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Al Wilson (pilot)

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Occupation
  
Actor, stunt pilot

Name
  
Al Wilson

Role
  
Film actor


Al Wilson (pilot)

Full Name
  
Albert Peter Wilson

Born
  
December 1, 1895 (
1895-12-01
)
Harrodsburg, Kentucky, USA

Died
  
September 5, 1932, Cleveland, Ohio, United States

Movies
  
Won in the Clouds, The Eagle's Talons, The Ghost City

People also search for
  
Duke Worne, H. Bruce Mitchell, Jay Marchant, Ray Taylor

Al Wilson (born Albert Peter Wilson, December 1, 1895 – September 5, 1932) was an American film actor, producer and stunt pilot. He was born in Harrodsburg, Kentucky and died in Cleveland, Ohio in an air crash while doing flying stunts at the 1932 Cleveland Air Races show.

Wilson grew up in Southern California, where his family had moved, and since he was young he has always been passionate about flying. He started at Schiller Aviation School as a maintenance assistant, where he also began to study as a pilot. After that, he taught in flying schools and finally he became chief instructor at the American Aircraft Company. After a short period as manager of Mercury Aviation Company, founded by one of his students, Cecil B. DeMille, Wilson became more and more skilled in performing stunts, including wing-walking, and left the company to become a professional stunt pilot.

Wilson worked together with stuntmen like Frank Clarke and Wally Timm and also for movie companies, including Universal. After numerous appearances in stunt roles he started his actor career in 1923 with the serial The Eagle's Talons. He produced his own movies until 1927, when he went back to work with Universal. Wilson was also one of the pilots in Hell's Angels (1930) and during filming, he was involved in an accident where the mechanic Phil Jones died. This episode marked the end of his career as stunt pilot in movies.

During the National Air Races in Cleveland in 1932, his aircraft crashed and he died a few days later in hospital due to the injuries he suffered. The accident is documented in the film Pylon Dusters: 1932 and 1938 Air Races, an historic film about the 1932 Cleveland Race.

Filmography

Actor
1932
The Airmail Mystery as
Jimmy Ross
1930
Hell's Angels as
Pilot (uncredited)
1929
The Sky Skidder as
Al Simpkins
1928
The Cloud Dodger as
Bruce Torrence
1928
Won in the Clouds as
Art Blake
1928
The Air Patrol as
Al Langdon
1927
Sky-High Saunders (Short) as
'Sky-High' Saunders / Michael Saunders
1927
The Phantom Flyer as
Dick Stanton
1927
Three Miles Up as
'Ace' Morgan
1926
The Flying Mail as
Sherry Gillespie
1925
Flyin' Thru as
Lt. Wilson
1925
The Fighting Ranger as
Bud Hughes
1925
The Cloud Rider as
Bruce Torrence
1924
The Air Hawk as
Al Parker / The Air Hawk
1923
The Ghost City as
Raymond Moreton
1923
The Eagle's Talons as
Charles Dean
Writer
1928
The Air Patrol (story)
1925
Flyin' Thru (story)
1925
The Cloud Rider (story)
Producer
1925
Flyin' Thru (producer)
1925
The Cloud Rider (producer)
Stunts
1930
Hell's Angels (stunt pilot - uncredited)
1923
The Eagle's Talons (stunt pilot)

References

Al Wilson (pilot) Wikipedia


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