Great WW1 photo

[John Lever]

 

[Grant]

That's actually a photo of a 1920's US Mail pilot.
He was killed in an accident (as many early mail pilots were) not long after that photo was taken.
The only reason I know about him is that I used to work in an ad agency that had the US Mail account. One day they were cleaning out the archives and I noticed an original print of this image in the garbage dumpster. Needless to say I grabbed it and it's now framed and hanging in my office.

 

[John Lever]

Amazingly small world we live in. But what a great photos. Is it me or does he look mean ?

 

[watchmanjimg]

At the very least he looks disinclined to bother about trifles. :lol:

 

[donsom]

Absolutely love that double button leather jacket he's wearing underneath. Barnstormer type...???

I'm sure it would look fantastic on it's own...

 

[jack aranda]

He looks like a man who knows he has run through all the luck you get in this life.

 

[Andrew]

Yeah, that's a great shot. Imagine the mentality of the dufuss who threw that print out. Lucky find Grant.

I've always thought that unlike a lot of the shots of people from this time due to the quality of this particular photo you can actually read a lot into this blokes character and connect in a way as if it were taken recently. He does indeed look shagged.

 

[John Lever]

This goes with the period although probably too long for the flying suit -

 

[zoomer]

More about "Wild Bill" Hopson

Hopson reminds me of a young Richard Widmark playing one of his cowboy roles in the 50s. Clean-cut but dust-covered and hard-bitten as all hell.
You can imagine him talking, real deadpan, out of one side of his mouth, then lumbering off to slam down a flaskful of hootch and crash on a canvas cot.

WW1 makes sense. It has the heroism that flying the mails in the 20s lacks, and those of a military frame of mind will be more likely to pay their respects.
But the dash, danger, and romance are the same - just flying at all, thru any adversity man-made or god-given, in the wood and wire of the day...bless 'em all, I say, the kids you wouldn't send up in crates like those.

 

[Stony]

Is it me or does he look mean ?

I think he has gas.