Douglas Corrigan
Encyclopedia
Douglas Corrigan was an American
aviator
born in Galveston, Texas
. He was nicknamed "Wrong Way" in 1938. After a transcontinental flight from Long Beach, California
, to New York
, he flew from Floyd Bennett Field
in Brooklyn, New York
, to Ireland
, though his flight plan was filed to return to Long Beach. He claimed his unauthorized flight was due to a navigation
al error, caused by heavy cloud cover that obscured landmarks and low-light conditions, causing him to misread his compass
. However, he was a skilled aircraft
mechanic
(he was one of the builders of Charles Lindbergh
's Spirit of St. Louis
) and had made several modifications to his own plane, preparing it for his transatlantic flight
. He had been denied permission to make a nonstop flight from New York to Ireland, and his "navigational error" was seen as deliberate. Nevertheless, he never publicly admitted to having flown to Ireland intentionally.
and a teacher
, he was named Clyde Groce Corrigan after his father, but legally adopted the name Douglas as an adult. The family moved often, until his parents finally divorced and shared custody of their children. Corrigan finally settled with his mother, brother Harry, and sister Evelyn in Los Angeles
. Quitting high school, he went to work in construction.
In October 1925, Corrigan saw people paying to be taken for short rides in a Curtiss JN-4
"Jenny" biplane near his home. He paid the $2.50 (equal to $ today) for his own ride. A week later, he began flying lessons, spending non-flying time watching and learning from local aircraft mechanics. After twenty lessons, he made his first solo flight on March 25, 1926.
.jpg)
B. F. Mahoney and T. Claude Ryan
, aircraft manufacturers, operated Ryan Aeronautical Company
from the airfield where Corrigan learned to fly. They hired him for their San Diego factory. Charles Lindbergh
commissioned the design and construction of the Spirit of St. Louis from the company shortly after Corrigan joined them. Corrigan was responsible for the wing
assembly and the installation of the gas tanks and instrument panel. He and his colleague Dan Burnett increased the lift of the aircraft by extending the wing 10 feet (3 m) longer than any previous Ryan design. Corrigan pulled the chocks from the Spirit of St Louis when Lindbergh took off from San Diego to New York to prepare for his historic flight.
After Lindbergh's success, Corrigan decided to duplicate it and selected Ireland as his objective. He discussed the idea with friends and mentioned flying without permission. When Ryan Aeronautical moved to St. Louis
in October 1928, Corrigan stayed in San Diego as a mechanic for the newly formed Airtech School. With more than 50 students flying each day, Corrigan could only get flight time during his lunch break.
During his short flights, Corrigan performed aerobatic stunt
s. His favourite maneuver was the chandelle
(a 180-degree turn while climbing steeply) in strings of up to a dozen, spiralling from close to the ground. The company disapproved and prohibited him from performing stunts in the company aircraft. Corrigan simply flew to a field further south where his stunts could not be seen by his employers.
Corrigan moved from job to job as an aircraft mechanic using his employers' planes to develop his flying skills. He gained his transport pilot's certificate in October 1929, and in 1930, started a passenger service between small East Coast towns, with his friend Steve Reich. The most lucrative part of the business turned out to be barnstorming displays promoting short recreational plane rides. Despite business success, after a few years, Corrigan decided to return to the West Coast. In 1933, he spent $310 on a used 1929 Curtiss Robin OX-5
monoplane
and flew it home, where he returned to work as an aircraft mechanic and began to modify the Robin for a transatlantic flight.
Having installed an engine built from two old Wright Whirlwind J6-5
engines (affording 165 hp instead of the 90 hp of the original) and extra fuel tanks, Corrigan applied to the Bureau of Air Commerce in 1935, seeking permission to make a nonstop flight from New York to Ireland. The application was rejected; his plane was deemed unsound for a nonstop transatlantic trip, although it was certified to the lower standard for cross-country journeys.
Over the next two years, Corrigan made repeated modifications and reapplications for full certification, but none succeeded. Indeed, by 1937, after extensive modifications in the face of increasing regulation, his aircraft was refused renewal of its licence because it was deemed to be too unstable for safe flight. His autobiography expresses his exasperation with official resistance and he is widely thought to have responded by deciding that year to make an unofficial crossing.
Although he never admitted it, he apparently planned a late arrival at New York so that he could refill his tanks and leave for Ireland after airport officials had gone home from work. Mechanical problems extended his unapproved inbound flight to nine days, which delayed him beyond the Atlantic "safe weather window", and he returned to California. As a result of this trip, he named his plane Sunshine, however, federal officials notified Californian airfield officials that Sunshine was not airworthy and it was grounded for six months.
On 9 July 1938, Corrigan again left California
for Floyd Bennett Field, Brooklyn, New York. He had repaired the engine, taking his total spent on the aircraft to about $900 (equal to $ today, gained an experimental license, and obtained permission for a transcontinental flight with conditional consent for a return trip. With the Robin cruising at 85 mi/h for maximum fuel efficiency, the outward journey took him 27 hours. Fuel efficiency became critical towards the end of the flight: a gasoline leak developed, filling the cockpit with fumes.
Upon his unannounced arrival at Floyd Bennett Field, in the midst of Howard Hughes
' preparations for takeoff on a world tour, Corrigan decided repairing the leak would take too long if he was to meet his schedule. His logged flight plan had him returning to California on July 17. He wanted to take off from Floyd Bennett that same night, but the manager of Floyd Bennett Field, Kenneth P. Behr, persuaded Corrigan to wait until first light. Before take off, Corrigan asked Behr which runway to use, and Behr told him to use any runway as long as he didn't take off to the west, in the direction of the administration building where Behr had his office. As recorded in Corrigan's autobiography, Behr wished him "Bon Voyage" prior to take-off, perhaps in a nod to Corrigan's intentions to fly the Atlantic. Upon take off at 5:15 in the morning with 320 gallons (1,211.3 l) of gasoline and 16 gallons (60.6 l) of oil, Corrigan headed east from the 4200 feet (1,280.2 m) runway of Floyd Bennett Field
and kept going. (Behr later swore publicly he had no pre-knowledge of Corrigan's intentions.)
Corrigan claimed to have noticed his "error" after flying for about 26 hours. This is not entirely consistent with his claim that after 10 hours, he felt his feet go cold; the cockpit floor was awash with gasoline leaking from the unrepaired tank. He used a screwdriver to punch a hole through the cockpit floor so that the fuel would drain away on the opposite side to the hot exhaust pipe, reducing the risk of a midair explosion. Had he been truly unaware he was over ocean
, it seems likely he would have descended at this point; instead, he claimed to have increased the engine speed by almost 20% in the hope of decreasing his flight time.
He landed at Baldonnel Aerodrome
, County Dublin
, on July 18, after a 28-hour, 13-minute flight. His provisions had been just two chocolate bars, two boxes of fig
bars, and 0.25 US gal (0.946353 l) of water.
Corrigan's plane had fuel tanks mounted on the front, allowing him to see only out of the sides. He had no radio
and his compass was 20 years old. As the journalist H. R. Knickerbocker
reported:
Despite this he arrived in good shape.
Aviation officials took 600 words to list the regulations broken by his flight in a telegram (a medium that encourages brevity by charging at a rate per word). Despite the extent of Corrigan's illegality, he received only a mild punishment; his pilot's certificate was suspended for fourteen days.
He and his plane returned to New York on the steamship Manhattan and arrived on August 4, the last day of his suspension. His return was marked with great celebration. More people attended his Broadway
ticker-tape parade than had honored Lindbergh after his triumph, but Corrigan was disappointed that his hero never acknowledged his achievement. He was also given a ticker tape parade in Chicago.
Corrigan wrote his autobiography
, That's My Story, within months of the flight; it was published for the Christmas market on 15 December 1938. He also endorsed 'wrong-way' products including a watch that ran backwards. The following year, he starred as himself in RKO Radio Picture's The Flying Irishman
(1939), a movie biography. The $75,000 he earned (equal to $ today) was the equivalent of 30 years income at his airfield jobs.
According to a letter written to a fan in 1940, Corrigan claimed to have "no hobbies except working on airplanes or machinery". When the United States entered World War II
, he tested bomber
s and flew in the Ferry Command, a division of the Air Transport Command
. In 1946, he gained less than 2% of the vote running for the U.S. Senate as a member of the Prohibition Party
, running against Republican
William F. Knowland
. He then worked as a commercial pilot for a small California airline.
Corrigan retired from aviation in 1950 and bought an 18 acres (72,843.5 m²) orange grove
in Santa Ana, California
. He lived there with his wife and three sons until his death on December 9, 1995. He knew nothing about raising oranges, and said he learned by copying his neighbors. His wife died in 1966, and Corrigan sold most of his grove for development, keeping only the ranch-style house
. One of the streets in the 93-house estate is named after him. He became reclusive after one of his sons died in a private plane crash on Santa Catalina Island, California
in 1972, In 1988, however, he joined in the golden anniversary celebration of his famous "wrong way" flight, allowing enthusiasts to retrieve the Robin from its hangar. The plane was reassembled and the engine was run successfully. Corrigan was so excited that the organizers placed guards at the plane's wings while he was at the show and considered tethering the tail to a police car to prevent him from taking off in it. Later, Corrigan became elusive about the plane's location. It was rumored he had dismantled the plane, storing it in several locations to prevent its theft.
s. The nickname "Wrong Way' Corrigan" passed into common use and is still mentioned (or used as satire) when someone has the reputation for taking the wrong direction. For example: Corrigan was directly referenced in the 1938 Three Stooges
short Flat Foot Stooges
. Curly
states, "Hey, we're doing a Corrigan!" after realizing they are heading in the wrong direction of the fire they need to extinguish. Corrigan was indirectly referenced in The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show
; "Wrong Way" was the name used for Captain Peter "Wrong Way" Peachfuzz
, the world's worst sailor
. Corrigan was indirectly referenced in the 1960s sitcom Gilligan's Island
, in first-season episodes titled "Wrong Way Feldman" and "The Return of Wrongway Feldman". He was portrayed by character actor
Hans Conried
.
Jean Shepherd
discussed him and his book in a radio broadcast originally aired August 4, 1969. He says James Thurber
based one of his short stories on Corrigan's adventure. Charles Hammer authored the book "Wrong-Way Ragsdale" about a child who accidentally steals an airplane. In the fourth chapter, the child narrator mentions that he liked to think of himself as sneaky as Wrong-Way Corrigan and so called himself Wrong-Way Ragsdale. Corrigan appeared as himself in the long-running television game show, To Tell The Truth
, one day shy of 19 years to the day after his famous takeoff: on July 16, 1957. During that show, he said that "I had my pilot's license suspended for 5 days while I was on the boat coming back home... That's all." As noted above, however, his license was actually suspended for 14 days, much longer than a transatlantic boat trip ordinarily took. He also said that his only cargo was water, cookies, and gum. He is directly referenced in the Gobots
toy line and animated series Challenge of the Gobots
in the heroic, if navigationally challenged Guardian Gobot named Wrong Way, who himself turns into a helicopter that often has to be told which way to head by his companions.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
aviator
Aviator
An aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...
born in Galveston, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. He was nicknamed "Wrong Way" in 1938. After a transcontinental flight from Long Beach, California
Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...
, to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, he flew from Floyd Bennett Field
Floyd Bennett Field
Floyd Bennett Field is New York City's first municipal airport. While no longer used as an operational commercial, military or general aviation airfield, the New York Police Department still flies its helicopters from its heliport base there...
in Brooklyn, New York
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, to Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, though his flight plan was filed to return to Long Beach. He claimed his unauthorized flight was due to a navigation
Navigation
Navigation is the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another. It is also the term of art used for the specialized knowledge used by navigators to perform navigation tasks...
al error, caused by heavy cloud cover that obscured landmarks and low-light conditions, causing him to misread his compass
Compass
A compass is a navigational instrument that shows directions in a frame of reference that is stationary relative to the surface of the earth. The frame of reference defines the four cardinal directions – north, south, east, and west. Intermediate directions are also defined...
. However, he was a skilled aircraft
Aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...
mechanic
Mechanic
A mechanic is a craftsman or technician who uses tools to build or repair machinery.Many mechanics are specialized in a particular field such as auto mechanics, bicycle mechanics, motorcycle mechanics, boiler mechanics, general mechanics, industrial maintenance mechanics , air conditioning and...
(he was one of the builders of Charles Lindbergh
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
's Spirit of St. Louis
Spirit of St. Louis
The Spirit of St. Louis is the custom-built, single engine, single-seat monoplane that was flown solo by Charles Lindbergh on May 20–21, 1927, on the first non-stop flight from New York to Paris for which Lindbergh won the $25,000 Orteig Prize.Lindbergh took off in the Spirit from Roosevelt...
) and had made several modifications to his own plane, preparing it for his transatlantic flight
Transatlantic flight
Transatlantic flight is the flight of an aircraft across the Atlantic Ocean. A transatlantic flight may proceed east-to-west, originating in Europe or Africa and terminating in North America or South America, or it may go in the reverse direction, west-to-east...
. He had been denied permission to make a nonstop flight from New York to Ireland, and his "navigational error" was seen as deliberate. Nevertheless, he never publicly admitted to having flown to Ireland intentionally.
Early life
The son of a construction engineerEngineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
and a teacher
Teacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...
, he was named Clyde Groce Corrigan after his father, but legally adopted the name Douglas as an adult. The family moved often, until his parents finally divorced and shared custody of their children. Corrigan finally settled with his mother, brother Harry, and sister Evelyn in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. Quitting high school, he went to work in construction.
In October 1925, Corrigan saw people paying to be taken for short rides in a Curtiss JN-4
Curtiss JN-4
The Curtiss JN-4 "Jenny" was one of a series of "JN" biplanes built by the Curtiss Aeroplane Company of Hammondsport, New York, later the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company. Although the Curtiss JN series was originally produced as a training aircraft for the U.S...
"Jenny" biplane near his home. He paid the $2.50 (equal to $ today) for his own ride. A week later, he began flying lessons, spending non-flying time watching and learning from local aircraft mechanics. After twenty lessons, he made his first solo flight on March 25, 1926.
Aircraft mechanic
T. Claude Ryan
Tubal Claude Ryan was an Irish-American aviator born in Parsons, Kansas. Ryan was best known for founding some airlines and four airplane factories.-Business career:...
, aircraft manufacturers, operated Ryan Aeronautical Company
Ryan Aeronautical Company
The Ryan Aeronautical Company was founded by T. Claude Ryan in San Diego, California in 1934. Part of Teledyne after 1969, Northrop Grumman purchased Teledyne Ryan in 1999...
from the airfield where Corrigan learned to fly. They hired him for their San Diego factory. Charles Lindbergh
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
commissioned the design and construction of the Spirit of St. Louis from the company shortly after Corrigan joined them. Corrigan was responsible for the wing
Wing
A wing is an appendage with a surface that produces lift for flight or propulsion through the atmosphere, or through another gaseous or liquid fluid...
assembly and the installation of the gas tanks and instrument panel. He and his colleague Dan Burnett increased the lift of the aircraft by extending the wing 10 feet (3 m) longer than any previous Ryan design. Corrigan pulled the chocks from the Spirit of St Louis when Lindbergh took off from San Diego to New York to prepare for his historic flight.
After Lindbergh's success, Corrigan decided to duplicate it and selected Ireland as his objective. He discussed the idea with friends and mentioned flying without permission. When Ryan Aeronautical moved to St. Louis
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
in October 1928, Corrigan stayed in San Diego as a mechanic for the newly formed Airtech School. With more than 50 students flying each day, Corrigan could only get flight time during his lunch break.
During his short flights, Corrigan performed aerobatic stunt
Stunt
A stunt is an unusual and difficult physical feat, or any act requiring a special skill, performed for artistic purposes in TV, theatre, or cinema...
s. His favourite maneuver was the chandelle
Chandelle
The chandelle is an aircraft control maneuver where the pilot combines a 180° turn with a climb.It is now required for attaining a commercial flight certificate in many countries...
(a 180-degree turn while climbing steeply) in strings of up to a dozen, spiralling from close to the ground. The company disapproved and prohibited him from performing stunts in the company aircraft. Corrigan simply flew to a field further south where his stunts could not be seen by his employers.
Corrigan moved from job to job as an aircraft mechanic using his employers' planes to develop his flying skills. He gained his transport pilot's certificate in October 1929, and in 1930, started a passenger service between small East Coast towns, with his friend Steve Reich. The most lucrative part of the business turned out to be barnstorming displays promoting short recreational plane rides. Despite business success, after a few years, Corrigan decided to return to the West Coast. In 1933, he spent $310 on a used 1929 Curtiss Robin OX-5
Curtiss Robin
|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography*Bowers, Peter M. Curtiss Aircraft 1907–1947. London: Putnam, 1979. ISBN 0-370-10029-8.-External links:* * ****...
monoplane
Monoplane
A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with one main set of wing surfaces, in contrast to a biplane or triplane. Since the late 1930s it has been the most common form for a fixed wing aircraft.-Types of monoplane:...
and flew it home, where he returned to work as an aircraft mechanic and began to modify the Robin for a transatlantic flight.
Transatlantic flier
Wright R-540
|-See also:-Bibliography:. Available from the Aircraft Engine Historical Society's .. Available from the Aircraft Engine Historical Society's .. Available from the FAA's .. Available from the Aircraft Engine Historical Society's ....
engines (affording 165 hp instead of the 90 hp of the original) and extra fuel tanks, Corrigan applied to the Bureau of Air Commerce in 1935, seeking permission to make a nonstop flight from New York to Ireland. The application was rejected; his plane was deemed unsound for a nonstop transatlantic trip, although it was certified to the lower standard for cross-country journeys.
Over the next two years, Corrigan made repeated modifications and reapplications for full certification, but none succeeded. Indeed, by 1937, after extensive modifications in the face of increasing regulation, his aircraft was refused renewal of its licence because it was deemed to be too unstable for safe flight. His autobiography expresses his exasperation with official resistance and he is widely thought to have responded by deciding that year to make an unofficial crossing.
Although he never admitted it, he apparently planned a late arrival at New York so that he could refill his tanks and leave for Ireland after airport officials had gone home from work. Mechanical problems extended his unapproved inbound flight to nine days, which delayed him beyond the Atlantic "safe weather window", and he returned to California. As a result of this trip, he named his plane Sunshine, however, federal officials notified Californian airfield officials that Sunshine was not airworthy and it was grounded for six months.
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
for Floyd Bennett Field, Brooklyn, New York. He had repaired the engine, taking his total spent on the aircraft to about $900 (equal to $ today, gained an experimental license, and obtained permission for a transcontinental flight with conditional consent for a return trip. With the Robin cruising at 85 mi/h for maximum fuel efficiency, the outward journey took him 27 hours. Fuel efficiency became critical towards the end of the flight: a gasoline leak developed, filling the cockpit with fumes.
Upon his unannounced arrival at Floyd Bennett Field, in the midst of Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
' preparations for takeoff on a world tour, Corrigan decided repairing the leak would take too long if he was to meet his schedule. His logged flight plan had him returning to California on July 17. He wanted to take off from Floyd Bennett that same night, but the manager of Floyd Bennett Field, Kenneth P. Behr, persuaded Corrigan to wait until first light. Before take off, Corrigan asked Behr which runway to use, and Behr told him to use any runway as long as he didn't take off to the west, in the direction of the administration building where Behr had his office. As recorded in Corrigan's autobiography, Behr wished him "Bon Voyage" prior to take-off, perhaps in a nod to Corrigan's intentions to fly the Atlantic. Upon take off at 5:15 in the morning with 320 gallons (1,211.3 l) of gasoline and 16 gallons (60.6 l) of oil, Corrigan headed east from the 4200 feet (1,280.2 m) runway of Floyd Bennett Field
Floyd Bennett Field
Floyd Bennett Field is New York City's first municipal airport. While no longer used as an operational commercial, military or general aviation airfield, the New York Police Department still flies its helicopters from its heliport base there...
and kept going. (Behr later swore publicly he had no pre-knowledge of Corrigan's intentions.)
Corrigan claimed to have noticed his "error" after flying for about 26 hours. This is not entirely consistent with his claim that after 10 hours, he felt his feet go cold; the cockpit floor was awash with gasoline leaking from the unrepaired tank. He used a screwdriver to punch a hole through the cockpit floor so that the fuel would drain away on the opposite side to the hot exhaust pipe, reducing the risk of a midair explosion. Had he been truly unaware he was over ocean
Ocean
An ocean is a major body of saline water, and a principal component of the hydrosphere. Approximately 71% of the Earth's surface is covered by ocean, a continuous body of water that is customarily divided into several principal oceans and smaller seas.More than half of this area is over 3,000...
, it seems likely he would have descended at this point; instead, he claimed to have increased the engine speed by almost 20% in the hope of decreasing his flight time.
He landed at Baldonnel Aerodrome
Casement Aerodrome
Casement Aerodrome or Baldonnel Aerodrome is a military airbase to the south west of Dublin, Ireland situated off the N7 main road route to the south and south west. It is the headquarters and the sole base of the Irish Air Corps, and is also used for other government purposes...
, County Dublin
County Dublin
County Dublin is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Dublin Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the city of Dublin which is the capital of Ireland. County Dublin was one of the first of the parts of Ireland to be shired by King John of England following the...
, on July 18, after a 28-hour, 13-minute flight. His provisions had been just two chocolate bars, two boxes of fig
Ficus
Ficus is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes, and hemiepiphyte in the family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few species extending into the semi-warm temperate zone. The Common Fig Ficus is a genus of...
bars, and 0.25 US gal (0.946353 l) of water.
Corrigan's plane had fuel tanks mounted on the front, allowing him to see only out of the sides. He had no radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
and his compass was 20 years old. As the journalist H. R. Knickerbocker
Hubert Renfro Knickerbocker
Hubert Renfro Knickerbocker was an American writer and journalist. He was nicknamed "Red" Knickerbocker from the color of his hair....
reported:
Despite this he arrived in good shape.
Aviation officials took 600 words to list the regulations broken by his flight in a telegram (a medium that encourages brevity by charging at a rate per word). Despite the extent of Corrigan's illegality, he received only a mild punishment; his pilot's certificate was suspended for fourteen days.
He and his plane returned to New York on the steamship Manhattan and arrived on August 4, the last day of his suspension. His return was marked with great celebration. More people attended his Broadway
Broadway (New York City)
Broadway is a prominent avenue in New York City, United States, which runs through the full length of the borough of Manhattan and continues northward through the Bronx borough before terminating in Westchester County, New York. It is the oldest north–south main thoroughfare in the city, dating to...
ticker-tape parade than had honored Lindbergh after his triumph, but Corrigan was disappointed that his hero never acknowledged his achievement. He was also given a ticker tape parade in Chicago.
Later life
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
, That's My Story, within months of the flight; it was published for the Christmas market on 15 December 1938. He also endorsed 'wrong-way' products including a watch that ran backwards. The following year, he starred as himself in RKO Radio Picture's The Flying Irishman
The Flying Irishman
The Flying Irishman is a 1939 biographical drama film produced by RKO Pictures in 1939 about Douglas Corrigan's unofficial transatlantic flight the previous year. Directed by Leigh Jason to a screenplay by Ernest Pagano and Dalton Trumbo, the film was made quickly to exploit the huge public...
(1939), a movie biography. The $75,000 he earned (equal to $ today) was the equivalent of 30 years income at his airfield jobs.
According to a letter written to a fan in 1940, Corrigan claimed to have "no hobbies except working on airplanes or machinery". When the United States entered World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, he tested bomber
Bomber
A bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets, by dropping bombs on them, or – in recent years – by launching cruise missiles at them.-Classifications of bombers:...
s and flew in the Ferry Command, a division of the Air Transport Command
Military Air Transport Service
The Military Air Transport Service is an inactive Department of Defense Unified Command. Activated on 1 June 1948, MATS was a consolidation of the United States Navy Naval Air Transport Service and the United States Air Force Air Transport Command into a single, joint, unified command...
. In 1946, he gained less than 2% of the vote running for the U.S. Senate as a member of the Prohibition Party
Prohibition Party
The Prohibition Party is a political party in the United States best known for its historic opposition to the sale or consumption of alcoholic beverages. It is the oldest existing third party in the US. The party was an integral part of the temperance movement...
, running against Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
William F. Knowland
William F. Knowland
William Fife Knowland was a United States politician, newspaperman, and Republican Party leader. He was a U.S. Senator representing California from 1945 to 1959. He served as Senate Majority Leader from 1953-1955, and as Minority Leader from 1955-1959. He was defeated in his 1958 run for...
. He then worked as a commercial pilot for a small California airline.
Corrigan retired from aviation in 1950 and bought an 18 acres (72,843.5 m²) orange grove
Orange Grove
-Music:* Orange Grove , a Dutch/Antillean reggae band-Australia:* Orange Grove, Western Australia* The Orange Grove affair, a political scandal-United States:...
in Santa Ana, California
Santa Ana, California
Santa Ana is the county seat and second most populous city in Orange County, California, and with a population of 324,528 at the 2010 census, Santa Ana is the 57th-most populous city in the United States....
. He lived there with his wife and three sons until his death on December 9, 1995. He knew nothing about raising oranges, and said he learned by copying his neighbors. His wife died in 1966, and Corrigan sold most of his grove for development, keeping only the ranch-style house
Ranch-style house
Ranch-style houses is a domestic architectural style originating in the United States. First built in the 1920s, the ranch style was extremely popular amongst the booming post-war middle class of the 1940s to 1970s...
. One of the streets in the 93-house estate is named after him. He became reclusive after one of his sons died in a private plane crash on Santa Catalina Island, California
Santa Catalina Island, California
Santa Catalina Island, often called Catalina Island, or just Catalina, is a rocky island off the coast of the U.S. state of California. The island is long and across at its greatest width. The island is located about south-southwest of Los Angeles, California. The highest point on the island is...
in 1972, In 1988, however, he joined in the golden anniversary celebration of his famous "wrong way" flight, allowing enthusiasts to retrieve the Robin from its hangar. The plane was reassembled and the engine was run successfully. Corrigan was so excited that the organizers placed guards at the plane's wings while he was at the show and considered tethering the tail to a police car to prevent him from taking off in it. Later, Corrigan became elusive about the plane's location. It was rumored he had dismantled the plane, storing it in several locations to prevent its theft.
In popular culture
Corrigan's "error" caught the imagination of the depressed American public and inspired many jokeJoke
A joke is a phrase or a paragraph with a humorous twist. It can be in many different forms, such as a question or short story. To achieve this end, jokes may employ irony, sarcasm, word play and other devices...
s. The nickname "Wrong Way' Corrigan" passed into common use and is still mentioned (or used as satire) when someone has the reputation for taking the wrong direction. For example: Corrigan was directly referenced in the 1938 Three Stooges
Three Stooges
The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy act of the early to mid–20th century best known for their numerous short subject films. Their hallmark was physical farce and extreme slapstick. In films, the Stooges were commonly known by their first names: "Moe, Larry, and Curly" and "Moe,...
short Flat Foot Stooges
Flat Foot Stooges
Flat Foot Stooges is the 35th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
. Curly
Curly Howard
Jerome Lester "Jerry" Horwitz , better known by his stage name Curly Howard, was an American comedian and vaudevillian. He is best known as a member of the American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges, along with his older brothers Moe Howard and Shemp Howard, and actor Larry Fine...
states, "Hey, we're doing a Corrigan!" after realizing they are heading in the wrong direction of the fire they need to extinguish. Corrigan was indirectly referenced in The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show
The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show
The Rocky & Bullwinkle Show is an American animated television series that originally aired from November 19, 1959 to June 28, 1964 on the ABC and NBC television networks...
; "Wrong Way" was the name used for Captain Peter "Wrong Way" Peachfuzz
Peter Peachfuzz
Capt. Peter “Wrong Way” Peachfuzz was a supporting character on the animated television programs Rocky and His Friends and The Bullwinkle Show, now known collectively as The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show...
, the world's worst sailor
Sailor
A sailor, mariner, or seaman is a person who navigates water-borne vessels or assists in their operation, maintenance, or service. The term can apply to professional mariners, military personnel, and recreational sailors as well as a plethora of other uses...
. Corrigan was indirectly referenced in the 1960s sitcom Gilligan's Island
Gilligan's Island
Gilligan's Island is an American television series created and produced by Sherwood Schwartz and originally produced by United Artists Television. The situation comedy series featured Bob Denver; Alan Hale, Jr.; Jim Backus; Natalie Schafer; Tina Louise; Russell Johnson; and Dawn Wells. It aired for...
, in first-season episodes titled "Wrong Way Feldman" and "The Return of Wrongway Feldman". He was portrayed by character actor
Character actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
Hans Conried
Hans Conried
Hans Georg Conried, Jr. was an American comedian, character actor and voice actor.-Early years:He was born on April 15, 1917 in Baltimore, Maryland to Hans Georg Conried, Sr. and Edith Beyr Gildersleeve. His mother was a descendant of Pilgrims, and his father was a Jewish immigrant from Vienna,...
.
Jean Shepherd
Jean Shepherd
Jean Parker Shepherd was an American raconteur, radio and TV personality, writer and actor who was often referred to by the nickname Shep....
discussed him and his book in a radio broadcast originally aired August 4, 1969. He says James Thurber
James Thurber
James Grover Thurber was an American author, cartoonist and celebrated wit. Thurber was best known for his cartoons and short stories published in The New Yorker magazine.-Life:...
based one of his short stories on Corrigan's adventure. Charles Hammer authored the book "Wrong-Way Ragsdale" about a child who accidentally steals an airplane. In the fourth chapter, the child narrator mentions that he liked to think of himself as sneaky as Wrong-Way Corrigan and so called himself Wrong-Way Ragsdale. Corrigan appeared as himself in the long-running television game show, To Tell The Truth
To Tell the Truth
To Tell the Truth is an American television panel game show created by Bob Stewart and produced by Goodson-Todman Productions that has aired in various forms since 1956 both on networks and in syndication...
, one day shy of 19 years to the day after his famous takeoff: on July 16, 1957. During that show, he said that "I had my pilot's license suspended for 5 days while I was on the boat coming back home... That's all." As noted above, however, his license was actually suspended for 14 days, much longer than a transatlantic boat trip ordinarily took. He also said that his only cargo was water, cookies, and gum. He is directly referenced in the Gobots
Gobots
Gobots was a line of transforming robot toys produced by Tonka from 1983 to 1987, similar to Transformers. In 1991, the Gobots range was acquired from Tonka Inc. by Hasbro.-History:...
toy line and animated series Challenge of the Gobots
Challenge of the GoBots
Challenge of the GoBots is an American animated series produced by Hanna-Barbera, based on the Gobots toy-line released from Tonka. Most of the toys were imported from the Japanese Machine Robo toy line. The show originally debuted in animated form as a five-part miniseries, which aired in...
in the heroic, if navigationally challenged Guardian Gobot named Wrong Way, who himself turns into a helicopter that often has to be told which way to head by his companions.