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1949 Cleveland Airshow & Race - Note: inc. Odom crash

Tue Feb 13, 2007 10:53 pm

Hi Folks,

While looking for something else, I found the following film. It's of the 1949 airshow and the Thompson Trophy race in which Bill Odom was killed in the P-51 racer 'Beguine' and a family on the ground were killed in the crash. There's footage of wreckage at the end of the film, but not, mercifully, of the accident. :( That's the downside.

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Nevertheless, I thought it worth posting about the film because of what else's is on there. Cook Cleland in the Super Corsair, another Super Corsair, and footage of B-29s, B-36s, F-86 en masse, RCAF Vampire display team, the Acrojets in F-80s and Blue Angels flying Panthers(?)

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Go to www.britishpathe.com

For the film, go to ‘Advanced Search’ and then enter the film number 1423.16 in the ‘Film ID’ box. Click on the image or the ‘preview stills’ link for more, and if you want to download it click on ‘download video’. Follow the instructions, download, and then travel memory lane, to when Jet Noise was not only the sound of freedom, but new, and a race 'plane was a Super Corsair...

Note: It’s a great resource, but some folks have had problems with using it because of IT restrictions. You need to allow pop ups, then you can view individual film strips and stills, and if you want to download free low-res versions of the films you can do so, but you do need to go through the ‘purchase’ process – they’re still free, but some get put off because they think they’re gonna be asked for money. You aren’t, if you stick tto ‘low res’ and choose ‘eddicational’ use. And some people have found that the Norton anti-virus software screws Pathe’s site up.

Note: Copyright is with Pathe.

Tue Feb 13, 2007 10:55 pm

Pretty interesting . that is one heck of a flyover!

Wed Feb 14, 2007 9:30 am

James--

Holy COW...many thanks for that. Will have a look ASAP. Had heard some documentary film existed of the '49 NAR but hadn't had much hope of ever seeing it.

S. (whose dream project remains a movie about that race)
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