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A Negro Flyboy?

No, I haven't seen Flyboys. Frankly, I can wait for the DVD. (Which is wait of what, four months?) The preview doesn't really thrill me, though Emmett says the film is pretty good. I just can't get to worked up.

Besides, thought I, there's this black guy and who is going to believe that a black guy is a fighter pilot in WW1.

Oops!

Eugene Bullard (9 October 1895 – 12 October 1961) was the first African American military pilot.

He flew for the French in WW1. Complete Wikipedia entry here. The black character in Flyboys appears to be derived from Eugene's story; the character is named Eugene Skinner.

What a fascinating story. There's a book from 1972, The Black Swallow of Death. I think I'll have to hunt up a copy.

Damn, why isn't this man's biography a movie already?

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