Made by Google, it’s CGI and it has a classic Hollywood storyline – but it’s 12 minutes of the cutest entertainment and along with authentic sound effects (they did a great job collecting their foley) it also features some great old songs. I wonder whether my grandson would like it…
Tag: video
The tragedy of the Jeanne Gougy – and film of an amazing rescue
This is a stunning piece of film of a clifftop rescue of sailors aboard the Jeanne Gougy, which capsized between Sennen Cove and Land’s End. At 5am on 3 November 1962 the Coastguard, the RNLI and a a helicopter from RAF Chivenor rescued six out of eighteen trawlermen.
RAF Sergeant Eric Smith winched Michel Pade and Napoleon Bertin to safety and received the George medal for bravery. Victor David, Jean Ridel, Maurice Fromentin and Christian Anthore were rescued by breeches buoy.
According to tradition the lost fishermen’s coffins were laid out on the quayside at Penzance, and the Gougy Roseline trawler accompanied them home to their final resting place.
My thanks to John Lockwood for passing the the tip along.
Robert Manry and his extraordinary tale of small boat-big ocean survival
Robert Manry’s amazing West-East Atlantic crossing in a heavily overloaded 13ft 6in boat and his subsequent fame was now so long ago, I feel pretty sure even most sailing types have probably forgotten about his remarkable achievement.
So hats off to Steve Wystrach and colleagues for his efforts to produce a crowd-funded film designed to remind the world and to commemorate the event.
Manry was a sub-editor in his working life, so looking at the project website I was tickled to be reminded that the lone sailor had taken a copy of Strunk’s The Elements of Style with him, presumably to keep him on the straight and narrow as he wrote his log. Or was it to keep him company?
I read and was fascinated by Manry’s book a couple of decades ago, after finding a second hand copy in a shop somewhere. If you’re inspired to read it there are various e-book editions available via the Robert Manry Project site.