About a year ago I learned that a man named Jack D. Hunter had seen my short film Der Ostwind, and really enjoyed it. I knew his name instantly. Jack Hunter has held many titles in his life, including author of 16 books, but he is best known for his WWI aviation classic The Blue Max. During the pre-production stages of Der Ostwind we used the 1966 film version of The Blue Max as a reference. Later in my continuing research into WWI aviation I read the novel and loved it. So it was with no small degree of amazement of mine to find out that an author of his caliber and influence would be aware of the work of a novice filmmaker like myself. On May 3rd, 2008, Mr. Hunter even wrote about Der Ostwind on his blog, which you can read here.

In our short correspondence of one phone call and a couple of emails, it became very apparent to me what a kind and extraordinary man Jack Hunter was, so it affected me greatly when I learned that Jack, passed away last Monday morning (April 13th 2009) at the age of 87, due to complications with cancer. Since hearing the news, I find myself wishing I could have talked with Jack more, and gotten to know him better. I feel like I’ve lost something valuable in Jack’s passing. The world of WWI Aviation has lost a giant and as Jonni Anderson, Mr. Hunter’s administrative assistant said, “He was truly a great man, and leaves one huge hole in this universe.”

Thank you, Jack. You will be missed.

Jack D. Hunter — The Official Obituary