by Susan Butler
page 292: childhood crush ...: Vidal, New York Review of Books, Jan. 17, 1985.
page 292: When he blurted this out, ...: Gore Vidal, Palimpsest, caption above picture of Amelia and Gene.
page 292: During this period ...: Rich, Amelia, p. 230.
page 292: “She used to practice ...”: JM, LITHW, XII p. 5, SLRC.
page 292: shy away ...: JM, LITHW, XII p. 15, SLRC.
page 292: hygienic considerations ...: Gene did tell JM that she became a “bug on health.” JM, XII p. 13, SLRC.
page 292: “Because it ...”: JM, LITHW, III p. 2, SLRC.
page 293: “with apples.”: JM, LITHW, XII p. 15, Jack Gillies, the husband of flier Betty Huyler Gillies, would tell JM.
page 293: “I wish to be free ...”: Washington Evening Star, Aug. 6, 1935.
page 293: roaring with laughter ...: Rich, Amelia, p. 153.
page 293: he successfully roped ...: Mrs. Jack Logan, article in unidentified magazine, sent to author by Vera Dunrud.
page 293: They spent five days ... : Carl M. Dunrud, “amelia earhart in wyoming,” In Wyoming, Jan. -Feb. 1974.
page 294: “George is going with me ...”: Backus, Letters from Amelia, p. 137.
page 294: Only two people ...: Katharine Vidal Smith, interview with author; Vidal interview
page 294: To touch your hand ...: GPP, SW, p. 171.
page 295: The four of them ...: James Haggerty, Aviation’s Mr. Sam, p. 28.
page 295: left Rye at four thirty ...: LC, diary, July 24, 1933.
page 296: Paul asked for a car ...: Paul Collins, Tales of an Old Air-Faring Man, p. 134.
page 296: a good feel.: JM, LITHW, XIII, SLRC; Paul Collins interview in Haggerty, Aviation’s Mr. Sam: “We stopped in at a wayside lunchroom during an inspection trip. Amelia borrowed a pencil and piece of paper from the waitress and started to figure. Pretty soon she came up with thirty cents a mile. It was right for the situation and showed the clarity with which her mind worked.”
page 296: By October ...: R. E. G. Davis, Airlines of the United States Since 1914, p. 51.
page 297: Because of her, ...: Collins, Old Air-Faring Man, p. 138.
page 297: That Christmas ...: Christmas card, Atchison Public Library.
Role Model
page 298: Louise Thaden, winner of ...: Joan Thomas, PA, May 1934.
page 299: She sent a sample suit ...: Ninety-Nines files, Will Rogers Airport, Oklahoma City, Okla.
page 299: clothes “for the woman who lives actively”: GPP, SW, p. 205.
page 299: In St. Paul as a teenager, ...: MEM, CITP, p. 90.
page 300: “covered with silver stars ...”: Sally Keil, Those Wonderful Women in Their Flying Machines, p. 31.
page 300: when Lucy Challiss ...: LC, diary, July 12, 1932.
page 300: often parachute silk, ...: JM, LITHW, SLRC; Christian Herald, Feb. 1938.
page 300: In all, thirty department stores ...: Thomas, PA., May 1934.
page 301: “I made up my mind ...”: GP, SW, p. 205.
page 301: “Amelia Earhart, Designer,” ...: Woman’s Home Companion, Aug. 1934.
page 301: a Ninety-Nine “Hat Contest” ...: Thomas, PA, May 1934.
page 302: “I have been drinking cream ...”: AE, letter to AOE, Jan. 27, 1933, AOE papers, SLRC.
page 302: “It’s a routine ...”: Doris Rich, Amelia Earhart, p. 155.
page 302: held her to be ...: Thomas, PA, May 1935.
page 302: “as though they had been ...”: Brockton Daily Enterprise, Dec. 11, 1935.
page 302: “without a sound ...”: Ibid.
page 302: As she described ...: JM, LITHW, III p. 4, SLRC.
page 303: “Smartly tailored evening ensemble”: News Herald [Rock Hill, S.C.], Jan. 1, 1936.
page 303: “relieved only by ...”: Brockton Daily Enterprise, Dec. 11, 1935.
page 303: another wrote ...: St. Paul Pioneer Express, Oct. 8, 1935.
page 304: “In aviation as a whole ...”: AE, “Choosing a Career,” 1934.
page 304: Or she might say ...: AE, speech to Winthrop College students, Rock Hill, S.C., Evening Herald, Jan. 17, 1936.
page 304: machines were too much man-made ...: PA, Oct. 1931.
page 304: “Ask her to come ...”: KCP interview.
page 305: “It was a gorgeous night ...”: Backus, Letters From Amelia, p. 149.
page 305: She spent the next two weeks ...: AE, lecture schedule (mismarked as probably 1932), SLRC.
page 305: Fourteen days ...: AE, 1936 lecture schedule, SLRC.
page 305: The amazing thing ...: Joan Thomas, PA, June 1934: “The curiosity of the public seems unabated after 2 years of almost constant lecturing.”
page 306: It seemed as if everyone important ...: NYHT, Sept. 27, 1934.
page 307: he intended to slip out, ...: JM, LITHW, XVI p. 13, SLRC.
page 307: her friend Clara Studer,...” Clara Studer, “Donne Pilota Americana,” manuscript, Oct. 1934, NASM.
page 307: He knew that to solve ...: Robert Topping, A Century and Beyond, p. 233.
page 308: “We want you ...”: GPP, SW, p. 242
page 308: make Purdue the center ...: Todd Fruehling, in Purdue Alumnus, Dec. 1975; sent to author by the Purdue Research Foundation.
page 308: the effective education ...: Topping, Century and Beyond, p. 233.
page 308: A few years before, ...: NYT, May 9, 1931.
page 308: “her primary interest ...”: NYT, Nov. 28, 1937.
page 309: The department would be energized ...: Fruehling, Purdue Alumnus, Dec. 1975.
page 309: The next year ...: Where They Go and What They Do, Purdue University publication, pp 16, 17.
page 310: “Today it is almost...”: Fruehling, Purdue Alumnus, Dec. 1975.
page 310: In January 1935 ...: William Manchester, The Glory and the Dream, p. 127.
page 310: “Marry Them Early; ...”: Dorothy Thompson publicized the incident, in NYHT, Sept. 27, 1934.
page 311: “she was a very courageous ...: Fred Cavinder, in Indianapolis Star Magazine, Dec. 12, 1976, Purdue Research Foundation files.
page 311: A rumor was floated ...: Topping, Century and Beyond, p. 234.
page 311: That summer ...: Fortune, July 1935.
page 311: Amelia gave afternoon talks ...: Ellen Carter Bossong (Purdue alumna), letter to author.
page 311: “When you graduate ...”: Audrie Soles (Purdue alumna), letter to author.
page 311: “outspoken” ideas: Marian Sharer Fitzgerald (Purdue alumna), letter to author.
page 312: “Many divorces ...”: John Burke, Winged Legend, p. 161.
page 312: 92 percent ...: GPP, SW, p. 247.
page 312: A prestigious men’s senior ...: Helen Schleman, speech, Nov. 26, 1984.
page 312: On the other hand ...: Orin A. Simpson (Purdue alumnus), letter to author.
page 313: “We were indeed fortunate,”...: Fitzgerald letter.
page 313: “But George would always...: Soles letter.
page 314: She was hired to be co-pilot ...: Glenn Kerfoot, Propeller Annie, p. 43.
page 314: She was sought after to do ...: Ibid., p. 50.
page 314: “rejected flatly,”: Edna Gardner Whyte, Rising Above It, p. 176.
page 314: Edith Folz ...: PA, Jan. 1930.
page 314: Ruth Nichols had flown ...: Ruth Nichols, Columbia OH.
page 315: “not because of lack of ...”: Kerfoot, Propeller Annie, p. 57.
page 316: “It was not an order, ... : NYT, Nov. 7, 1935.
page 316: “Miss Richey’s father ...”: Kerfoot, Propeller Annie, p. 58.
page 316: “Certainly Miss Earhart herself ...”: NYT, Nov. 8, 1935.
page 316: “Miss Earhart has told the story ... : NYHT, Nov. 7, 1935.
page 316: “I thought that it was ...”: Ruth Nichols, Columbia OH.
page 317: “Things are changing ...”: AP article datelined Lafayette, Indiana, Nov. 7, 1935.
pag
e 317: fifty percent ...: Office of the Registrar, Purdue University
page 317: George, no amateur himself ...: GPP, SW, p. 272.
page 317: “the most potent ...”: Purdue publicity release from the Office of the President, Apr. 19, 1935.
page 318: Present were David Ross ...: This account is based on information sent to me by W D. Griggs, assistant treasurer, Purdue Research Foundation.
page 318: The purpose of the fund, ...: Purdue publicity release from the Office of the President, Apr. 19, 1935.
page 318: “to provide ways and means ...”: article by Priscilla Decker based on the three official reports labeled “Amelia Earhart Fund for Aeronautical Research,” that appeared in Campus Copy, Oct. 1962, a Purdue publication.
page 318: “Upon her return ...”: Topping, Century and Beyond, p. 235.
New Records
page 321: twin attractions ...: NYT, Sept. 18, 1933.
page 322: It had been almost within her reach; ...: Bobbi Trout, Just Plane Crazy, pp. 220-227.
page 322: she dropped the bomb ...: LC, diary, Oct. 6, 1934.
page 323: scuffed upstairs ...: Christian Science Monitor, Jan. 9, 1935.
page 323: So final ...: Manhattan telephone directory, 1934-36.
page 324: “only for communication ...”: NYT, Nov. 22, 1934.
page 324: “not contemplating any long flight.”: NYT, Nov. 22, 1934.
page 324: Amelia had her picture ...: Doris Rich, Amelia Earhart, p. 187.
page 324: The coast guard cutter Itasca ...: Don Dwiggins, Hollywood Pilot, p. 90.
page 324: She “may” ...: NYT, Dec. 19, 1934.
page 324: “I thought I would ...”: GPP, SW, p. 256.
page 325: Major Halstead Dorey, ...: JM, notes, SLRC.
page 325: “There is nothing intelligent ...”: quoted in the NYT, Nov. 30, 1934.
page 325: To disprove it ... GPP, SW, p. 258.
page 325: “Gentleman, there is an aroma of...”: John Burke, WingedLegend, p.147.
page 326: a trailing wire antenna jutted out ...: Richard S. Allen, diagram, NASM.
page 326: “a large black box, ... : AE, LF, p. 23.
page 327: two and a half feet long ...: GPP, SW, p. 212.
page 327: “A.E., the noise ...”: AE, LF, p. 27.
page 327: “It was a night of stars,” ...: Ibid.
page 327: “I am getting tired ...”: Ibid., p. 31.
page 327: “Not while there’s life ...: NYT, Jan. 13, 1935.
page 328: “I thought there might be ...”: Ibid.
page 328: The Nation, acting a bit prim, ...: Nation, Jan. 30, 1935.
page 328: She extended Amelia ...: Eleanor Roosevelt, telegram to AE, Jan. 16, 1935, FDRL.
page 328: “you need not always ...”: Eleanor Roosevelt, letter to AE, Mar. 12, 1935, FDRL.
page 329: “Would you like GP ...”: AE, letter to Eleanor Roosevelt, Mar. 9, 1935, FDRL.
page 329: “GP has left ...”: Jean Backus, Letters From Amelia, p. 171.
page 329: “touching on matters ...”: GPP, letter to Eleanor Roosevelt, Mar. 14, 1935, FDRL.
page 329: Eleanor shot this down....: Eleanor Roosevelt, to GPP, Mar. 15, 1935, FDRL.
page 329: “No discussion ...”: GPP, letter to Eleanor Roosevelt, Mar. 19, 1935, FDRL.
page 329: “if Amelia is free.”: Eleanor Roosevelt, letter to GPP, Mar. 22, 1935, FDRL.
page 329: “Definitely a plane ...”: GPP, letter to Eleanor Roosevelt, Mar. 25, 1935, FDRL.
page 329: Tugwell felt ...: Rexford Tugwell, letter to Eleanor Roosevelt, Apr. 15, 1935, FDRL.
page 330: he thought her decision “admirable,”: GPP, letter to Eleanor Roosevelt, May 24, 1935.
page 330: Within a short time ...: Maurine Beasley, Eleanor Roosevelt and the Media, p. 82.
page 330: he was “highly irritated ...”: Mexico Press Agency, National Archives.
page 331: Their sale, some reputedly ...: Newsweek, May 11, 1935.
page 331: She pulled out her chart ...: AE, LF, p. 36.
page 331: At the Mexico City ...: NYT, Apr. 21, 1935.
page 332: “Nature does as thorough ...”: NYT, May 3, 1935.
page 333: “Slowly I climbed ...”: AE, LF, p. 42.
page 333: “Did Wiley Post, ... : Ibid., pp. 34-35.
page 333: shot out over the Gulf : ...: Newsweek, May 18, 1935.
page 334: As her green and red navigation lights ...: NYT, May 9, 1935.
page 334: Reporters noted that he ...: Newsweek, May 18, 1935.
page 334: “her face was tanned ...”: NYT, May 9, 1935.
page 334: “That’s a flier!”: GPP, SW, p. 270.
page 334: “No one should ...”: AE, LF, p. 31.
page 335: The newspaper coverage ...: NYT, May 9, 1935.
New Frontiers
page 336: After all, ...: William Manchester, The Glory and the Dream, p. 149.
page 336: “Flying with me ...” New York World Telegram, May 9, 1935.
page 336: “I received an invitation ...”: Ibid.
page 336: All the famous fliers, ...: Carl B. Allen article, NASM.
page 337: “During the menstrual period ...”: Malcolm C. Grow and Henry G. Armstrong, Fit to Fly.
page 337: In 1943 the Air Transport Command ...: Sally Keil, Those Wonderful Women in Their Flying Machines, p. 129.
page 337: The order only became moot, ...: Ibid, p. 169.
page 338: Amelia was assembling evidence.: GPP, SW, p. 163.
page 338: “We never think about it ...”: Ibid.
page 339: she spoke 136 times ...: Don Dwiggins, Hollywood Pilot, p. 95.
page 339: a time when the average stenographer ...: Fortune, Aug. 1935.
page 339: He had watched ...: Biographical information from Dwiggins, Hollywood Pilot.
page 340: But in September 1934 he buzzed ...: Ibid., p. 79.
page 340: While testing Amelia’s Vega ...: Ibid., p. 144.
page 340: “Damn near ...”: GPP, SW, p. 235.
page 340: “warmed their paws ...”: Ibid.
page 340: She had stayed with the Mantzes ...: Dwiggins, Hollywood Pilot, p. 78.
page 340: There was never evidence ...: Ibid.
page 341: each got twenty thousand dollars.: James Haggerty, Aviation’s Mr. Sam, p. 38; JM, LITHW, SLRC.
page 341: “all hep about this too.”: AE, letter to AOE, Jul. 28, 1935, Backus, Letters, p. 178.
page 341: “constant hammering”: Dwiggins, Hollywood Pilot, p. 86.
page 342: “the old family bus,”: Paul owned an equally old and slow Vega; according to Don Dwiggins, they couldn’t decide which would be faster and finally flipped to see which one to use—but the story lacks credibility. Possibly this is what Paul told his biographer to save face, but it would not have been Amelia’s style to race across the country in a plane with The Honeymoon Express emblazoned on its fuselage.
page 343: It was just one more flight ...: NYHT, Aug. 31, 1935.
page 343: Then Amelia went off...: AE itinerary, Sept. 30 to Nov. 3, SLRC.
page 343: “I’d like to find the tree ...”: St. Paul Pioneer Press, Oct. 6, 1935.
page 344: “Wiley, you’d better...”: Clarence L. Johnson with Maggie Smith, More Than My Share of It All, p. 41.
page 345: There were four Electra 10 models, ...: Ibid., p. 50.
page 346: “My boss called me ...”: John A. Diehl, letter to author.
page 346: She was one of two ...: PA, Oct. 1937.
page 346: “sensible, very studious, ...”: Johnson, More Than My Share, p. 46.
page 346: “I could write poetry ...”: NYT, Aug. 30, 1935.
page 347: Later they had to deal ...: Glenn Kerfoot, Propeller Annie, p. 65.
page 347: Their problems paled, ...: Louise Thaden, High, Wide, and Frightened, p. 184.
page 347: “I’m afraid you won ...”: Blanche Noyes, Columbia OH, p. 22.
page 348: “I don’t think there was a jealous ...
”: Ibid., p. 35.
page 348: “I don’t know ...”: NYT, Sept. 6, 1936.
page 348: she was obviously nervous”: Washington Post, May 1, 1936.
page 349: “Amelia has consented ...”: Paul Mantz, letter to Gene Vidal, June 26, 1936, Vidal collection, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.
page 349: “Still can’t leave here.”: Gene Vidal, letter to AE, June 30, 1936, Vidal collection.
page 349: What did Amelia think?: Gene Vidal, letter to AE, June 16, 1936, Vidal collection.
page 349: “After your note ...”: Gene Vidal to AE, June 30, 1936, Vidal Collection.
page 349: “it is the quietest period ...”: Gene Vidal, letter to AE, Aug. 14, 1936, Vidal collection.
page 349: even though FDR ...: White House Ushers Diary.
page 350: I AM WIRING ...: FDRL.
page 350: burst out laughing....: JM, LITHW, XVI p. 11, SLRC.
page 350: The next day he had lunch ...: NYT, Sept. 17, 1936.
page 351: THANK YOU SINCERELY ...: AE, cable to Eleanor Roosevelt, FDRL.
page 351: “I am aligned ...”: NYT, Sept. 20, 1936.
page 351: she, not George, was at the wheel ...: NYT, Sept. 27, 1936.
page 352: “she plans to include ...”: Gene Vidal, letter to Mary Dewson, Dewson file, FDRL.
page 352: “We really are very grateful ...”: Mary Dewson, letter to Gene Vidal, Oct. 1, 1936. Dewson file, FDRL.
page 352: “What color is ...”: JM, LITHW, XVI p. 5, SLRC.
page 352: “as her fans peered ...” Gore Vidal, Armageddon, p. 25.
page 352: The first person to race ...: Carroll V Glines, Round-the- World Flights, p. ix. This account of the first round-the-world travelers is based on Glines’ excellent book.
page 353: By 1913, ...: Ibid., p. x.
page 353: “Would you do it ...”: Ibid., p. 1.
page 353: Major Jimmy Doolittle ...: Air Pilot magazine, Apr. 1933.
page 353: Wiley Post and Harold Gatty, ...: Glines, Round-the-World Flights, p. 63.
page 354: Amy Mollison ...: International Women’s Air and Space Museum, Quarterly, vol. I no. 3 (1987).
page 354: Here was shining adventure ...: AE, LF, p. 55.
The Plan
page 356: “She was caught up in the hero racket ...”: Railey, Touch’d with Madness, p. 110.
page 356: “it is the only major flight ...”: Louise Thaden, High, Wide, and Frightened, p. 260.
