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26 December 2000, 07:45 PM

Seasons Greetings Mr Lee:
1. I have to agree with you that Tim King wants to make a documentary on Luke that will be as accurate as the depth of his research can make it. The accuracy that I allude to is about statements about his character, and what he did to end the war. Where a producer or documentarian purposely distorts/corrupts character and performance for whatever reason, we dishonor our subject and the family from which he sprang.
2. In previous threads I explained at length my doubts about what happened at the Milly creek that 29th September, doubts based on physical considerations: a) Luke was awarded a 37mm wound under his right armpit; this forced him to put down by the creek, where he got out of the Spad and left a trail of blood which led to the creek. German soldiers tracked him to the creek, where he died. What is in doubt is: Did Luke shoot at these soldiers; then die, or did he try to shoot but could not because he was too weak from loss of blood and was seconds away from eternity? Question: With a 37mm tunnel running diagonally through his chest, was Luke in any condition to fire his weapon, except as a final protest? The Frey affidavit mentions that the Germans took Luke's notebook (log?) and his helmet with goggles, but left his wristwatch, but there is no mention that the Gs collected the weapon...But my contention is that this is the end of the story: Frank is dead and what he did in those last minutes, one way or the other, can not be verified. But neither way can detract from his character and previous performance.
3. What you said about Rieper is true. He was knocked out of his balloon in June 1918, but that does not mean he was knocked out of the war, or that his tactical advice and balloon networks lost their impact. I recall that Rieper controlled these networks from balloon HQ, and was Luke's nemesis in so far as his balloon troops set up the Flak trap that caught Luke at Murvaux. The Greeks had a godess call Nemesis, the godess of retribution. Nemein in Greek means retribution, or dealout. It also means one who imposes punishment (even from a distance, like a judge imposes punishment, which is carried out by the executioner.)
4. There are gaps in anyone's story, gaps which can be filled by honest speculation, so stated, when necessary for continuity's sake. My "Interview with a Flying Doughboy" in Chapter 11 of Rampage is pure speculation but I stated so. John Luke read this chapter, and said not to delete it from the second addition. Said it had the flavoor of Frank, which was the effect I wanted to achieve.

26 December 2000, 07:45 PM	#4 (permalink)
BillyH Guest Posts: n/a	Seasons Greetings Mr Lee: 1. I have to agree with you that Tim King wants to make a documentary on Luke that will be as accurate as the depth of his research can make it. The accuracy that I allude to is about statements about his character, and what he did to end the war. Where a producer or documentarian purposely distorts/corrupts character and performance for whatever reason, we dishonor our subject and the family from which he sprang. 2. In previous threads I explained at length my doubts about what happened at the Milly creek that 29th September, doubts based on physical considerations: a) Luke was awarded a 37mm wound under his right armpit; this forced him to put down by the creek, where he got out of the Spad and left a trail of blood which led to the creek. German soldiers tracked him to the creek, where he died. What is in doubt is: Did Luke shoot at these soldiers; then die, or did he try to shoot but could not because he was too weak from loss of blood and was seconds away from eternity? Question: With a 37mm tunnel running diagonally through his chest, was Luke in any condition to fire his weapon, except as a final protest? The Frey affidavit mentions that the Germans took Luke's notebook (log?) and his helmet with goggles, but left his wristwatch, but there is no mention that the Gs collected the weapon...But my contention is that this is the end of the story: Frank is dead and what he did in those last minutes, one way or the other, can not be verified. But neither way can detract from his character and previous performance. 3. What you said about Rieper is true. He was knocked out of his balloon in June 1918, but that does not mean he was knocked out of the war, or that his tactical advice and balloon networks lost their impact. I recall that Rieper controlled these networks from balloon HQ, and was Luke's nemesis in so far as his balloon troops set up the Flak trap that caught Luke at Murvaux. The Greeks had a godess call Nemesis, the godess of retribution. Nemein in Greek means retribution, or dealout. It also means one who imposes punishment (even from a distance, like a judge imposes punishment, which is carried out by the executioner.) 4. There are gaps in anyone's story, gaps which can be filled by honest speculation, so stated, when necessary for continuity's sake. My "Interview with a Flying Doughboy" in Chapter 11 of Rampage is pure speculation but I stated so. John Luke read this chapter, and said not to delete it from the second addition. Said it had the flavoor of Frank, which was the effect I wanted to achieve.