With the new year upon us, I think there is a mutual decision to blow the dust off this blog and get it moving. Which is why I am here, today, posting.
I have decided, with no other ideas coming to mind, that I will do a nice ranting post about two of my heroes. I've had them on my mind a lot lately, so it is easy to do a post on them.
Louis Zamperini and Russell Allen Phillips.
Phil and Louie in the movie. BOTH great actors
Louis and Phil's stories are told in the books Unbroken and Devil at my Heels and the film Unbroken. Both served in WWII, Phil - everyone's nickname for him - being a pilot and Louis a bombardier. They became best friends, though everyone on their crew was close. Louis and Phil later shared a special bond though after they were stuck on a raft together for 47 days, turned POWs, and nearly killed. They became, as I think one of them put it, closer then brothers. After facing death so many times together though, a close bond is bound to form.
Louie and his big brother Pete
While on base together, Phil and Louis - whom Phil calls Zamp unless he is mad at him then it is Zamperini - spent a lot of time together. In Unbroken it talks about some of the trouble they got into, though usually it made it sound like it was Louis who came up with the ideas and dragged Phil along with him. (My favourite story is when Louis and he take their air mattresses out and try and float on them. Both nearly drown.)
Phil not happy they got a B-24 and not a B-17. The B-24's were known for having problems. Many men died in crashes before they even saw battle
Louis was more of the outgoing one between the two. He was a prankster and always getting into trouble. One time he extracted revenge on Phil and had to leave the island for two nights while Phil ran around yelling, "Where's Zamperini!?" Even while on the raft the two kept up some of their teasing, they even had a bet of when they would reach land. When they finally spot land they decide they both won.
While on the raft together, Louie tells Phil and Mac about his mom's cooking while all three are starving. He goes into great detail about how every meal was made and if he left something out Phil and Mac would remind him. It was one of the ways they kept alive, eating fake meals. Louie also caught sharks, which he did when he got mad at the sharks for attacking them while they were in the raft. Phil also spent much time on the raft singing hymns. He was quiet about his faith, but he had an influence on Louie's life.
While in the POW camps Louie never really lost his sense of humor. In Japanese, saying hello sounds like Ohio. Whenever his captors greeted him Louie would reply with, "No, California." While at some of the other camps he helped in stealing food and newspapers. The war only really got to him when it was over and he returned home. For years he was haunted by nightmares of one of his captors, known as the Bird, beating him in his sleep. Later Louie becomes a Christian and returns to Japan were he forgives every single one of his captors who beat and tortured him. He lived to be 97, and all one has to do is look at pictures of him to see how happy he was after he was saved.
Phil, even though he was quieter, was just as mischievous as Louie. He and another pilot got into bets to see which of them could fly their massive B-24's closest to the ground. Phil won, passing by bottom story windows of houses.
He was also protective of his crew. During one mission they were attacked and most of the crew was hit. Louie was in the back tending to them but needed help. Unfortunately the only other one who could help was the co-pilot, and Phil couldn't fly the B-24 alone. However, when he learned lives were in danger he let the co-pilot go back and flew with his hands and knees. Because of that the co-pilot was able to save a life.
Phil had a sweetheart back home. They had plans to marry before he was shipped out but that didn't work out. Instead, he sent her money home to by a ring and told her he wished they could run away and get married and hide where no one would be able to find them. When he returned home from the POW camps that is just what they did, after his father married them.
After the plane he is flying on the rescue mission crashed into the ocean Phil only flew one other time in his life. Other than that he avoided planes and always took his car.
Unlike Louie, who used his story to tell others about what God did in his life, Phil didn't talk much about his time in the war. Weather he had as hard a time coming back as Louie did is unknown, but he did seem able to move on and enjoy his life with Cecy and his children.
Both men were amazing and wonderful and the more I learn of them the more I love them.
Louie in the movie
While on the raft together, Louie tells Phil and Mac about his mom's cooking while all three are starving. He goes into great detail about how every meal was made and if he left something out Phil and Mac would remind him. It was one of the ways they kept alive, eating fake meals. Louie also caught sharks, which he did when he got mad at the sharks for attacking them while they were in the raft. Phil also spent much time on the raft singing hymns. He was quiet about his faith, but he had an influence on Louie's life.
Louie after Superman, their B-24, was shot up after a mission. Nearly all of the crew was hit and one man died
While in the POW camps Louie never really lost his sense of humor. In Japanese, saying hello sounds like Ohio. Whenever his captors greeted him Louie would reply with, "No, California." While at some of the other camps he helped in stealing food and newspapers. The war only really got to him when it was over and he returned home. For years he was haunted by nightmares of one of his captors, known as the Bird, beating him in his sleep. Later Louie becomes a Christian and returns to Japan were he forgives every single one of his captors who beat and tortured him. He lived to be 97, and all one has to do is look at pictures of him to see how happy he was after he was saved.
Louie and the plank
Louie skateboarding in his eighties. He said he'd let everyone know when he got old
He was also protective of his crew. During one mission they were attacked and most of the crew was hit. Louie was in the back tending to them but needed help. Unfortunately the only other one who could help was the co-pilot, and Phil couldn't fly the B-24 alone. However, when he learned lives were in danger he let the co-pilot go back and flew with his hands and knees. Because of that the co-pilot was able to save a life.
Phil in the movie
Phil had a sweetheart back home. They had plans to marry before he was shipped out but that didn't work out. Instead, he sent her money home to by a ring and told her he wished they could run away and get married and hide where no one would be able to find them. When he returned home from the POW camps that is just what they did, after his father married them.
Phil in the raft
After the plane he is flying on the rescue mission crashed into the ocean Phil only flew one other time in his life. Other than that he avoided planes and always took his car.
Louie back home, hugging his mom while his sister Sylvia watches. Sylvia never believed he was dead and kept writing him letters even when the army declared him dead
Unlike Louie, who used his story to tell others about what God did in his life, Phil didn't talk much about his time in the war. Weather he had as hard a time coming back as Louie did is unknown, but he did seem able to move on and enjoy his life with Cecy and his children.
Phil back home. HIS HAPPY SMILE!!
Both men were amazing and wonderful and the more I learn of them the more I love them.
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