Ernest K. Gann

Ernest Kellogg Gann (October 13, 1910 - December 19, 1991) was an aviator, author, filmmaker, sailor, fisherman and conservationist. Born in Lincoln, Nebraska, Gann was best known as an aviation writer and pioneer airline pilot. He was the scion of a prosperous family; his father was an executive with General Telephone and Telegraph. Resisting his father's strong wish that he follow in the telephone business, Ernest became interested in the then-... more

Ernest Kellogg Gann (October 13, 1910 - December 19, 1991) was an aviator, author, filmmaker, sailor, fisherman and conservationist. Born in Lincoln, Nebraska, Gann was best known as an aviation writer and pioneer airline pilot. He was the scion of a prosperous family; his father was an executive with General Telephone and Telegraph. Resisting his father's strong wish that he follow in the telephone business, Ernest became interested in the then-new field of aviation, and became an accomplished pilot. He flew many aircraft, from World War I machines to the U-2 and F-15, and brought his deep love of flight to the written page and silver screen. He graduated from Culver Military Academy (now Culver Academies) in 1930, and became a film producer as a teenager in St. Paul, Minnesota; he later attended the Yale School of Drama. After his studies at Yale, Gann worked in New York at Radio City Music Hall and as a commercial movie cartoonist, a stunt pilot and barnstormer. A chance encounter... less