Under the Wire: The World War II Adventures of a Legendary Escape Artist and "Cooler King"

Foley, Brendan

ISBN 10: 0312338325 / ISBN 13: 9780312338329

Published by Thomas Dunne Books, 2005

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Bibliographic Details

• Title: Under the Wire: The World War II Adventures of a Legendary Escape Artist and "Cooler King"
• Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books
• Publication Date: 2005
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0312338325
• ISBN 13: 9780312338329
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

From the lean days of Depression-era Texas to the thrill of being one of the few who flew Spitfires, from a death-defying crash landing in Occupied France to capture and torture by the Gestapo, imprisonment in the Great Escape camp, Stalag Luft III, and years spent becoming a serial escape artist, this is the wartime memoir of a true hero, a real-life "Cooler King."
Recounted in a wonderfully honest and self-deprecating voice, William Ash's Under the Wire is a classic in the making--a riveting story of bravery by one of the last of his generation.

About the Author

Born in Dallas in 1917, WILLIAM ASH worked his way through school and college during the Great Depression, graduating from the University of Texas at Austin, to the heights of elevator operator, then Hobo.

At the outbreak of war in Europe he rode the rails to Canada and enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1940. A Spitfire pilot, he saw action over England and France. He was shot down near Calais in March 1942 and evaded the German forces for months with help from the French Resistance but was captured and badly beaten by the Gestapo.

Bill was sent to a succession of POW camps in Occupied Europe from which he escaped on a regular basis, becoming one of the greatest escapers of the war. At war's end, he was awarded an MBE for his escaping activities and went on to work for the BBC in India and Britain. He became a writer and a past Chair of the Writers Guild (GB). Married to the academic Ranjana Ash, he lives in London where he stayed after the war.

This account of his wartime adventures became a best-seller in the UK and Tunnel King Ash observed "I've discovered the secret of success - all you have to do is dig a hole and wait seventy years". He celebrated his 95th birthday in November 2012 with the publication of this, the first paperback edition in North America.

Bill's friend and co-author BRENDAN FOLEY grew up in Belfast and now divides his time between London and Los Angeles, with his wife Shelly, also a writer. A former award-winning features journalist, Foley has also written feature films including Johnny Was starring Vinnie Jones and The Riddle starring Derek Jacobi and Vanessa Redgrave. He is now developing a feature film version of Under the Wire.