JIMMY STEWART 1951 - 1964 CN BOARD OF DIRECTORS GSW James Stewart Date of birth (location) 20 May 1908 Indiana, Pennsylvania, USA Date of death (details) 2 July 1997 Los Angeles, California, USA. (pulmonary embolism following respiratory problems) Birth name James Maitland Stewart Nickname Jimmy Stewart Height 6' 3" (1.91 m) Mini biography His "aw shucks" demeanor has served him well as the good guy, the shy guy or the nice guy in films like Harvey (1950) and You Can't Take It with You (1938). Alfred Hitchcock turned him into a dramatic leading man in films like Rear Window (1954) and Vertigo (1958). Stewart also starred in his share of westerns, including The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), The Naked Spur (1953) and The Man from Laramie (1955). Spouse Gloria Stewart (9 August 1949 - 16 February 1994) (her death) 2 children Trade mark Soft-spoken, extremely polite and shy manner, with a very recognizable drawl in his voice. Often played honest, average middle class individuals who are unwittingly drawn into some kind of crisis. Trivia He was the first movie star to enter the service for World War II, joining a year before Pearl Harbor was bombed. He was initially refused entry into the Air Force because he weighed 5 pounds less than the required 148 pounds, but he talked the recruitment officer into ignoring the test. He eventually became a Colonel, and earned the Air Medal, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Croix de Guerre and 7 battle stars. In 1959, he served in the Air Force Reserve, before retiring as a brigadier general. When Stewart won the Best Actor Oscar in 1940, he sent it to his father in Indiana, Pennsylvania, who set it in his hardware shop. The trophy remained there for 25 years. When he left to serve in WWII, his father gave him a letter which he kept in his pocket everyday until the war ended. When Stewart served as an officer and a pilot in the Army Air Corps in WWII, one of the sergeants in his unit was Walter Matthau. He died one day after Robert Mitchum. Had four children - twin daughters Kelly Stewart and Judy Stewart-Murray who acted with their parents in "Password" (1961); and his wife's sons from a previous marriage, Ronald, five years old, and Michael, two years old when she married Stewart, who adopted them as his own. Ronald Stewart was killed in action while serving in the Vietnam War in 1969. Over 3,000 people, mostly Hollywood celebrities, attended his funeral to pay their respects. Oscar nominations and wins Academy Awards, USA Year Result Award Category/Recipient(s) 1985 - Honorary Award For his fifty years of memorable performances... for his high ideals both on and off the screen, with respect and affection of his colleagues. 1960 Nominated Oscar Best Actor in a Leading Role for: Anatomy of a Murder (1959) 1951 Nominated Oscar Best Actor in a Leading Role for: Harvey (1950) 1947 Nominated Oscar Best Actor in a Leading Role for: It's a Wonderful Life (1946) 1941 Won Oscar Best Actor in a Leading Role for: The Philadelphia Story (1940) 1940 Nominated Oscar Best Actor in a Leading Role for: Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) -IMDB.com (8/11/06) Kahle was born in West Virginia but moved to Oklahoma when he was a year old. An engineering major in college, Kahle, a member of the Civil Air Patrol during World War II, worked in the Oklahoma oilfields where he met barnstorming pilots. He also wrote about aviation, eventually becoming aviation editor for The Daily Oklahoman, while operating the Oklahoma City Flying School. He received strong encouragement from C.R. Smith, president of American Airlines, and Tom Braniff, founder and president of Braniff Airlines to start a feeder airline. He also landed investments from Fort Worth oilman F. Kirk Johnson Sr. and a close friend, movie star James Stewart. -Excerpt from Keith Kahle article by Bill Fairley (8/11/06) I think it is the very begining of "Strategic Air Command" with Jimmy Stewart, a Central Airlines DC-3 lands at Carswell with an engine out, cranks up the failed engine on roll-out and taxis to the alert ramp where a squad of "bad guys" jumps out to test the base's preparedness. -http://airdisaster.com/forums/showthread.php?p=392170 "Strategic Air Command" was made in 1955 and, besides Stewart, starred June Allyson, Frank Lovejoy and Barry Sullivan. -IMDB.com (8/11/06) Stewart's connection with Central runs from at least 1952 until 1963. A Feb 1952 item mentions his re-election to the CN Board. An article in the Jun 1954 CN Skywriter about the movie "Strategic Air Command" mentions Stewart is on the Board. The last mention of him is in the May-Jun 1963 CN Skywriter about him being on the "Advisory" Board of Directors. He was not listed as one of the 7 regular Board members in that article. The Apr 1964 CN Skywriter lists an updated 9 member Board of Directors and Stewart's name is not mentioned. There are tons of data on the internet about this well loved movie star. A Google search for him replied with a count of 4,640,000. If you want more info about him, a good place to start is his museum at http://www.jimmy.org -Jake Lamkins (8/12/06) I was just re-reading your article in the FALL 2006 issue of FRONTIER NEWS on Jimmy Stewart. He was a very good friend of F. Kirk Johnson and would fly into Ft. Worth to see him in his private A/C. I had the pleasure of meeting him in the hangar on Meacham Field several times, he was a very nice gentleman. When the Movie STRATEGIC AIR COMMAND was filmed, the DC-3 used in the early part of the movie was a CENTRAL AIRLINES Aircraft #939. While using it, the over use of the air stair door caused the hinges on the door to break and I and another mechanic were sent to replace them so the door could be closed and the plane flown back to Meacham Field. -Don Cecil (1/29/07) That's a good story. I found a copy of the movie on ebay.com for less than $10. Interesting movie and worth a view. -Jake Lamkins (1/29/07) Keith Kahle started two airlines before CN and one of them was Southwest Airways. James Stewart, the actor, who was later a CN board member, was involved with Southwest too. The California version of Southwest was renamed Pacific Airlines which merged with Bonanza and West Coast airlines on Apr 17, 1968 to form Air West. Air West, in turn, became Hughes Air West - then Republic West - then Republic in Oct 1980 - then Northwest on Oct 1 1986. -Jake Lamkins (9/6/07) FLacebook - FL Club CN Board member Jimmy Stewart's memorial webpage has been upgraded: http://FAL-1.tripod.com/Jimmy_Stewart.html Moved to a non-ad website and added a few items. -Jake Lamkins (9/4/15) FLacebook Jake Lamkins Mar 30, 2021 Pilot Dick Stevens sent this great pic of Jimmy Stewart taken at DRO in Jun 1952 where he filmed Naked Spur. He was on the Central Airlines Board of Directors from 1951 until 1964 when his good friend Kirk Johnson sold his controlling interest in the airline. One of my favorite actors: he enlisted in the army as a private in Feb 1941 and came out a general in the air corps. Afterwards, he never made a war movie. http://FAL-1.tripod.com/Jimmy_Stewart.html Steve Tidler One of my favorite actors of all time ! Liz Gomez Jimmy Stewart is in our Frontier Airlines Family Of Memories Page Ed Huntsman Well, there was Strategic Air Command . . . and the introduction for a documentary named "Thunderbolt." Great actor and funny guy regardless - one of the greats to be sure! Ginger Treptow Awesome Actor. Saw several of his movies. Loved "The Glenn Miller Story". Gary Wingert Several of us ramp rats flew to SLC for a skiing weekend. At the end of the day, we got on the elevator on the hotel to go to our rooms and Jimmy and his wife were onboard. Super nice guy. Ruth Pitts I will never forget how tall he was also his wife we were on Frontier Flight back from movie of Cheyenne Autumn premiere was made in Wyo. what a time we had - met lot of the stars ⭐- how nice Jimmy Stewart was. Bill Elliott My Father would always talk about his encounters with Jimmy Stewart . He said he was always respectful to all of the airline personnel. (3/30/21)