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PostPosted: Sun Feb 17, 2013 11:29 pm 
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Arthur Bishop, son of flying ace Billy Bishop, led remarkable life
Arthur Bishop, son of World War I flying ace Billy Bishop, has died. A fighter pilot himself, he carved out his own remarkable life.

By: Valerie Hauch News reporter, Published on Sun Feb 17 2013

Arthur Bishop used to joke that between him and his father — the legendary World War I flying ace Billy Bishop — they shot down 73 planes.

That would be 72 planes shot down over the skies of Europe by Billy Bishop, and one by Arthur, himself a fighter pilot during World War II.

“He had a great sense of humour,” recalls Bill Bishop of his father, Arthur, who died Feb. 14 at age 89 after a remarkable life that included postwar stints as journalist, advertising executive, entrepreneur and author of more than 10 books on Canadian military history.

While his father’s aviation record is legend, Arthur Bishop’s own service, flying hundreds of missions as a Spitfire pilot in the 1940s with the RCAF 401 Squadron, was also noteworthy.

Twice, while flying low-level sweeps over France, his plane was disabled by enemy fire. The first time he got his disabled plane back to England. The second time, the day after the Allies invaded Normandy, he was shot down. Luckily, he crashed landed in territory held by the Allies and was taken to hospital.

It wasn’t easy joining the RCAF as the son of Canada’s most revered flying ace. “They didn’t give him any special treatment,” says Bill Bishop of his father. “And he wouldn’t have wanted any.”

Arthur Bishop “never once complained’’ about having to live in the shadow of his father, whom he closely resembled. “That’s one of the amazing things about him,” says Bill. “He had to carve out his own life. And he did it very well.”

After the war, Arthur, who never owned his own plane, would fly occasionally with others. But his interest in flying was really as a fighter pilot.

“All kinds of people wanted him to fly. But he used to say it’s really not that much fun if someone wasn’t shooting at him,” says Bill.

Arthur was born in London, England on June 13, 1923. His mother was Margaret Eaton Bishop, granddaughter of department store founder Timothy Eaton.

During their stay in England, the Bishops got to know the British royalty of the day. When Arthur was born, his godfather was Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, son of the late Queen Victoria, and his godmother was Princess Louise, cousin to Queen Mary.

Those were impressive connections, but Bill Bishop says his dad used to joke that “he would rather have had the money.”

Margaret and Billy Bishop returned to Canada in 1929 and Arthur grew up in Montreal. He married Priscilla Jean Aylen in 1946. Along with Bill, they had a daughter, Diana.

Writing had always interested Bishop, and after the war he became a reporter for the Windsor Star.

In the early 1950s, he moved into advertising, joining Ronalds Advertising Agency. In 1967, he started his own agency in Toronto, PPS Publicity, in partnership with his wife.

Bishop never lost sight of what he considered one of his major roles, preserving the memory and legacy of his father. He wrote more than a dozen books concerning Canadian military history over 30 years. His first was the 1965 bestselling biography of Billy Bishop, Courage of the Early Morning. It would be the source material for the successful stage musical, Billy Bishop Goes to War, first staged in 1978.

“He was very committed to Canadian military history,” says Bill Bishop, himself an author. “That was his big thing. It was really his passion. He was afraid that history would get lost ... nowadays it’s not cool to talk about it.

“But he really believed in serving his country. He had this idea that you need to make a contribution to your country.”

Posted in the Toronto Star:
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2013/02 ... _life.html


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