Robert J. Serling

Robert Jerome Serling (born Jerome Robert Serling;[4] March 28, 1918 – May 6, 2010) was an American novelist and aviation writer.

Robert J. Serling
BornJerome Robert Serling
(1918-03-28)28 March 1918
Cortland, New York, U.S.
Died6 May 2010(2010-05-06) (aged 92)
Tucson, Arizona, U.S.
Resting placeLake View Cemetery
Interlaken, New York, U.S.
OccupationNovelist, writer
GenreNon-fiction, historical fiction, aviation stories
Years active1945–2008[1]
Notable worksThe President's Plane Is Missing
Spouses
  • Patricia Huntley (m. 1949; div. 19??)[2]
  • Priscilla Arone
    (m. 1968; died 2000)
  • Patricia Hoyer
    (m. 2002)

    [3]
Children2
RelativesRod Serling (brother)

Biography

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Born in Cortland, New York and raised in Binghamton, Serling graduated from Antioch College in 1942.[5] He "deplored the name Jerome" and swapped his first and middle names as a young man.[4] He was the older brother of screenwriter and The Twilight Zone creator Rod Serling.[6]

Serling became full-time aviation editor for United Press International in 1960. He wrote at least eight novels and sixteen books of nonfiction. His novel The President's Plane Is Missing was made into a 1973 made-for-TV film starring Buddy Ebsen. He received the 1988 Lauren D. Lyman Award "for distinguished achievement in the field of aviation and aerospace journalism."[7]

He had two children with his second wife, Priscilla Arone, a former Western Airlines stewardess. His daughter Jennifer is a veterinary technician.[4]

Serling died of pancreatic cancer on May 6, 2010, at age 92 in Tucson, Arizona. He is buried beside his second wife, Priscilla Arone Serling, brother Rod Serling, and sister-in-law Carol Serling at Lake View Cemetery in Interlaken, New York.[4][8][9][10][11]

Fiction

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TitlePublishedISBNsNotes
The Left SeatDoubleday, 1966Paperback: Popular Library, 1966
The President's Plane Is MissingDoubleday, 1967Paperback: Dell, 1968
She'll Never Get off the GroundDoubleday, 1971Paperback: Dell, 1972
McDermott's SkyLaurel Group, 19770930392000, 9780930392000Paperback: Pocket Books, 1980
WingsDial Press, 19780803795920, 9780803795921Paperback: New American Library, 1979
StewardessSt. Martin's, 19820312761937, 9780312761936Paperback: New American Library, 1984
Air Force One Is HauntedSt. Martin's, 19850312015348, 9780312015343Sequel to The President's Plane Is Missing, again featuring President Haines
Something's Alive on the TitanicSt. Martin's, 1990031205159X, 9780312051594Paperback: St. Martin's, 1993

Non-fiction

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TitlePublishedISBNNotes
The Probable Cause: The Truth About Air Travel TodayDoubleday & Co., 1960Library of Congress 60-15194Paperback: Ballantine Books, 1964
The Electra StoryDoubleday & Co., 1963Library of Congress 63-7715Paperback: Bantam Books, 1991
Loud and Clear: The Full Answer to Aviation's Vital Question – Are the Jets Really Safe?Doubleday & Co., 1969Paperback: Dell, 1970
Birth of an Industry: A Nostalgic Collection of Airline Schedules for the Years 1929 to 1939 (in facsimile)R. H. Donnelly, 1969
Ceiling Unlimited: The Story of North Central AirlinesWalsworth Publishing, 1973LCCN 73090730
Little Giant: The Story of Gates LearJetSerling, 1974
Maverick: The Story of Robert Six and Continental AirlinesDoubleday & Co., 19740385040571, 9780385040570
The Only Way to Fly: The Story of Western Airlines, America's Senior Air CarrierDoubleday & Co., 19760385013426, 9780385013420
The Jet AgeTime-Life Books, 19789780809433636, 9780809433629Series: "The Epic of Flight"
From the Captain to the Colonel: An Informal History of Eastern AirlinesDial Press, 19800803746105, 9780803746107
Howard Hughes' Airline: An Informal History of TWASt. Martin's Press, 19830312396317, 9780312396312
Eagle: The Story of American AirlinesSt. Martin's Press, 19850312224532, 9780312224530
Countdown: An AutobiographySilver Arrow, 19880-688-07929-6, 9780688079291co-authored with Frank Borman
Legend and Legacy: The Story of Boeing and Its PeopleSt. Martin's Press, 1992031205890X 9780312058906
When the Airlines Went to WarKensington Books, 19971575662469, 9781575662466
Steel Rails and Silver Wings: The Lindbergh Line to the Birth of TWAWeekend Chief Pub., 20060961281499, 9780961281496co-authored with George H. Foster
Character and Characters: The Spirit of Alaska AirlinesDocumentary Media, 20089781933245119

Career

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  • Was a United Press International, Washington, DC, reporter and manager of Radio News Division, 1945–60, aviation editor, 1960–66; air safety lecturer and consultant, beginning 1966.
  • Received numerous honors of his work throughout his career: Trans-World Airlines, seven awards, 1958–65, for aviation news reporting, Strebig-Dobben Memorial Award, 1960; special citations from Sherman Fairchild Foundation, 1963, Flight Safety Foundation, 1970, and Airline Pilots Association, 1970; Aviation/Space Writers Association, James Trebig Memorial Award, 1964, special citation, 1967, award in fiction, 1966, for The Left Seat, and in nonfiction, 1969, for Loud and Clear.
  • Collected commercial airline models (more than four hundred during his life) and material on aviation research.
  • Member of the Society of Air Safety Investigators and the Aviation/Space Writers Association
  • Brother Rod Serling hired him as a technical consultant (for which he received on-screen credit) for the airplane sequences in the episode "The Odyssey of Flight 33" of his hit TV-show The Twilight Zone. Robert Serling also received advisor or researcher credits on two other Rod Serling scripts: one each for scripts penned for Studio One and Playhouse 90.
  • Something's Alive on the Titanic and The President's Plane Is Missing are fantasy novels set in real life high-profile backdrops.
  • Was a reporter for the Washington Redskins. Travelled with the team and roomed with quarterback Eddie LeBaron.
  • He was a very devout conservative Republican, in contrast to his brother’s liberal Democratic stance.
  • Authored the short story "Ghost Writer" published in Twilight Zone: 19 Original Stories on the 50th Anniversary.
  • In 2008, was featured speaker at the 32nd annual Airliners International collectibles show and convention in Dallas, Texas.[12]

References

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  1. ^ Dennis McLellan (May 20, 2010). "Robert J. Serling dies at 92; one of the nation's top aviation writers". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  2. ^ Los Angeles Times, Robert J. Serling dies at 92; one of the nation’s top aviation writers by Dennis McClellan, May 20, 2010, Retrieved Sep. 4, 2019.
  3. ^ The Washington Post, Robert Serling (obituary), May 12, 2010, Retrieved Sep. 4, 2019.
  4. ^ a b c d Fox, Margalit (May 18, 2010). "Robert J. Serling, Aviation Writer, Dies at 92". The New York Times. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
  5. ^ "Robert J. Serling Obituary (2010) the Seattle Times". Legacy.com.
  6. ^ Henry, Bonny (September 24, 2006). "Love of aviation led to seven-decade writing career". Associated Press Newswires.
  7. ^ "Robert Serling to receive 1988 Lauren D. Lyman Award". Aviation Daily. Vol. 295, no. 3. January 5, 1989.
  8. ^ Find-A-Grave, Robert Jerome Serling, Retrieved Sep. 4, 2019.
  9. ^ Find-A-Grave, Priscilla Elane Arone Serling, Retrieved Sep. 4, 2019.
  10. ^ Geni, Robert Jerome Serling (1918–2010), managed by Jennifer Serling, May 24, 2018, Retrieved Sep. 4, 2019.
  11. ^ Find-A-Grave, Carolyn Louise (Kramer) Serling, Retrieved Mar. 20, 2020.
  12. ^ "Welcome to Our 42nd Convention Celebration! Here are some of the details we have gleaned from the Airliners International Archives". Airliners International. Retrieved March 15, 2018.
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