In this interview, with three Vietnam Veterans Don Critchfield, Joe Wolak and John Andescavage, you’ll hear how they filmed and photographed the Vietnam War for the U.S. Army. How did they become photographers for the Army? What were their challenges at war?
Here are their personal stories in a Zoom talk with artist Steve Maloney and added archival materials. What do you think? We want to hear from you. Send us your comments.
This is the second part of our Zoom talk between Fred Bell (Vice Chairman of the Palm Springs Air Museum) and Steve Maloney (creator of the Take Me Home Huey project).
Have you ever thought of creating art out of a helicopter? The Bell Iroquois helicopter, Model 205, UH-1H is 57 feet long, and 14 feet high, with its rotor diameter of 48 feet. No chance trying to fit that aircraft into an art studio. Artist Steve Maloney knew that he needed to find a space for the restored UH-1H Huey helicopter that he was planning to use for creating his Take Me Home Huey sculpture.
Fred Bell had his hands full with construction for a new Vietnam hangar at the time, though he immediately offered the artist some outdoor space. Living part of the year in Palm Springs, Steve was very familiar with the strong winds and the amount of dust that could cause issues while working on an art piece. He had to come up with a plan to protect his creation while he was taking his time to work on it.
He discovered two military style tents on eBay and had some help to put it all together. Watch the great time lapse in the video to see how that looked like. With the established pop-up tent studio at the Air Museum Steve Maloney could get to work. Being surrounded by historical aircrafts, airport sounds and mountain views was very inspirational, but most importantly Steve found that visitors stopping by in particular veterans, where a great resource to get feedback on his progressing artwork. It was the perfect location.
The museum emphasizes the importance of history and the art of displaying historical artifacts in an engaging way. With over 300 veteran volunteers from different eras and conflicts the museum manages to keep history alive through personal stories about the aircraft on display. Fred shares some special stories about visitors from the military fraternity. Watch the film to find out how Fred found the newest edition for the museum at groom lake, the restricted area 51.
Welcome to our blog. Take Me Home Huey is an ongoing multimedia project with the mission of honoring veterans and promoting healing through art.
So much has happened since artist Steve Maloney started the project in 2014. Steve was inspired to create the helicopter sculpture when he heard about the Commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Vietnam War — initially established by Congress in 2008 and officially launched by President Barack Obama in 2012 — the staggering number of veterans who take their own lives. A Huey helicopter proved to be a perfect canvas to honor and thank our veterans since it is the iconic machine of the Vietnam War.
Did you know that the Take Me Home Huey project consists of more than a helicopter sculpture? It is also an award-winning documentary film and a powerful song. Now a book is in the making, to be published in 2021. Perhaps you saw Huey 174 on exhibit as it toured the country or you watched the Take Me Home Huey documentary when it aired on PBS nationwide.
Would like to know more? We hope you do! In the coming months, we’ll be posting lots of behind-the-scenes stories about the Huey from its heyday flying rescue missions in Vietnam, to its discovery in an Arizona boneyard, through its detailed restoration, and eventual rebirth as a work of art. To honor those who served.
Follow us in the coming months on Facebook & YouTube to get the full story on all aspects of the project. Your opinion is important to us. Leave us some feedback below. We welcome your contributions as well. Send us an email with your suggestions.
Your Take Me Home Huey (TMHH) team!
Escorted by the patriot riders of VVA chapter 388, including Tom Spencer and Sheriff Furlong with his motorcycle crew the Take Me Home Huey truck & huey arrived in Carson City ( October 1, 2017). Mayor Bob Crowell suggested to stop right in front of the City Hall for a great photo op.
From there, the motorcade continued to the East Community Center, where Mayor Crowell, and city officials Nick Marano (city manager), representative of Senator Heller, representative of Senator Cortez Masto, Shane Whitecloud (VRC – Veteran Resource Centers of America) addressed their speeches to recognize the veterans community and their health concerns, as well as welcoming the Take Me Home Huey project.
The following video is an edited clip to tribute Mayor Robert “Bob” Crowell of Carson City, Nevada, who had unfortunately passed away September of 2020. Bob Crowell was a strong leader in his community and a compassionate advocate for veterans. He had served in the Navy for 23 years, including in Vietnam.
It was a honor to meet Mayor Crowell and we greatly appreciated his engagement in our event. Our condolences to his family and the entire Carson City community.
