Tallmantz Aviation Guestbook

Submitted by
Name: Don Patitucci
From: "Rosemead ,Ca"
E-mail: Contact

Comments:
"I moved from Wisconsin to S. Calif. in 1967. One of the first museums I visited was the TallMantz Air Museum at Orange County Airport. I remember at the time there was a tandem biplane that you could ride in for a fee. Since it was something I always wanted to do I took a 30 min ride out over the Pacific Ocean and back. Also the museum had, I think, a La Rhone rotary engine the one where the crankshaft was bolted to the plane and the cylinders rotated. The staff would start it up and let it run. It was a great museum and I was sad to see it go."

Added: 9-Apr-14

Submitted by
Name: Jennifer Tallman
From: My father was Frank Tallman
E-mail: Contact

Comments:
"I worked every summer of my life as a child, at Tallmantz and Movieland of the Air. Being the adult life I have lived, I have been hesitant to connect with anyone from my childhood. But I am a wealth of information about those days. I worked on The Great Waldo Pepper, and was on set during the filming of Catch-22. and flew in many of the early aircraft. I literally grew up in that world. I have read many of the postings with questions, and I am willing to answer all that I can, if anyone wishes to contact me
Happy Landings....as my dad used to sign"

Added: 22-Feb-14

Submitted by
Name: Curt Newport
From: "Germantown, Maryland"
E-mail: Contact

Comments:
"My father was an Army aviator (WW II, Korea, and Vietnam, two tours)and once and a while we went to the base airshows. I cannot remember where this was, but I distinctly remember seeing Mr. Tallman fly a replica of the Spirit of St. Louis during one event. I cannot remember the year. At some point in time, my father introduced me to a very tall man with a mustache wearing period flying garb, i.e., knee-high flying boots, breeches, etc. (I was very young at the time). He was very nice and bent over and shook my hand, I recall. Only many years later did I realize I had met a very famous pilot.

C. Newport"

Added: 17-Feb-14

Submitted by
Name: John Setchell
From: "Huntington Beach, CA"
E-mail: Contact

Comments:
I remember the PBY's at least 10 at the Southeast Corner at Santa Ana in about 1963. I was about 14 at the time. They were in a group and I remember someone at the Tallmantz museum telling me they had been purchased by someone in the South East. I went back about 6 mos later and they were all gone.
I was present for some of the filming for Lost Horizon and a DC-3/C-47 was assembled in Bronson Canyon for the crash scene and snow (foam) was sprayed all over the canyon floor for the movie.
I met Paul and Frank several times but the most memorable was at Clover Field for the filming of The Hook. I still have one of the bombs that failed to drop on the ship they "bombed" near Catalina. They used two B-25's. Paul had a motor home at the airport and spent hours in it for several days waiting for the call to send out the aircraft.
I watched them get the B-25's ready for Catch 22 and crawled all over them after they returned.
Do you have more details on the auction?

Added: 10-Feb-14

Submitted by
Name: Ian Grace
From: Seattle
E-mail: Contact

Comments:
"Does anyone have any info or photos of the DH82 Queen Bee in Pathe News colours that Tallamantz bought in the 60's? It had been used as a cameraship in the filming of Spirit of St. Louis where it had been owned, I think, by Hayward Leland Productions Inc, Burbank, CA. The tail number is NC726A. It went to Johan M Larsen, Minneapolis and was stored Minnesota Aircraft Museum, at a date in the 70's, but doesn't appear on the list of aircraft auctioned after Paul's death. I believe that this aircraft was used by Pathe as a newsreel camera ship around New York. It is mentioned in several places that was used as a prop in the Spirit film, but I have watched the film several times, and it does not appear. However, I do have a photo of it in the air with a DH60 Moth and one of the NYP replicas during the filming and you can see the cameraman with his camera in the back cockpit. I'd be happy to provide more info and the photos for this website. The fuselage is in my workshop in Seattle."

Added: 22-Oct-13

Submitted by
Name: Clive Beilby
From: "Queensland, Australia"
E-mail: Contact

Comments:
Fantastic stuff. Really had trouble believing what I was looking at. A major step in the history of aviation. Thanks heaps for allowing me to take a look at this fabulous history "book".

Added: 3-Oct-13

Submitted by
Name: Bruce Carpenter
From: "Henderson, Nevada"
E-mail: Contact

Comments:
I was a young student pilot on a solo X country and landed at the Orange County airport in early 1957. I taxied up to the Paul Mantz hangar shut down and walked to the hangar which was open but very dark inside. As I stood there trying to adjust my eyes I hear a gruff sounding voice from inside the hangar " did you just fly in and park in front of my hangar?" I responded in the affirmative and was invited into the hangar by Mr. Mantz himself. He showed me the many airplanes and let me climb into several of them which was a real thrill for a Cessna 140 student pilot. I will never forget the experience and meeting the famous Paul Mantz.

Added: 23-Sep-13

Submitted by
Name: glen f weatherford
From: arcata ca
E-mail: Contact

Comments:
any info on bob king aka Robert e king?
Grandad of a good friend of mine.
I'll see if I can find a picture of him
for the gallery.

Added: 13-Sep-13

Submitted by
Name: David Arnold
From: UK
E-mail: Contact

Comments:
Good news
The SE5 should be flying in the UK for the 100th year anniversary of the start of WW1

Added: 7-Sep-13

Submitted by
Name: Bill Jones
From: "Akron, Ohio"
E-mail: Contact

Comments:
"I would like to hear from someone. I have a collection of 35 mm slides and a super 8mm film that I acquired from a lady claiming to be the daughter of James Appleby.
I got these some years ago in the town of Kanab, Utah.
The slides are priceless. Most are taken on location of various movies he flew in. Murphys War and Waldo Pepper and Snoopy V Red Baron. There are many shots od celebs such as Robert Redford, Peter O"Toole and probably some that I don't know who they are.
Handwritten on the box the film is in is "Snoopy and Red Baron Tour for Mattel Toys-Coast to Coast. N-28 flown by John Bagly, Fokker DR1 flown by James Appleby. I have had these for years and just saw the film today for the first time. It was shot in Albany New York and the footage shot in the air is FABULOUS! At least it is to me. I am not an airplane guy, just a collector of old stuff. If anyone wants my contact information, get it from the custodian of this site."

Added: 3-Sep-13