Who was that guy in exhibit hanger D?
Hi Everyone,
I hope you're all recovering from OSH13 - I know I'm already going through withdrawals myself.
I wanted to post about a documentary film project that some friends of mine are working on that takes place, largely, at AirVenture over the last few years.
You might have been walking through Exhibit Hanger D this year (I think that's where I found him) and wondered who the guy with the old and big model airplanes that said Lawsonomy on them was. Or maybe on Wednesday during the show you heard the EAA Concert Band play the "Airliner March" and wondered where the music came from.
His name is Merle Hayden (92 years old), and he's the last crusader for an eccentric religion that was built by aviation pioneer Alfred Lawson.
I've been going to Airventure since 2009 and always wondered who he was or what his story was - turns out AirVenture is his annual soapbox.
Here's the trailer for the film they're making:
https://vimeo.com/59344361
I stopped and talked to Merle this year and it was fascinating. He's quite a character and I totally understand why someone would want to make a movie about him. Turns out there's a bit of Wisconsin Aviation history that connects up with Lawson.
If you're into that sort of thing - they're doing a Kickstarter campaign to fund the film right now.
I know this isn't the sort of thing that you'd normally see on our forums, but it's a peculiar side story to our aviation family reunion that I thought you all might be curious about.
Don't worry - I'll go back to posting about whether or not I should build a Kitfox soon.
