Night Over Water is a fictionalized account of the final flight of the Pan American Clipper passenger airplane during the first few days of World War II, early September, 1939. Follett is careful to state that, though the flight and all of the characters are fictional the plane, a Boeing 314, was real and was nicknamed the "Pan Am Clipper." It was a flying boat, an aircraft that landed in the sea, not on an airstrip, powered by 4 propeller engines. It was capable of crossing the Atlantic Ocean in little more than 24 hours with intermediate stops in Shannon Estuary at Foynes, Ireland, Bay of Exploits at Botwood, Newfoundland and Shediac Bay, Canada, at each of which stops Follett adds a scene or two of intrigue. This route made the Pan Am Clipper the fastest mode of transatlantic travel at the time — and very appealing to those who wanted to escape from Britain before the start of the war.
The tale begins with several separated threads, telling the individual stories of the people who later all end up in this last flight to New York. Though Follett bundles all these together, the events the characters share while travelling with the clipper are still told through the perspectives introduced before. Each of these main characters is heading for his own interests in the beginning but soon they melt together.
The theme is the importance of recognizing the threat of totalitarianism and also a feminist message of women standing up for themselves[citation needed].
List of Characters
Tom Luther - enigmatic passenger with a mystery mission to kidnap a fleeing passenger
Eddie Deakin - flight engineer being blackmailed by the kidnapping of his wife into helping Tom Luther
Carl Hartmann - German Jewish physicist fleeing Nazis
Clive Membury - British passenger
Baron Gabon - French Jewish aristocrat helping Carl Hartmann flee
The Oxenfords (Lord, Lady, Elizabeth, Percy, Margaret) - wealthy English family. Lord Oxenford is a Nazi sympathizer who will be arrested if he remains in England another week. Margaret is his 19-year-old rebellious daughter. Lady Oxenford is traveling with the priceless Delhi Suite jewels.
Harry Marks - charming young lower class English jewel thief jumping bail to America
Diana Lovesey - beautiful 34-year-old Englishwoman running away from an unhappy marriage
Mark Alder - 35-year-old American radio scriptwriter running away with Diana Lovesey, friend of Lulu Bell
Mervyn Lovesey - Diana's 38-year-old handsome but controlling British industrialist husband who wants his wife back
Nancy Lenehan - tough-minded 40-year-old American businesswoman rushing home to save her shoe factory from being sold off by her sneaky younger brother falls in love with Mervyn Lovesey
Peter Black - 38-year-old brother of Nancy Lenehan, racing to a board meeting to vote his sister out
Nat Ridgeway - Nancy's mentor in business and former beau
Captain Marvin Baker - Clipper pilot
First Officer Johnny Dott - Clipper co-pilot
Mickey Finn - Eddie Deakin's deputy flight engineer
Lulu Bell - famous American actress
Princess Lavinia - Russian princess escaping to America
Steve Appleby - Eddie Deakin's old Navy buddy
Vincini, Joe and Kid - thugs who kidnapped Eddie's wife
Ollis Field - F.B.I. agent escorting the extradited Frank Gordon to America
Frank Gordon A.K.A. Frankie Gordino - handsome American mobster, wanted in the US for rape, murder and arson
Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and more commonly known as Pan Am, was an airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States for much of the 20th century. It was the first airline to fly worldwide and pioneered numerous innovations of the modern airline industry, such as jumbo jets and computerized reservation systems. Until its dissolution on December 4, 1991, Pan Am "epitomized the luxury and glamour of intercontinental travel", and it remains a cultural icon of the 20th century, identified by its blue globe logo, the use of the word "Clipper" in its aircraft names and call signs, and the white uniform caps of its pilots.
Juan Terry Trippe was an American commercial aviation pioneer, entrepreneur and the founder of Pan American World Airways, one of the iconic airlines of the 20th century. He was involved in the introduction of the Sikorsky S-42, which opened trans-Pacific airline travel, the Boeing 307 Stratoliner which introduced cabin pressurization to airline operations, the Boeing 707 which started a new era in low cost jet transportation, and the Boeing 747 jumbo jets. Trippe's signing of the 747 contract coincided with the 50th anniversary of Boeing. He also founded InterContinental Hotels & Resorts.
China Clipper (NC14716) was the first of three Martin M-130 four-engine flying boats built for Pan American Airways and was used to inaugurate the first commercial transpacific airmail service from San Francisco to Manila on November 22, 1935. Built at a cost of $417,000 by the Glenn L. Martin Company in Baltimore, Maryland, it was delivered to Pan Am on October 9, 1935. It was one of the largest airplanes of its time.
The Boeing 377 Stratocruiser was a large long-range airliner developed from the C-97 Stratofreighter military transport, itself a derivative of the B-29 Superfortress. The Stratocruiser's first flight was on July 8, 1947. Its design was advanced for its day; its relatively innovative features included two passenger decks and a pressurized cabin. It could carry up to 100 passengers on the main deck plus 14 in the lower deck lounge; typical seating was for 63 or 84 passengers or 28 berthed and five seated passengers.
The Boeing 314 Clipper was an American long-range flying boat produced by Boeing from 1938 to 1941. One of the largest aircraft of its time, it had the range to cross the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. For its wing, Boeing re-used the design from the earlier XB-15 bomber prototype. Twelve Clippers were built, nine of which served with Pan Am.
Pan Am Flight 759 was a regularly scheduled domestic passenger flight from Miami to San Diego, with en route stops in New Orleans and Las Vegas. On July 9, 1982, the Boeing 727 flying this route crashed in the New Orleans suburb of Kenner after being forced down by a microburst shortly after takeoff. All 145 on board, as well as eight people on the ground, were killed.
In December 1973, Fatah, a Palestinian military organization executed series of attacks originating at Rome-Fiumicino Airport in Italy which resulted in the deaths of 34 people. The attacks began with an airport-terminal invasion and hostage-taking, followed by the firebombing of a Pan Am aircraft and the hijacking of a Lufthansa flight.
The Sikorsky S-40 was an American amphibious flying boat built by Sikorsky in the early 1930s for Pan American Airways. During WW2 they were used by the United States Navy for training.
James Patrick Sheridan is an American actor known for playing a wide range of roles in theater, film, and television. He's best known for Randall Flagg in The Stand (1994), Captain James Deakins on Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001-2006), and Robert Queen on Arrow (2012-2019).
Pan Am Flight 845 was a scheduled international passenger flight between Los Angeles and Tokyo, with an intermediate stop at San Francisco. The flight was operated by a Boeing 747 registered N747PA and named Clipper America.
The Family Jewels is a 1965 American comedy film. It was filmed from January 18 to April 2, 1965, and was released by Paramount Pictures on July 1, 1965. The film was co-written, directed, and produced by Jerry Lewis who also played seven roles in the film. Lewis' co-star, Donna Butterworth, made only one other film, Paradise, Hawaiian Style, with Elvis Presley. Gary Lewis & The Playboys have a cameo in which they sing "Little Miss Go-Go"; their hit song "This Diamond Ring" is also featured.
You’re Never Too Young is a 1955 American semi-musical comedy film directed by Norman Taurog and starring the team of Martin and Lewis and co-starring Diana Lynn, Nina Foch, and Raymond Burr. It was released on August 25, 1955 by Paramount Pictures.
Pointe-du-Chêne is a community and former local service district in Westmorland County, New Brunswick. Located on Shediac Bay, an inlet of the Northumberland Strait, Pointe-du-Chêne, also called La Pointe, is the home of Parlee Beach Provincial Park. It was once the terminus of the European and North American Railway and was a key stopover for Pan-Am's Trans Atlantic air service inaugurated in 1939. Pointe-du-Chêne became a cottage resort area in the early 20th century. Summer excursion trains from Moncton brought day trippers to the seashore. The railway terminus and proximity to Parlee Beach, made it an ideal location for cottages.
Flight to Fury is a 1964 film starring Jack Nicholson, Fay Spain, Vic Diaz and Dewey Martin. The film was directed by Monte Hellman and filmed back to back with Back Door to Hell in the Philippines in 1964.
Pan Am Flight 217 was a Boeing 707 that crashed near Caracas, Venezuela while on a flight from New York City, USA on December 12, 1968. Though pilot error was to blame, the National Transportation Safety Board concluded the probable cause was undetermined. There were no survivors.
The China Clipper flight departure site is listed as California Historical Landmark number 968. It is the site from which Pan American World Airways initiated trans-Pacific airmail service on November 22, 1935. A flying boat named China Clipper made the first trip, and the publicity for that flight caused all flying boats on that air route to become popularly known as China Clippers. For a few years, this pioneering mail service captured the public imagination like the earlier Pony Express, and offered fast luxury travel like the later Concorde.
The Conmen in Vegas is a 1999 Hong Kong action comedy film produced, written and directed by Wong Jing and is a sequel to the 1998 film The Conman. The film stars original returning cast members Andy Lau and Nick Cheung with new cast members Natalis Chan, Kelly Lin, Meggie Yu, Alex Man and Jewel Lee in her debut film role. The film was partially filmed in the Caesars Palace Resort, Las Vegas.
The Seaplane Baby Clipper NC 16933 Crash took place in Rio de Janeiro on August 13, 1939. The aircraft, owned by Pan Am, was flying Miami-Rio, with stops in the cities of Antilla, Port-au-Prince, San Pedro de Macorís, San Juan, Port of Spain, Georgetown, Paramaribo, Cayenne, Belém, São Luís, Fortaleza, Natal, João Pessoa, Recife, Maceió, Aracaju, Salvador, Caravelas and Vitória. This would be the first accident of a Pan Am aircraft in Brazil.
Cabo Ruivo Seaplane Base was an international airport for seaplanes located in the city of Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. It takes its name from the Lisbon neighbourhood of Cabo Ruivo. The airport was, especially throughout the Second World War, a major gateway and escape route for intercontinental air travel.
Crash Landing is a 1958 American dramatic disaster film directed by Fred F. Sears starring Gary Merrill and Nancy Davis.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
