselves. Barnhill, Orwell's hideaway in Scotland Wanting to escape the distractions of London, in September of 1945, Orwell first travelled to Jura, a remote island in the Southwest corner of Scotland.  Once there he stumbled upon Barnhill, a remote and unoccupied farmhouse that he immediately leased from its owner. Barnhill, from a distance by Ken Craig
Unreachable by car, without electricity or telephone, over eight miles from any inhabited village, daily life in this dwelling was challenging.  But for Orwell, much like his rural existence at the Stores, the solitude and abundant wildlife and rugged beauty was the perfect antidote for the oppressive environment in London. Animal Farm, first edition cover Orwell got word in August that Animal Farm had not only sold 50,000 copies in the US, but was also now a book-of-the-month club selection, generating an additional 400,000 in sales.  In 1946, only Dr. Spock would sell more books.  Sonia Brownell Blair Orwell Orwell was already up to other romantic intrigue.  He had met a much younger and beautiful Sonia Brownell when she was an editor at Horizon.  Never one for subtlety, he had already proposed to her previously, basically saying that even if she found him unappealing, he wasn’t going to live much longer. Eric Blair, aka George Orwell As an infamous non-believer it was initially difficult to find a cemetery that would accept the writer’s remains until influential friends interceded and had him interred at All Saints Church, Sutton Courtenay, Berkshire.  Strangely perverse, even to the end, Orwell had requested that he be buried in the nearest convenient cemetery according to the rites of the Church of England.

The creator of Animal Farm and 1984 lived a life as original and strange as the books themselves.

The true story of eight nazi spies who landed on American shores via U-Boat at the height of WWII George Dasch, FBI mugshot George John Dasch was born on February 7, 1903 in Speyer, Germany, the fifth of thirteen children.  His mother, a social worker and quite influential at critical moments of his life, implored him at the age of thirteen to enter a seminary in preparation for the Catholic priesthood.  Dasch was expelled a year later and then served briefly in the German Army at the conclusion of World War I, lying about his age to facilitate enlistment.  Post war occupation by American troops resulted in Dasch’s fascination with emigrating to the United States and his employment on the docks of Hamburg allowed him to eventually stow away on a merchant ship bound for Philadelphia.  There, he avoided detection and blended into the neighborhood, getting a menial job within days of his arrival in October of 1922.  Determining that he might have more success within the large German ex-pat community in New York, Dasch quickly headed north.  The eight saboteurs: top, left to right, Dasch, Burger, Heinck, Quirin. Bottom, left to right, Kerling, Thiel, Neubauer, Haupt All eight men were outfitted with American style civilian clothes, fake identity papers and presented with eight wooden crates containing waterproof stainless steel receptacles packed tightly with plastic explosives, detonators, and timers.  Dasch and Kerlin as team leaders were given additional training in invisible ink composition and composed handkerchiefs covertly containing contact names for reliable friends and relatives in the US.  Dasch and Kerlin were also each given approximately 85,000 dollars.  Walter Kappe, 1936 American mug shot Upon arrival, Dasch was confined to a hotel with other newly arrived German nationals where he was rigorously interviewed by officials intent on determining the exact motivation for his return.  Among these interviewers was a man named Walter Kappe, who grilled Dasch in English to assess how well the he spoke the language.  After Dasch lied to him about employment in an import-export company and demonstrated language proficiency, Kappe gave him his card, indicating that he was an editor of a magazine and encouraged him to interview for a position.  Dasch was polite, but was anxious to visit his family and explore other less nebulous options via family connections.  Wilhelm Canaris Hitler no longer had to worry about that consequence, and he began to berate Abwehr chief Wilhelm Canaris, to implement the Fuehrer’s concept of a massive covert attack on America, both destroying American industrial capability and fomenting a home grown fifth column of resistance within the German-American community. Erwin Lahousen
Canaris and the head of the Abwehr II section, Erwin Von Lahousen, began to cast about for an appropriate individual to supervise this covert scheme.  Walter Kappe, having spent many years in the US and possessing an understanding of the German ex-pat community was a logical choice.  Kappe, eager to settle scores against a country that ultimately rejected him, enthusiastically accepted the assignment.  Perhaps, Canaris and von Lahousen, secretly anti-Nazi and two of several eventual leaders of the ill-fated German military resistance to Hitler, were subtly trying to derail the operation from the top down.  Amagansett Coast Guard Station
Jennett was convinced and prepared a response, notifying the off-duty commander of the outpost, chief boatswain’s mate Warren Barnes, who showed up within minutes.  Jennett issued rifles to the seven other men in the Coast Guard station, all so inexperienced that he had to give them a quick tutorial on their safe usage.  Calls were also placed to the off duty senior officer at the Amagansett station who contacted Coast Guard intelligence in New York City. Coast Guardsman John Cullen
John Cullen, ran back to his outpost as quickly as possible, returning in approximately five minutes.  Waking up his fellow guardsman, he began yelling about Germans on the beach.  His commanding officer, Boatswain’s Mate Second Class Carl Jennett, was an experienced seaman who initially suspected that Cullen was the victim of an overeager imagination. J. Edgar Hoover in the thirties
J. Edgar Hoover was immediately notified of the mysterious landing and he acted predictably.  As FDR had already designated the FBI to lead any domestic sabotage investigations, the first thing the FBI did was confiscate any materials recovered from the beach by the Coast Guard.  An FBI team of explosive experts was already examining and cataloguing the Nazi cache of demolition materials.  Because the neurotically suspicious FBI director had received information via the Coast Guard, he first wished to verify if in fact he was dealing with Nazis or something less sinister, like alcohol smugglers from Canada who used remote parts of Long Island to run untaxed liquor into the country.  Amagansett LIRR train station By then, the four saboteurs were nowhere near Amagansett, although their exit from eastern Long Island contained some precarious moments.  Dasch was vaguely familiar with the area and recognized the general location of Amagansett from his days living in New York, but he still had no clear direction for the village or railroad depot.  The men were savvy enough to get away from the beach as quickly as possible and still under the cover of darkness, they were able to quickly access the main road in the area, the Montauk Highway.  Wandering in a northerly direction and careful to avoid any homes or brightly lit areas, they were especially alarmed by the sound of the U-boat diesel engines they heard as they stealthily tried to extricate themselves from the beach vicinity.  When a large campground forced them to walk in a circuitous manner, they stumbled over some railroad tracks.  Dasch correctly headed west and within a mile they reached the Amagansett train station.  At five o’clock on a Saturday morning, it was locked and deserted.  All four men got rid of any wet clothes and tried to make themselves as presentable as possible.  At six AM, the station opened and Dasch bought four tickets to New York, the first train leaving at 6:59.  The four men were the only passengers to board at Amagansett and within minutes they were rapidly leaving the Hamptons behind, incredibly relieved to have successfully completed one of the most challenging parts of their mission.  Heinck even shook Dasch’s hand, acknowledging his leadership in guiding them out of danger.