Louis Zamperini will be on Letterman's show tonight. Placed 8th in the 5000 in Berlin in 1936 then joined the Army Air Corps during WW2. His plane crashed in the Pacific and he spent 47 days adrift before being picked up by the Japsanese. Spent the rest of the war being tortured in POW camps. Ought to be a great interview.
Thanks....the dvr is set. If you haven't yet read "Unbreakable", do it.
Er....make that "Unbroken". And don't post before your first cup of coffee.
Got to meet the man several years ago. REad the book last winter. No tother word for it...Intense! Very good read. Interesting to see what the human body and mind can endure. Did sport help prepare him to survive? The forgiveness is inspirational and gives one hope for mankind.
thanks for the the heads up on Letterman's Zamperini interview.
My Bro-in-Law gave me the book "Unbroken" last June after he finished it. Time for me to get past the intro.
Zamperini... What an amazing human being.
Thanks for the heads up! What a great story.
His own autobiography, "Devil at My Heels" is also a very good read, shorter, first person, some detail that is not in "Unbroken". Inexpensive paperback version available.
What is good about them???
stillrunning1 wrote:
Thanks for the heads up! What a great story.
His own autobiography, "Devil at My Heels" is also a very good read, shorter, first person, some detail that is not in "Unbroken". Inexpensive paperback version available.
I'm going to look out for both those
"What is good about them???"
#1 - Zamperini's story is on par with Shackleton's odyssey.
#2 - Laura Hillenbrand, author of "Unbroken", spent 7 years researching and writing this book. She's an extremely talented writer, who knows quite a bit about perseverance herself.
For those readers in the Detroit area, Louis will be giving a speech at a local charity. $175 gets you in the door, and $250 gets you a private reception with him prior to the dinner. It's on November 2.
I'm on the fence on this one. Little pricey, but the book was fantastic and I bet it'll be worth every cent.
Damn! Letterman just started and it says they are going to have Keith Olbermann on instead of Zamperini! My Guide says "Salma Hayek, Jane's Addiction, and Louis Zamperini" but they just announced "Salma Hayek, Jane's Addiction, and Keith Olbermann". Rare chance to see an American hero just got nixed.
Louie was just 19 at the time and in a race he had only run twice before. His mile time at 21 @4:06 in 1939 likely put him on pace to run sub 4:00 within a few years about ten years before Roger Bannister was the first. Poor tracks,running shoes and scientific training all limited performances compared to today's athletes. Louie would likely still have achieved record performances post WW2 if his legs had not been severely injured by some of the guards/captives. Suggest you read the book and know him personally which I have. I am astonished by his ability to forgive his captors and his extraordinary positive attitude to life in general.
Well damn! Keith Olberman instead of Zamperini?! Bah!
He is still alive. In fact you can hire him for motivational speeches for your organization, sports teams, businesses etc...
Was looking forward to Letterman appearance Even though Dave is a grumpy old man). For the best interview in print I've seen of Louis Zamperini this year that concentrates a bunch on his running, go to http://www.garycohenrunning.com/Interviews/Zamperini.aspx
What if it is about wars, running and crap? Are you in then?
He actually wasn't "over there killing them". He crashed in the Pacific off the coast of Australia, and drifted at sea into Japanese territory, at which point he was brutally tortured for two years.A really stupid story, no doubt.I really hope you're a troll.
J.R. wrote:
Louie fan wrote:Hey JR - if you're interested in a story of indomitable human spirit, immense physical strength, humility, and total forgiveness of those who hate, then read the story.
You like the story, so I'm not interested.
But please do tell me what he was doing in their country?
He loved them, so he was over there killing them huh. What a stupid story. I can respect the guy cause he's old and has lived a long time, and used to be a good runner, good for him.
Read the book last month on a biz trip in Paris. Not incredibly well written, but I could not put it down because it is one of the greatest stories ever told. I cried a bit. The title is perfect. No God stuff.
Hopkinton wrote:
"What is good about them???"
#1 - Zamperini's story is on par with Shackleton's odyssey.
#2 - Laura Hillenbrand, author of "Unbroken", spent 7 years researching and writing this book. She's an extremely talented writer, who knows quite a bit about perseverance herself.
I don't want to get too stray too far from the topic, because I would have been interested to see this, but the book was horribly written, and Zamperini continually comes across as having fabricated his story.
Most of the facts were not taken from Zamperini, rather friends, enemies, and people with no vested interest in the story outcome.