The most amazing
Internet story yet connected to my writing happened yesterday morning. A fan on
Amazon’s Nick McCarty/Cold Blooded forum asked me if I knew a pilot attached in
the late sixties, early seventies to an air wing called the Shrikes when I was
stationed aboard the USS Ranger aircraft carrier. He had a very humorous story
about his connection to the pilot, and their friendship. The pilot, Lt. JG Bill
Shankel, was shot down over North Vietnam in 1973, and the fan wanted to know
if I ever heard what happened to him.
I searched through
my Ranger cruise book from 69/70, but found no mention of a Shrike Squadron. I
didn’t own a cruise book from my 70/71 Ranger deployment. I decided to play
Rick Cantelli, P.I. on a search for the P.O.W. pilot, and found him. Lt. JG
Bill Shankel is now a surgeon in Needles, Ca. They had all of his contact
information on the web page. Below, I’ve included the link to my Nick
McCarty/Cold Blooded forum where you can read the post and comments between
Denis R. Grant and me at the bottom. I’m not posting this for a pat on the
back. I think it’s one of the great things about the Internet when we can have
something like this happen. I hope Denis can get in touch with Dr. Shankel, a
real American hero who made it back alive from his imprisonment in the ‘Hanoi
Hilton’. Then, this Sunday morning, Hard Case V: Blood and Fear, regained the
#1 spot in Amazon’s Pulp Fiction for the third time.
4 comments:
That's very cool.
I hope Denis connects without too much trouble, Charles. It'll make a great story for him to tell his family. :)
Awesome stuff, Bernard!
It is a feel good thrill, Raine. :)
Post a Comment