''The Winds of Kitty Hawk'' is a 1978 American

made-for-television A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

biographical film A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of a non-fictional or historically-based person or people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from docud ...

directed by E. W. Swackhamer about the Wright brothers and their invention of the first successful powered heavier-than-air flying machine, the ''

Wright Flyer The ''Wright Flyer'' (also known as the ''Kitty Hawk'', ''Flyer'' I or the 1903 ''Flyer'') made the first sustained flight by a manned heavier-than-air powered and controlled aircraft—an airplane—on December 17, 1903. Invented and flown b ...

''. It's a tribute to the brothers and was broadcast on December 17, 1978, the 75th anniversary of their famous 1903 first aeroplane flight. It is one of several made-for-television films about historical people in aviation produced in the 1970s, including '' The Amazing Howard Hughes'', ''

Amelia Earhart Amelia Mary Earhart ( , born July 24, 1897; disappeared July 2, 1937; declared dead January 5, 1939) was an American aviation pioneer and writer. Earhart was the first female aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. She set many ot ...

'', and '' The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case''. The film presents the brothers' lives in dramatic vignettes sometimes historically rearranged. The film makes a claimer at the beginning stating that dramatic license had been taken but for the most part their story is told chronologically. In 2012, the film became available on DVD from MGM Limited Edition.''The Winds of Kitty Hawk'' DVD release May 2012; Oldies.com
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Cast

Michael Moriarty Michael Moriarty (born April 5, 1941) is an American-Canadian actor and jazz musician. He received an Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award for his first acting role on American television as a Nazi SS officer in the 1978 mini-series ''Holocaust ...

as Wilbur Wright * David Huffman as Orville Wright * Tom Bower as William Tate *Robin Gammell as H.A. Toulmin * Scott Hylands as

Glenn Curtiss Glenn Hammond Curtiss (May 21, 1878 – July 23, 1930) was an American aviation and motorcycling pioneer, and a founder of the U.S. aircraft industry. He began his career as a bicycle racer and builder before moving on to motorcycles. As early ...

* John Randolph as

Alexander Graham Bell Alexander Graham Bell (, born Alexander Bell; March 3, 1847 – August 2, 1922) was a Scottish-born inventor, scientist and engineer who is credited with patenting the first practical telephone. He also co-founded the American Telephone and T ...

Kathryn Walker Kathryn Walker is an American theater, television and film actress. Biography Walker was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Wells College in Aurora, New York, and was a Fulbright Scholar in music and dra ...

Katharine Wright Katharine Wright Haskell (August 19, 1874 – March 3, 1929) was the younger sister of aviation pioneers Wilbur and Orville Wright. She worked closely with her brothers, managing their bicycle shop in Dayton, Ohio, when they were away; acting as ...

Eugene Roche Eugene Harrison Roche (September 22, 1928 – July 28, 2004) was an American actor and the original " Ajax Man" in 1970s television commercials. Personal life Roche was born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts, the son of Mary M. (née Finnegan ...

as Bishop Milton Wright *

John Hoyt John Hoyt (born John McArthur Hoysradt; October 5, 1905 – September 15, 1991) was an American actor. He began his acting career on Broadway, later appearing in numerous films and television series. He is perhaps best known for his film and TV ...

- Professor

Samuel Langley Samuel Pierpont Langley (August 22, 1834 – February 27, 1906) was an American aviation pioneer, astronomer and physicist who invented the bolometer. He was the third secretary of the Smithsonian Institution and a professor of astronomy ...

* Joseph Bernard - Mayor of New York, George B. McClellan Jr. *Lew Brown - Harlan Mumford (banker) *Carole Tru Foster - Agnes Osborne *

Dabbs Greer Robert William "Dabbs" Greer (April 2, 1917 – April 28, 2007) was an American character actor in film and television for over 60 years. With nearly 100 film roles and appearances in nearly 600 television episodes of various series, Greer m ...

- Ace Hutchin *Mo Malone - Elizabeth Mayfield *Robert Casper - Man *Tom Lawrence - Doctor *Ross Durfee -

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...

*Charles Macaulay - 2nd Genteral *Frank Farmer - Mr. Newell *

Steffen Zacharias Steffen Zacharias (April 11, 1927 – June 6, 1989) was a German-born Greek American character actor known for his roles in films and television in America and Italy. Biography Born in Germany to Greek parents, Zacharias grew up in the United ...

- Fisherman *Laurence Haddon - 1st General *Ari Zeltzer - Tom Tate * Vaughn Armstrong - Reporter *Marie Todd - *Gerald Berns - Reporter

References

External links

''The Winds of Kitty Hawk'' at IMDb.comallmovie/synopsis; ''The Winds of Kitty Hawk''Winds of Kitty Hawk''; AveleymanSample of Charles Bernstein's score to the film
Period Orchestral - ''1904 flight'') and others {{DEFAULTSORT:Winds Of Kitty Hawk, The 1978 television films 1978 films 1970s biographical drama films American aviation films American television films American biographical drama films Films set in the 1890s Films set in the 1900s Biographical television films Cultural depictions of the Wright brothers Films directed by E. W. Swackhamer 1970s American films

Cast

See also

References

External links