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The Oretha F Spinney whose story is described on HughLo's thread on his Bluenose project.
Oretha F Spinney
- Thread starter Peter Gutterman
- Start date
- Watchers 3
a very well made model - she is a beauty 
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Thanks Uwek!
She's A Billings kit bashed into the Oretha F. Spinney, using Model Shipways plans. I was told by a customer of mine that his father crewed on her in Jan, of 1942, under the command and ownership of the actor, author and sailor, Serling Hayden, They sailed her from San Diego, through the Panama Canal and the Caribbean to the Bahamas and Florida, keeping an eye out for German U-boats all the way. She was subsequently commandeered and commissioned into the US Coast Guard for the afore mentioned purpose, as were many private yachts and boats of her type, to spot and report the presence of the enemy who was prowling those waters early in the war. The cruise was chronicled in the January, 1942 issue of "Yachting Magazine" by my customer's father. I suppose it can still be sourced.
I was told (apparently apocryphally) that she had been the stand in for the " We're Here" in the 1937 movie of "Captain's Courageous" Apparently this was just a sailor's yarn, YOU know " This is a TRUE story!, No $#!+ !" Evidently, the REAL stand ins were the "Bluenose" and a set. There were great photos of the "Spinney" under sail in the article, She was a dead ringer for the "Bluenose"
Maybe the version of the Sailor's yarn I heard was used by an unscrupulous Yacht broker as a selling point to seal the deal with Hayden, YOU know, "This is no $#!*, She REALLY WAS the stand in for the "We're Here" in the movie!"
Pete
She's A Billings kit bashed into the Oretha F. Spinney, using Model Shipways plans. I was told by a customer of mine that his father crewed on her in Jan, of 1942, under the command and ownership of the actor, author and sailor, Serling Hayden, They sailed her from San Diego, through the Panama Canal and the Caribbean to the Bahamas and Florida, keeping an eye out for German U-boats all the way. She was subsequently commandeered and commissioned into the US Coast Guard for the afore mentioned purpose, as were many private yachts and boats of her type, to spot and report the presence of the enemy who was prowling those waters early in the war. The cruise was chronicled in the January, 1942 issue of "Yachting Magazine" by my customer's father. I suppose it can still be sourced.
I was told (apparently apocryphally) that she had been the stand in for the " We're Here" in the 1937 movie of "Captain's Courageous" Apparently this was just a sailor's yarn, YOU know " This is a TRUE story!, No $#!+ !" Evidently, the REAL stand ins were the "Bluenose" and a set. There were great photos of the "Spinney" under sail in the article, She was a dead ringer for the "Bluenose"
Maybe the version of the Sailor's yarn I heard was used by an unscrupulous Yacht broker as a selling point to seal the deal with Hayden, YOU know, "This is no $#!*, She REALLY WAS the stand in for the "We're Here" in the movie!"
Pete
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Too Cool!
In the later movies It's Dan who dies. Probably truer to the book ( which I haven't read). But I still love the '37version best with Spencer Tracy and Freddy Bartholomew,
both now long gone, like everyone else in the cast,86 years ago. Nine years before I was born.
By the way, this thread has gotten at least two other members to watch the movie again.
As Bob Hope used to sing" Thanks for the memories"...
Pete
PS love the classical guitar music. Think I'll look for a copy if I can still find a CD. But I'm dating myself again.
Arthritis keeps me from playing anymore.
Pete
"
In the later movies It's Dan who dies. Probably truer to the book ( which I haven't read
). But I still love the '37version best with Spencer Tracy and Freddy Bartholomew,both now long gone, like everyone else in the cast,86 years ago. Nine years before I was born.
By the way, this thread has gotten at least two other members to watch the movie again.As Bob Hope used to sing" Thanks for the memories"...
Pete
PS love the classical guitar music. Think I'll look for a copy if I can still find a CD. But I'm dating myself again.
Arthritis keeps me from playing anymore.
Pete
"
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A very nice model, Pete. Even more with the story behind.
And because it’s a Billings bashed kit and based on the MS plans, I’ll ad it to de BN-list Soon. With a link to your back-ground information.
Regards, Peter
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Thanks, Peter
What is the BN-list, and where do I find it?
I like to run down the stories behind my models (and originally behind the period antiques I restored for a living).Just the right mix of art, craft and history.
Model building IS story telling AND art, AND craft.
PS. The customer that told me the story just happened to come over to my workshop one day when I had that model on the work bench, and it brought the story out of him. So I decided to model it after the ship in the story rather than have another "Bluenose" gathering cob webs.(Now if I could only train those little spiders to do rigging!) He loaned me his precious copy of the Jan.1942 issue of "Yachting magazine" with his father's article in it. There were plenty of pictures to refer to.
Pete
What is the BN-list, and where do I find it?
I like to run down the stories behind my models (and originally behind the period antiques I restored for a living).Just the right mix of art, craft and history.
Model building IS story telling AND art, AND craft.
PS. The customer that told me the story just happened to come over to my workshop one day when I had that model on the work bench, and it brought the story out of him. So I decided to model it after the ship in the story rather than have another "Bluenose" gathering cob webs.(Now if I could only train those little spiders to do rigging!) He loaned me his precious copy of the Jan.1942 issue of "Yachting magazine" with his father's article in it. There were plenty of pictures to refer to.
Pete
I added you in my new update, so you will find it here:
List of BN-kits.
Hallo, From the PAYMENT AND ORDERING thread of @Heinrich, I have put together an excel-sheet with an overview of all sent BN kits. With the columns: A: Number of the kit B: SoS username C: First Name D: Country E: Build-log hyperlink F: Sequence number of BN-Build logs G: Date of starting the...
shipsofscale.com
Is it possible to post here in your log some scans of that article and the ref. pictures? It would be very interesting.
Regards, Peter
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According to the book " Alone at Sea, Gloucester in the Age of the Dorymen by John Morris PHD. (with accompanying period photograph of the "Oretha F. Spinney) " her bowsprit was a later addition for her starring role in the (1937) movie of Captains Courageous". Not the Bluenose. So ( and this is no $#8+!) It's not a sailor's yarn after all!
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See the above reply for the real "skinney"Thanks Uwek!
She's A Billings kit bashed into the Oretha F. Spinney, using Model Shipways plans. I was told by a customer of mine that his father crewed on her in Jan, of 1942, under the command and ownership of the actor, author and sailor, Serling Hayden, They sailed her from San Diego, through the Panama Canal and the Caribbean to the Bahamas and Florida, keeping an eye out for German U-boats all the way. She was subsequently commandeered and commissioned into the US Coast Guard for the afore mentioned purpose, as were many private yachts and boats of her type, to spot and report the presence of the enemy who was prowling those waters early in the war. The cruise was chronicled in the January, 1942 issue of "Yachting Magazine" by my customer's father. I suppose it can still be sourced.
I was told (apparently apocryphally) that she had been the stand in for the " We're Here" in the 1937 movie of "Captain's Courageous" Apparently this was just a sailor's yarn, YOU know " This is a TRUE story!, No $#!+ !" Evidently, the REAL stand ins were the "Bluenose" and a set. There were great photos of the "Spinney" under sail in the article, She was a dead ringer for the "Bluenose"
Maybe the version of the Sailor's yarn I heard was used by an unscrupulous Yacht broker as a selling point to seal the deal with Hayden, YOU know, "This is no $#!*, She REALLY WAS the stand in for the "We're Here" in the movie!"
Pete