WORLD WAR II BLACKOUT IS FACTOR IN AIRPLANE CRASH CLAIMING THE LIFE OF ACTRESS, CAROLE LOMBARD

By Linda Lee Greene, Author & Artist

Boy, am I in trouble now! When Clark finds out that I insisted on gambling my life and that of my mother and the others in my entourage on this TWA DC-3 flight on a flip of a coin, he will never forgive me. And how will I get this past God? How will I justify to God that I wagered our precious lives in such a frivolous way to get what I wanted?

God’s fearsome voice, as I stand in front of Him to receive His judgement following the plane’s crash into Potosi Mountain, cuts my soul in two. “Just because you are Carole Lombard, famous movie star of Hollywood’s golden age, goddess of the silver screen whom every woman admires and envies—just because you are married to Clark Gable, the king of Hollywood, you had no right to act in such a flippant way. Yes, you are only 33, and some might chalk up your behavior to your youth, but I, your God, am not sure I am inclined to do so. But, as is My way, I grant you the chance to explain your motives and solicit my forgiveness.”

            What can I say to God? I can only tell the truth as I see it. “We had two choices of transportation from Las Vegas to Los Angeles, God. We could have traveled by train or airplane. But the train was scheduled to leave so much later than the airplane, and I was anxious to get back home.”

            “You are telling me that your desire to get home faster dictated your judgment—that your selfish desire overshadowed the fact that traveling by train is so much safer than doing so by airplane, especially in this age of World War II and your country is on high alert against Japanese bombers? Did you stop to consider that the airplane would have to fly blind in the mandatory blackout across America? Out of concern that the entire western USA is vulnerable to Japanese attack, the lighted beacon system for aircraft is turned off, and the only light on the ground by which the airplane traveled is at Arden, east of Potosi?”

            “The risk occurred to me, God. But it was a wee small voice in my mind compared to the urgent cry in my head to get home. Besides, wouldn’t the pilot have aborted the flight if there had been such danger?”

            “The pilot and his superiors bear guilt for this tragedy, too, Mrs. Gable. But that fact does not excuse your part in it.”

            “But God, you just do not understand. Clark and Lana Turner were shooting another film together and Clark was dewy-eyed over her again. I had to get back to Hollywood and put a stop to the whole thing.”

            “First of all, you did not know for sure that the allegation is true, and second, would arriving a few hours earlier really have made any difference if it is true?”

            “I was just so jealous. I wanted to get to Hollywood and scratch Lana Turner’s eyes out. I couldn’t stand the thought of their spending the night together. I had to get there. Nothing else mattered to me.”

            “Onboard with you were 15 soldiers from the Army Air Force Ferryman Command, warriors in your country’s fight against the Axis enemy. They were returning to the west coast after having delivered aircraft to a new bomber base. The wife of a soldier also lost her life in the airplane crash. Of course, I do not implicate you in those death.”

            “Doesn’t the fact that I was returning home from a tour across the nation in which I raised over two million dollars in War Bonds for the war effort count in my favor, I ask you, God? And it is well known that I have worked tirelessly in humanitarian causes, helping Hollywood’s down and out and advocating for women’s rights.”

            “I can foresee the headlines now, Mrs. Gable. There will be a seductive temptation on the part of the press to label you as a patriot who died in service to her country. I suppose that will have to be part of the mix that I will consider in milling over your case. However, I want you to know that I am not happy with you. Many of my wise children label what you are to face as ‘Karma’. You will not soon make amends for your recklessness. You movie stars are just so spoiled. If I thought it would do any good, I would turn you over my knees and spank you until you call ‘Uncle’. Go! Go! Leave me now. I command you to spend the next hours watching your poor husband’s suffering. See him down there in that saloon on the edge of the crash site swilling booze and smoking cigars in an effort to numb himself of the terrible outcome of this event? Look! Look now and see what you have done!”©

Image: Clark Gable and Carole Lombard, circa 1939

The above is a work of historical fiction by multi-award winning author Linda Lee Greene. It is based on true events. Greene’s eBooks and paperbacks are available for purchase through Amazon. Her latest novel, A CHANCE AT THE MOON is described below:

Amid the seductions of Las Vegas, Nevada and an idyllic coffee plantation on Hawai’i’s Big Island, a sextet of opposites converge within a shared fate: a glamorous movie-star courting distractions from her troubled past; her shell-shocked bodyguards clutching handholds out of their hardscrabble lives; a dropout Hawaiian nuclear physicist gambling his way back home; a Navajo rancher seeking cleansing for harming Mother Earth; and from its lofty perch, the Hawaiian’s guardian spirit conjured as his pet raven, conducting this symphony of soul odysseys.

Was it chance or destiny’s hand behind the movie-star and gambler’s curious encounter at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas? The cards fold, their hearts open, and a match strikes, flames that sizzle their hearts and souls. Can they have the moon and the stars, too? Or is she too dangerous? Is he? Can their love withstand betrayal? Can it endure murder?

While the cards at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas fail to distract them from their troubled pasts, on the side, the actress and the gambler play a game of ‘will they won’t they’ romance. Meanwhile, an otherworldly hand also has a big stake in the game. Unexpected secrets unfold brimming with dangerous consequences, and finally, a strange brand of salvation.

Amazon Buy Links:

https://www.amazon.com/CHANCE-AT-MOON-Betrayal-Murder-ebook/dp/B07Z44YN9X/  - EBOOK



https://www.amazon.com/CHANCE-AT-MOON-Betrayal-Murder/dp/169984402X/ - PAPERBACK