[rldunn]

Franek

Was Marco Polo the first to venture to the far east or the merely first to write about it? On the other hand if Marco Polo had done nothing but travel thousands of miles in an uninteresting fashion perhaps few would care.

Clearly the fact that Galland wrote his memoirs and had them published in English at an early date has made an impact. On the other hand he was a fighter pilot whose fame was promoted in official German communiques at an early date. He along with Moelders created a new conception of the fighter leader, a leader of a Geschwader that flew in combat as leader and comrade as well. The Japanese had nothing like this nor did the US or Brits either although their lower level (UK wing, US group) headquarters eventually followed this example. As General of Fighters he had a unique position with no foreign equivalent. He made many mistakes but also demonstrated inspired leadership as well as physical and moral courage. He has an impressive number of 'firsts' to his credit.

I only met the man once and that but briefly at an appearance at the US Air and Space museum. He had a charming personality, sense of humor, and was an interesting and engaging speaker. If he has graduated to the level of 'Legend' perhaps it is almost deserved.

Hey, Columbus gets credit for the discovery of America when Norwegians were there at least 400 years earlier and Portuguese fishermen were probably on the Grand Banks about the same time Columbus was doing his 'discovery.' Legends are in the eye of the beholder.

Regards,

Rick