catronandfisk

Otto Swede Meyerhoffer, Frank Clark and Jim Hester with speed record plane, 1919

from SDASM Archives

• TVL1970 said:

  That is aviator Frank Tomick, not Swede Meyerhoffer, on the right side of the frame. Perhaps his nickname was also "Swede"? See: Page 77 of the October 9, 1921 edition of The Pittsburgh Press newspaper In a tragic turn of events, Clarke would perish 27 years later while attempting to "bomb" Tomick's cabin with a bag of manure. From Wikipedia: On June 13, 1948, Clarke was flying his Vultee BT-13 Valiant to Kernville, California, with a pilot friend, Mark Owens. They were on their way to visit a retired fellow-Hollywood flying buddy, Frank Tomick. Clarke decided it would be amusing to drop a bag of manure on Tomick's cabin. "Clarke pushed the throttle forward in what was to have been a dive-bombing run. Tomick watched in horror as the plane plunged straight down into the ground and exploded. The sack of fertilizer had jammed behind the control stick, locking it."