Tuesday, June 08, 2010

One Last Escape

Jack Harrison, the last survivor of The Great Escape dies at 97 | Mail Online: "In the end, it was only time from which he could not escape. Jack Harrison, the last of those involved in the 'Great Escape', has passed away, peacefully and quietly, at the age of 97.

It has been 66 years since the dark night when he waited with bated breath, preparing to crawl through ‘Harry’ and under the wire of Stalag Luft III.

Many years after the war the former RAF pilot, and his brave and resourceful comrades, would be immortalised by the iconic 1963 film - starring Richard Attenborough and Steve McQueen - which remains the staple fare of every Christmas Day celebration."

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

So is it "the last survivor" or "one of the last survivors"?

The article can't make up its mind.

I read the book and saw the movie (many times), which is one of my all-time favorites.

Jeff

Unknown said...

When I was teaching high school, not long after the film came out, I let some of my students borrow my paperback copy of the book. I think it got passed around to dozens of kids. I still have what's left of it.

Brent McKee said...

For me the biggest problem with the movie is Steve McQueen. Cool beyond a doubt, but the focus on him and the whole motorcycle chase sequence - apparently included because McQueen loved racing motorcycles - takes away from the movie. At least it does for me.