An extraordinary, moving account of survival and endurance.' 'Moran's survival is a cinematically grand story, bigger than life but not fantastical, dramatically gripping as well as emotionally stirring. It's a story of two men's separate journeys confronting trauma and loss. What will happen to his wife and his two young children? John must continue uncovering Gene's story of survival as he himself confronts the greatest trial of his life. But both men persevere, bonded by their close and growing friendship.Īs the interviews go on, John faces an ordeal of his own. But John has no idea what wounds he's reopening. Gene, nearing his ninetieth birthday, recounts incredible tales. So begins a series of 'Thursdays with Gene' interviews. But when John, a young history teacher, learns of Gene's amazing fall, he's desperate to learn more. His nine children knew little of their dad's war story. When Gene returned home, he kept those memories locked up for nearly seventy years. Captured by the Germans, he survived a harrowing eighteen months as a prisoner of war, including a six-hundred-mile death march in 1945 across Central Europe. It's a story of resilience and hope.World War II tail gunner Gene Moran fell four miles through the sky without a parachute and lived.

World War II tail gunner Gene Moran fell four miles through the sky without a parachute and lived.

Tailspin by John Armbruster