By Frank Marrero

Once upon a time… Lincoln Beachey was “known by sight to hundreds of thousands and by name to the whole world.” He was universally acknowledged as “the greatest aviator of all time.” Beachey invented much of what we call “aerobatics”, being the first to fly upside down, first to fly straight down (achieving ‘terminal velocity’), first to fly inside a building (The Palace of Machinery as it was being constructed), first to master the loop-de-loop, first to pick up a handkerchief from the ground with his wingtip and dazzle the crowds with death-defying aerial acumen.

Beachey’s story is made even more unbelievable by the fact that he is now commonly unknown. Going from being one of the most famous people in America to becoming an unknown is a story in itself, but that is another story. This disparity was noted by the Air Force’s first biographer, SF’s own Col. Hans Christian Adamson who penned in 1953: “It is hard to imagine the adoration that followed Lincoln Beachey everywhere. He was Dimaggio; he was Lindberg at his prime; he was all the stars of stage and screen combined — with a touch of superman thrown in. From ... Read More >