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Storytelling.
Lieut. Pat O'Brien. R. . F. C, had enough experiences escaping from a German prison camp to write a book about them. The program says he is the author of "Outwitting the Hun." Lieut. Pat tells something about his escape while a turn at the Palace this week, but he doesn't tell the half of it. He allows the audience to imagine the most, and the flying lieutenant, from his talk, would appear to believe that talking to the King of England for 52 minutes was of more
importance than taking a chance on his life every minute for 62 days. That is the length of time it needed for the escaped prisoner to reach Holland following his unannounced departure from Germany. Lieut. O'Brien lightly touches' upon a drop of 7,000 feet in his airplane, after being hit just above the teeth with a bullet. The next thing he saw was the interior of a German hospital. The escape occurred while he was being transferred with other prisoners, through O'Brien dropping from a train window with the guard looking at him, while going at 30 or 35 miles an hour. And another drop taken by the lieutenant in Texas, of 2,000 feet, was made the subject of a joke by him. Lieut. Pat enlisted with the Royal Flying Corps (English), was mustered out in England through having been a prisoner in Germany (second capture there would have meant death as a spy), and was rejected by the American forces where he applied, through physical disability, but was a private in the French Legion when the armistice was signed. That boy certainly has had some thrills, but he tells it all with,
the thrill deleted, apparently believing the house would prefer to laugh than thrill at him. He's an American and he's Irish and, says several things that draw applause on the patriotic
hue. He's a well built fellow of pleasant appearance, appearing in the R. F. C. uniform, wears. a small time mustache and carries a cane. Lieut. Pat has received plenty of publicity for his
miraculous escape. He mentioned King George was so interested that he (Pat) got the world's record for an interview with His Majesty, 52 minutes. He referred to the King at three
points, the third time making it a part of the stage talk. The audience no doubt would have been more interested in Pat's field experiences. Very few in front knew George except by
rep. .Another George, George Gottleib, with Elmer F. Rogers, was responsible for placing' Lieut. Pat in vaudeville. They had heard about him, of course, and hearing he intended to
speak at a dinner downtown somewhere dropped in to get a dinner, for themselves and hear the hero. The Palace engagement follows. Lieut. Pat O'Brien-is what would be called a great
guy among many great guys. He could talk for hours in a room with no one walking out on him, and tell nothing but personal experiences, in the air and on the ground. Just now he
is timely, speaks well and interestingly, especially to those who remained at home while he was fighting everything ever there. Through that he is an attraction because he is among the first to appear on the stage as a war veteran. Lieut Pat told how his pal, Paul Raney (or Rainey), also R. F. C, of Toronto, had been killed in the air while he was looking at him, and said America might forget the Hun, but that, if he lived to be one hundred, he never could.
Source:
Variety, 54:1 (02/28/1919)