Who was Paul Mantz's head mechanic?

[ZRX61]

I've been having a splurge on old aircraft resto/mech books on E Bay. Some of them have this on the listing:

I'm selling my father's collection of vintage books and blueprints. Most are pre WWII. During WWII he was stationed on Guam Island and was trained as an aircraft mechanic. After the war he went to work for Paul Mantz and became his head mechanic. The company was located in Burbank, CA then moved to Orange County Airport (which became John Wayne International Airport). Years later Frank Tallman joined Paul and they ran a very busy company. They supplied vintage planes for many movies and documentaries. In 1965 Paul was killed in a plane crash during the making of "Flight of the Phoenix". A few years Frank opened "Movieland of the Air" and continued to supply planes to the movie industry. In 1978 Frank died and the company sold all of the vintage planes. Soon after, my father retired with 42 years of service to the company. So, to make a long story short, I need to sell everything. There is a wealth of information in this collection. All of the material I'm selling is original and in used condition. I cannot guarantee that everything is complete due to the fact that they were used to maintain and build vintage planes. My photos will show all of the defects I see. If you purchase something from me and are not happy with the item you receive please contact me before posting negative feedback. I will do my best to make it right.

My question is: Anyone know who this guy was? The sellers eBay name is *Shelley3049*

[JohnB]

Hopefully Scott Thompson will see this, it might help his research into Mantz and Tallman.

[Stoney]

there were two long time mechs, one was Siemieniewicz and i think the other ones name is Burtt, memories fade.

[Noha307]

Link to the eBay user: shelley3049

[Noha307]

I sent the seller a private message via eBay and they responded. Their father's name was Carroll W. Wright. They also said that they have "have blueprints for a few airplanes and a set of two books from WW1 'Royal Air Force Technical Notes' that was owned by Paul Mantz", but haven't listed them as they didn't know if there would be any interest. However, they "would love to sell all the books".

They also said that they're "always happy to talk about Paul and my father" and were open to any questions.

[k5083]

I just bought one of the books, not an especially interesting or rare one, I think I still have a copy from when I was a kid, but the photos showed that this one has Paul Mantz' bookplate on one of the endpapers. Having Mantz' copy of the book tickles me for some reason.

August

[DH82EH]

That's a very cool connection August

[sledge39]

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Paul Mantz mechanic Carrol Wright installing a fuel tank in P-51C NX1202 preparing for the 1948 Bendix cross-country race.

Image source: LIFE magazine archives
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