Nothing like a good cup of coffee. Actions speak louder than words, but words more important at the moment of separation going to war.
"Mac, you're really home ! !! !
1:06:15 -- Silent goodbye to his family shows a man's longing for his mission, protecting his family.
"Okay. Dan."
"The president wants to shake your hands. So do I."
Heroes deserve our respect forever!
Air Force aces Joseph McConnell and Manuel "Pete" Fernandez meet with President Dwight D. Eisenhower at the White House in May 1953.
McConnell's wife, Pearl "Butch" McConnell, died in 2008 at the age of 86. She never remarried and was buried with Captain McConnell at Victor Valley Memorial Park in Victorville, California.
| Joseph C. McConnell | |
|---|---|
 McConnell with his F-86, Beauteous Butch II, following his last mission in Korea | |
| Born | 30 January 1922 Dover, New Hampshire |
| Died | 25 August 1954 (aged 32) Edwards Air Force Base, California |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Service/branch | United States Air Force |
| Years of service | 1942-1954 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Unit | 39th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, 51st Fighter-Interceptor Wing, Fifth Air Force |
| Battles/wars | World War II Korean War |
| Awards | Distinguished Service Cross Silver Star Distinguished Flying Cross Air Medal (4) |
The McConnell Story is a 1955 dramatization of the life and career of U.S. Air Force pilot Joseph C. McConnell (1922–1954), who served as a navigator in World War II before becoming the top American ace during the Korean War. He was killed while serving as a test pilot at Edwards Air Force Base in the Mojave Desert of California. The Warner Brothers production, filmed in CinemaScope and Warner Color, starred Alan Ladd as McConnell and June Allyson as his wife. Longtime Warners staff composer Max Steiner wrote the musical score for the film.
The movie was announced in May 1954, with Alan Ladd and June Allyson attached from the beginning. It was Alan Ladd's second consecutive film for Warner Bros following Drum Beat. However unlike that it was made for Warner Bros, not Ladd's own production company.
A number of months after the film was announced, McConnell died in a crash. This required the script to be rewritten.
For a sequence depicting the rescue of a downed B-29 Superfortress crew that McConnell was trying to protect, a Sikorsky H-19 of the 48th Air Rescue Squadron, Eglin AFB, Florida, was deployed to Alexandria AFB, Louisiana, for seven days in February 1955. Captain E. R. Thone and Airman First Class Ronald K. Opitz, of the 48th ARS, were the crew for the helicopter, TDY to shoot the rescue sequence.
Colonel William L. Orris, Commander Detachment No. 1, Air Force Operational Test Center at Kirtland AFB, New Mexico was the technical advisor for the film.
Shown on American Movie Classics, host Bob Dorian said that Ladd, who hated flying, filmed his scenes in mockups in front of blue screens. He also noted that Ladd and Allyson fell in love during filming; Ladd reportedly called Allyson's husband, actor/director Dick Powell, and told him, "I'm in love with your wife," to which Powell replied, "Everyone is in love with my wife."
- Captain McConnell was credited with shooting down 16 MiG-15s while flying North American F-86 Sabres. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, and the Distinguished Flying Cross for his actions in aerial combat. McConnell was the first American triple jet-on-jet fighter ace and is still the top-scoring American jet ace. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_C._McConnell?
