Contact us @:
rittmeister@earthlink.netDer Rittmeister Militaria, LLC. Content Pages: JACK HUNTER INTRO. Updated on 9 January 2008.
Contact us @: rittmeister@earthlink.net
Now you can
search for items that interest you on Der Rittmeister Militaria's Website by
keywords or phrases. Simply type the word (s) or phrases into the Locate
Item(s) space below, then click the Search button to the right.
This will generate a list of appropriate pages containing the items you want.
New
items on
Bala's Bargain Bin, our clearance
page, effective
14 August 2007
AND INTRODUCING our NEWEST Sale Page:
Kyri's Kurio Korner, featuring great
little items from a
cute little cat -- at reduced prices! Effective 14 August 2007!!
We now have an office in Germany 0049 (0)4104-962028!!
The Books, art, and associated items of Jack D. Hunter the author of
"The Blue Max."Jack Hunter is an old and dear friend of ours. He has had his "own" page on our Web Site from its inception in 1996. His world-famous, best-seller, "The Blue Max," hit the market in 1964 and was a huge inspiration for me. It fueled what became a life-long interest in the Great War in general, and its War in the Air in particular.
Jack is now a spry eighty-five years young and has decided to liquidate his collection of books, art, (he is an extraordinary artist) artifacts, etc. He has entrusted Der Rittmeister Militaria, LLC to assist him in the orderly sale of his collection. We were touched and honored that he is allowing us to do so.
In the coming weeks we will share with you many truly exciting items. I have seen many while visiting with Jack in the past. I know you will be as impressed with what he has to offer as I was. For our first week, we are offering two editions of his ground-breaking novel, "The Blue Max."
"The Blue Max" is the first of SIXTEEN books Jack wrote over a span of five decades. I remember him telling me how he wrote "The Blue Max" at a small desk in his bedroom. For seven months, he'd write each night after a full day's work at Du Pont, scribbling long-hand with a pencil on a legal pad because his typewriter was too noisy and kept the wife and kids awake. What sustained him was the awareness that never had there been published a serious, definitive novel about World War I aviation from the German point of view -- even in German. This fact, plus Jack's intimate knowledge of World War I aircraft and Germany and the German people, gave him the temerity to try to fill this literary and historical gap. All the way he was cheered on by his beloved wife, Tommy (they've been married for sixty-two years).
In 1963 E. P. Dutton, the New York publishing house, agreed to publish "The Blue Max." Its first day of publication was 16 March 1964. Dutton ordered 5,000 copies printed in that 1st edition, then the standard order for an unknown author. Within two weeks of publication however, Darryl Zanuck, chief of 20th Century Fox, personally acquired the rights to make a major motion picture of the work. To capitalize on this, Dutton immediately authorized Bantam Books to issue the novel as a paperback - and the work ultimately became an INTERNATIONAL best-seller, with more than a MILLION copies produced in all major languages, in hard and soft cover and audio.
Meanwhile the 5,000 Dutton 1st editions disappeared, and seldom reappear on the market. They are very expensive. (I am embarrassed to admit what I paid for mine some ten years ago) and VERY difficult to find! So, dear readers, sit back and watch this space in the coming weeks as we offer items that come DIRECTLY from Jack D. Hunter. We also encourage you to go to the Jack D. Hunter Page (click here) and learn more about this interesting man [and good friend].
THE ART OF JACK HUNTER
To acquire an original piece of work from a noted artist is an exquisite pleasure. Mr. Hunter's works are displayed in public and private collections worldwide. When you purchase one of his works, it is accompanied by Mr. Hunter’s personal letter of provenance confirming its authenticity, and a brief description of the painting’s action. I have several pieces of Mr. Hunter’s work in my personal collection. I gaze at them daily with as much admiration and pride as I did when he first sent them to me.
Most of Mr. Hunter’s paintings are done in mixed, water-based media on illustration board and measure 15 by 20 inches. In addition to the caption and letter of provenance, he personally signs each painting. This is another assurance that you have a Hunter original!
Interestingly, when Mr. Hunter sold his first novel, "The Blue Max," to E. P. Dutton, the deal included the sale of his first painting. Since it was the first novel of an unknown author, Dutton set a press run of only 5,000 copies. They provided no budget for a full-color dust jacket by a commercial artist, which meant it would be launched with a simple black-and-white jacket. When informed of this Mr. Hunter, then a total novice, told the publisher he would paint a jacket illustration for free. With only paper and ink to lose, the publisher agreed. Thus, Jack Hunter not only sold his first novel but also, in effect, his first painting.
Der Rittmeister offers existing, noncommissioned examples of his work. On a limited basis, Mr. Hunter will accept your commission. You may request a specific subject: i.e., your favorite aircraft doing its thing, an historical event in aviation history, or a certain incident involving your favorite flier. (Such commissions require a non-refundable deposit.)
Now, you too have an opportunity to own an original painting from this very talented author and artist. Sit back for the next several weeks and watch this space to enjoy our presentation of Jack. D. Hunter’s artworks!
[Under copyright law, when Mr. Hunter creates an original piece of art, he retains ownership of the work. This means when you buy one of his paintings you may reproduce it and sell copies of it only with his written permission and with a written agreement to pay him a royalty on each sale. On the other hand, because he retains ownership, he is free to sell signed, limited edition prints of your picture. This, of course, works to your advantage as well. Not only do you have sole possession of the original painting in perpetuity, you also have a piece whose value is enhanced by its wide distribution and consequent recognition. If you later decide to sell the work, the fact that a limited edition exists enables you to ask a higher price than that which you paid. The right of sole perpetual possession of the original then passes on to the purchaser, who then is required to keep the artist’s ownership and commercial interests intact.
Remember, even if prints of an original are sold, the original is yours alone to possess and enjoy].
$250.00
16-210 XJDH "WHO WON WHAT HERE, CAP N?" - COLOR WORK STUDY - JACK D. HUNTER. This is what Jack Hunter refers to as a "Color Work Study." He usually does these on scrap illustration board. They are, in fact, a prelude to a full-sized painting. This is a study of a British BE-2, which, in the painting to come, will be shown scouting low over No-Man’s Land. In this study he concentrates on a British BE 2, and suggests the treatment of the barren landscape. In the full-sized painting, he further details the plane and "sophisticates" the background. With the color study, you have a simpler rendition which, when properly framed, makes a wonderful display for your collecting room or elsewhere in your home.
$1,195.00
16-211 XJDH "NAVIGATING BY RAILROAD" - ORIGINAL PAINTING - JACK D.HUNTER. This original shows a Curtiss Jenny flying close above a back-country freight train. Navigating by railroad tracks was quite common in the early days of aviation’s "Golden Years." This scene took place in the 1920's, as aviation in America was beginning its growth period.
$1,195.00
16-221 XJDH "SCHOOL’S OUT." ORIGINAL PAINTING - JACK D. HUNTER. War over, many U.S. Air Service pilots bought surplus JN-4 "Jennies" for a few dollars apiece and "barnstormed" the country, stunting at air shows and, when times were especially lean, offering sightseeing rides for little more than lunch and fuel money. Here a kid has saved up the 50 cents asked for a 10-minute after-school buzz over the Nebraska flatlands. This painting measures 15" x 20" and is done in mixed media.
$1,195.00
16-223 XJDH "HIT THE DECK!" ORIGINAL PAINTING - JACK D. HUNTER. The pilot of a British BE-2 observation craft, a clumsy, poorly gunned machine, applies the only tactic giving him the best chance of surviving the attack of the much-feared German Fokker "Eindekker" -- dropping to ground level and hedgehopping his way to the safety of Allied territory. This painting measures 15" x 20" and is done in mixed media.
The rear gunner of a German Halberstadt ground-support plane concentrates on dropping a stick of small bombs on an Allied supply road choked with ammo wagons and trucks. He will be rudely awakened in a moment when an approaching American Spad 13 riddles him with broadside machine-gun bursts. This painting measures 15" x 20" and is done in mixed media. $1,195.00
16-225 XJDH "BOMBS AWAY!" ORIGINAL PAINTING - JACK D. HUNTER.
12-499 "THE BLUE MAX" by JACK D. HUNTER - 1st EDITION (5,000 COPIES ONLY) FROM E. P. DUTTON. When "The Blue Max" was released by E. P. Dutton, a mere 5,000 copies were produced. This was fairly standard for an unknown (and previously unpublished) author. Well, talk about lightning striking! Shortly after the book was published (TWO weeks after, to be precise) the chief of 20th Century Fox, Darryl Zanuck, bought the book's movie rights. 20th Century Fox was known in Hollywood for its blockbuster epics. Zanuck had just completed The Longest Day, which included a large cast of many of Hollywood's greatest stars (John Wayne, Henry Fonda, Robert Mitchum, etc.). He was thirsting for a new property in which he could again showcase the "Fox" way of making a big movie. "The Blue Max": the movie, starred George Peppard, James Mason, and Ursula Andress. (The latter created movie magic with the strategic placement of a bath towel and gave young boys everywhere heady dreams about what glories lay UNDER the towel. Certainly a 15-year-old boy in Tampa, FL in 1965 was mighty intrigued)! The movie was a box-office hit, and Jack Hunter's writing career was successfully launched. This career has spanned the publication of sixteen books. When "The Blue Max" was published in 1964, E. P. Dutton presented him TEN copies of the novel. This represented 2/10's of 1% of the total first run of 5,000! Finding a 1st edition of "The Blue Max" today is nearly impossible. Copies on the open market have fetched four figures. Today, we are offering one of the ten "The Blue Max" copies Jack Hunter has kept since 1964. He is prepared to offer you a copy in fine to excellent condition, with or without an autographed personalization. Once you make your choice and make payment, Mr. Hunter will ship to you directly from his home. I have told you how difficult-to-find and expensive these books can be. I looked for several years and paid more than the asking price here. Fortunately, I did not have to pay extra for Mr. Hunter's signature and dedication! But you can have that TODAY. The pictures shown here of my personal copy. Like mine (which is not in quite as good condition as what Mr. Hunter is offering), it comes with the original dust jacket. If you look closely, you will see that the artwork on the dust jacket is Mr. Hunter's as well. As you will find later in the project of disposing of his artwork, he is a very talented painter, as well as an author. His attention to detail is amazing. He brings the airplanes to life in all his work. This is a rare and unprecedented opportunity to acquire the most important WW I aviation novel ever, a book that rivals in in its way the popular classic, All Quiet on the Western Front. $995.00
12-500 "THE BLUE MAX" by JACK D. HUNTER - SOFT COVER COMMEMORATIVE EDITION FEATURING SIX JACK HUNTER ILLUSTRATIONS. When "The Blue Max" was released by E. P. Dutton, a mere 5,000 copies were produced. This was fairly standard for an unknown (and previously unpublished) author. Well, talk about lightning striking! Shortly after the book was published (TWO weeks after, to be precise) the chief of 20th Century Fox, Darryl Zanuck, bought the book's movie rights. 20th Century Fox was known in Hollywood for its blockbuster epics. Zanuck had just completed The Longest Day, which included a large cast of many of Hollywood's greatest stars (John Wayne, Henry Fonda, Robert Mitchum, etc.). He was thirsting for a new property in which he could again showcase the "Fox" way of making a big movie. "The Blue Max": the movie, starred George Peppard, James Mason, and Ursula Andress. (The latter created movie magic with the strategic placement of a bath towel and gave young boys everywhere heady dreams about what glories lay UNDER the towel. Certainly a 16-year-old boy in Tampa, FL in 1966 was mighty intrigued)! The movie was a box-office hit, and Jack Hunter's writing career was successfully launched.
Mr. Hunter authorized a special commemorative edition of "The Blue Max in" 1998 by Middle Atlantic Press. This edition is a high-quality, soft cover oversized book. Mr. Hunter drew six illustrations that highlight the action just for this edition. The book's cover features the Orden Pour le Mérite ("Blue Max") of Hauptmann Eduard Ritter von Schleich (which remains in my collection and is one my most prized pieces). [Like Bruno Stachel, "The Blue Max's" "hero," von Schleich was known for flying a blackFokker D. VII in combat. Von Schleich's nickname was "The Black Knight of Germany," because he had also previously flown a black Albatros D. Va, which honored a friend and fellow pilot who had been killed in action]. The black airplane was not a part of the motion picture, which is a shame. Acquiring a Fokker D. VII was an important part of the ruthlessness and brutality of Stachel's character. This side of Stachel was toned down greatly in the movie to make him more likeable. In the book Stachel was an alcoholic who would let nothing stand in the way of his ambitions, and to ultimately win the "Blue Max."
These books are long out-of-print and greatly prized by collectors. Today, we are offering you one for $40.00 unsigned or $60.00 signed by Mr. Hunter. This is a rare opportunity to acquire the second-best edition of "The Blue Max" AFTER the rare, and highly-desirable, 1st edition, hardback.
Jack D. Hunter is the author of what most enthusiasts of the Air War consider the definitive novel about World War I aviation, The Blue Max. This book was made into a movie of the same name in the mid 1960's starring George Peppard, Ursula Andress and James Mason. Jack has been fascinated by WW1 airplanes since he first saw the silent film Wings as a young boy. He grew up reading about early aviation, building model airplanes, and talking to men who flew during the Great War. Eventually, he combined his enthusiasm for early aviation with personal WW2 experiences to create his first novel.
He was born in Hamilton, Ohio on June 4, 1921, and went to various schools in New York and Pennsylvania, getting his BA in Journalism from Penn State University in 1943. His aptitude with languages led him into U.S. Counter-Intelligence during WW2. He went behind the lines to infiltrate the Nazi Party's attempts to set up a clandestine organization to keep itself alive after the end of the war. His success in this endeavor gave him the basis for several of his spy novels, particularly The Expendable Spy. His close association with Nazi officials during this time also gave him insights into what fueled Nazism's rise to power and its birth among the upheavals in German society following World War One. His striving to understand how Nazism seduced so many Germans led him to the creation of his most fascinating character, Bruno Stachel, the WW1 German ace and anti-hero of The Blue Max.
The Blue Max is actually the first of a trilogy about Stachel, whose character is much darker in the books than in the movie. Unlike the movie, Stachel is very much alive by the end of The Blue Max. His story continues in The Blood Order, which details Stachel's involvement with the Nazi party during the days of the Munich Putsch through the Nazi rise to power in the 1930's, and finishes in The Tin Cravat, which details the early times of World War II. {A militaria note: Each of the books is named for a military decoration. A Blue Max is WW1 Germany's highest award, the Pour le Merité. The Blood Order was given by Hitler to Nazis who had participated in the Beer Hall Putsch in 1923; and The Tin Cravat was the nickname of the highest WW II German honor, the Knight's Cross.}
He is the author of 16 novels, with a close to 60-year career in print and broadcast journalism, military and Congressional service, corporate public relations, book editing and aviation art. Two of the novels, The Blue Max and One of Us Works for Them, have been sold to the movies. A third, The Expendable Spy, won the Edgar Allan Poe Special Award of the Mystery Writers of America. Both The Flying Cross and Slingshot are under option by film producers; and eight of the titles were recorded and released unabridged by Blackstone Audio Books in 1995-97.
Jack was a newspaper reporter, rewriteman, editor, columnist and radio newscaster for eight years. Next came 22 years as an advertising and public relations executive with the DuPont Company in Wilmington, Delaware. He also served as special counsel and chief speech writer for members of the House and Senate in Washington, D.C. for six years. He was senior editor of Serendipity Press, book publishers, for two years. He also served as a writing coach and editorial consultant for the Florida Times Union and St. Augustine Record for 10 years.
He married Shirley Thompson Hunter in 1944 and they have four children: twin daughters Lee and Lyn, daughter Jill, and son Jack D., Jr., and three granddaughters. Jack and Tommy now make their home in St. Augustine, Florida.
2. Maler (painter)
In addition to his writing career, Jack is a professional artist specializing in mixed media paintings of historic moments in early aviation. His work is displayed at the U. S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, CO, in the U. S. Air Force Museum at Eglin AF Base, Florida, and in many other galleries and private collections in the U. S. and abroad.
The Webmaster asked me to share with you how I became privileged to call Jack Hunter my friend. Some years back my wife and I happened to be visiting an antique mall in St. Augustine, Florida. Outside one of the shops I saw displayed some of the most wonderful paintings of WW1 aircraft that I had ever seen. When I looked up from those paintings, I saw that the name of the shop was "THE BLUE MAX.". Intrigued, I walked in and was greeted by a lively, friendly lady. After I'd looked around the shop, I finally asked the burning question, "Why in the world did you name your shop THE BLUE MAX?"
I was stunned when this lady said, with a twinkle in her eye, "Because my husband wrote the book!"
I was absolutely bowled over. As a high school kid in the 1960's I had seen the movie starring George Peppard and James Mason. This had led me to the book, which was even better than the movie, and sparked what had become a life-long interest in WW1 aviation. Now I was meeting the author's wife, and finding out that Jack Hunter had also done the paintings that were on display. My wife bought me both of the displayed paintings (originals) for me as a birthday present (do I have a great wife or what?) and Mrs. Hunter encouraged me to call Jack, saying he loved to hear from his readers.
I finally worked up the nerve to call, and after an hour of intense conversation, I felt that I had known Jack all my life. We soon arranged to meet and I had the privilege of going to his home and seeing where he wrote and painted. Over the years I've acquired more of his paintings and enjoyed the pleasure of his company, spending hours talking about anything and everything.
What I appreciate most about Jack is his love of WW1 aviation and his genuine desire to meet people who share this interest. Like me, Jack's love affair with the old planes was sparked by a movie. In his case it was Wings in the 1920's. Jack had the advantage of being able to speak with men who had flown during the Great War when they were still young and the experiences were fresh in their minds. Today, there are few of those gallant airmen alive (most would be approaching 100 years in age, if not already past that), and we do not have the same opportunities that Jack had to speak to these men and find out what it was like fighting for your life in those early crates.
Jack still maintains a sense of wonder about WW1 aviation and the study of it fully eighty years after he first began. He gets as excited as a kid when he's discussing it, but this is tempered with the wisdom of having lived among the people who produced Germany's aviators of The Great War. He is a generous and caring man to all who know him and meet him. He is truly a gentleman of the old school. As I grow older, if I can show half the class and grace that Jack does, I will feel I have accomplished something.
I have been blessed with the best father that ever lived, and I would not trade him for anything. But if I needed a father, I would want Jack Hunter. This is the greatest compliment that I can pay Jack. I consider myself truly fortunate to be able to call him my good friend.
-Ken Greenfield-
Several people have asked about the availability of Jack's books on audio tape, here is the address:
Blackstone
Audio Books
P. O. Box 969
Ashland, OR 99520
Also, Jack now has his own web site. Click here to see it http://www.jackhunter.com . It contains current information about Jack, as well as info about obtaining his paintings, and his books. We are now working closely with Jack in the offering of his books and his art work. We can directly assist you in most areas here.
Links
to Our Pages
Der Rittmeister Content Pages:
 Click here
for our Home Page |
 Click for the Order Information Page |
 Click here for Our Biography Page |
 Click here to Meet Jack Hunter |
Click here for Links to
our Merchandise & Content Pages. This is just a sample of the wide
variety of high quality items that we offer in our ever changing inventory!
