Man Who Flew The Memphis Belle (Paperback)

Having said that, however, I have no doubt Morgan felt them necessary to put the overall story into context, and they do that well. This makes the book perfect for youngsters or those with no understanding of the larger picture of WW II history, and thus provide this with a broader appeal.

But the meat of the story is Morgan himself. This is not "just" a story of a WW II bomber pilot, this is a wonderfully told story of Bob Morgan, the man, and a blushingly honest discussion of his many demons - his relationship with his departed mother, his father and siblings, his girlfriends, fiancees and wives, his crew (many of whom were fast friends), his superiors, and a terrific look at how he grew up, trained for war, matured as a commander, lived as a returning veteran, and overcame the evils of a pampered upbringing, and learned the value of hard work.

The details about his tour with the 8th Bomber Command were especially interesting, and his revelations about the WW II documentary about his aircraft will answer many questions for ardent Memphis Belle fans who always wondered how much of the 1943 documentary was real (apparently, not much), and also records what Morgan thought of the 1990 film with Matthew Modine (apparently, not much).

His tour in B-29s is also well discussed. This is very much a terrific human interest story which just happens to take place in flak-filled skies. It's certainly more Twelve O'Clock High, with its introspection, than it is Monte Merrick's Memphis Belle, with its cartoon heroics.

Colonel Morgan is to be commended for his bravery in baring his soul to the rest of us, for trying to make sense of his life in a way that we can all learn, for admitting to the hurt he has caused others, and allowing us to relate to his own hurts. He was a courageous man at 23 - he had to be - but now, of his own accord, I think he is even braver in his 80s for writing this thoroughly inspirational book.

There can be no doubt that, despite his protests to the contrary, Bob Morgan is an American hero in every sense of the term. The man flew 51 combat missions in World War II. Those of us born since the war owe him a debt that can never be repaid!

That said, TMWFTMB is riddled with errors! FDR's Secretary of War was Henry Stimson, not Harold Stimson. Curtis LeMay headed the Strategic Air Command, not the Strategic Defense Command. The prototype for the P-51 Mustang was not a Curtiss NA-73, it was a North American NA-73. On a B-29 the bombardier was not "down in the bomb bay," he was in the nose. The superchargers on a B-17 were not under the fuselage, they were under the nacelles (the part of the wing where the engines are mounted). Dana Andrews did not play an ex-pilot in "The Best Years of Our Lives," he played an ex-bombardier. Aviation history has been my passion since childhood but I've never heard of an aircraft called a "Schmitt 110." Perhaps Col. Morgan meant a Messerschmitt 110. The list goes on. After a while I only kept reading to see what gaff would turn up next.

Lighten up, you say. Little mistakes like these (how many did you catch?) don't matter. I disagree. The generation that fought and won World War II will, sadly, soon be gone. (We will not see their like again!) It will then fall to a handful of historians (myself included) to pass on the stories of their courage and sacrifice. A flop like this makes it all the more difficult to do that accurately.

I don't place one iota of blame on Col. Morgan for any of this. He is now well into his eighties and can be forgiven for a goof here and there. What I want to know is where was the co-author? Where were the editors and the fact-checkers? They were asleep at the wheel or don't know the first thing about World War II aerial operations or American life in the forties. Col. Morgan deserved to have his story well told. His supporting cast failed him miserably.