# Questions About "Amelia Earhart" **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 23, 2009, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843 "2009-10-23T12:21:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/1 "2009-10-23T12:21:22Z")
I plan to see the flick this weekend, I had a few questions: -Does Amelia Earhart still live in Seacaucus NJ? An article in the “National Inquirer” reported (years ago) that Earhart faked her disappearance; and wound up living quitely in NJ. -What was the backup plan, in cased they missed th island? Was the plan equipped with a raft, watr, etc., incase they had to ditch? -was Fred Noonan (the navigator) inordinately fond of drink? There was a rumor that Noonan was an alcoholic. -other stories have Earhart captured by the japanese-did her flight path cross any japanese-controlled islands? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/2 "2009-10-23T12:53:35Z")
Moving this to General Questions from Cafe Society. And noting that Amelia Earhart was born in 1897. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/3 "2009-10-23T13:01:04Z")
From looking at maps it doesn’t appear there were any other nearby islands she could have landed on. Baker Island is 37 miles away but had no airstrip at the time. I guess she would have been forced to ditch in the ocean when her fuel was running out. There are still people who are looking for evidence of what happened to her. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/4 "2009-10-23T13:14:43Z")
I just read [this](http://www.amazon.com/Amelia-Earhart-Thrill-Susan-Wels/dp/0762437634/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256303521&sr=8-7) book: _Amelia Earhart: The Thrill of It_ by Susan Wels. It does say that Noonan was frequently drunk and that several legs of the flight had to be delayed because Noonan was incapacitated. Amelia sent telegrams saying they couldn’t fly because of “personnel” problems (the agreed-on euphemism; her correspondents knew exactly what she meant). ---
**Author:** ![pan1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e495f1/32.png) [@pan1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pan1)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/5 "2009-10-23T14:06:18Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > -Does Amelia Earhart still live in Seacaucus NJ? An article in the “National Inquirer” reported (years ago) that Earhart faked her disappearance; and wound up living quitely in NJ. > -What was the backup plan, in cased they missed th island? Was the plan equipped with a raft, watr, etc., incase they had to ditch? > -was Fred Noonan (the navigator) inordinately fond of drink? There was a rumor that Noonan was an alcoholic. > -other stories have Earhart captured by the japanese-did her flight path cross any japanese-controlled islands? 1. Of course, everyone whose ever disappeared has just faked it and moved to NJ, who would look there, after all? She’s also widely celebrated as the oldest Person in NJ. 2. The backup plan was to land somewhere else on land. Yes there was a raft and water if they had to ditch. Noonen won Mr.Universe 1937 after Rowing all the way from the middle of the Pacific to New Jersey. 3. Seriously, you be a crewman on 3 boats that are sunk by U-boats in WWI and try not to become a heavy drinker…It’s hard to define an alchoholic in an age where the norm for most men was to have a couple hard alchohol drinks each night. 4. Theoretically, if she’d made a 90degree left turn right after her last commication, she could have reached Japenese territory. At the time, Japan was not an enemy of the US or part of the Axis. But Japan was in War Machine mode- getting ready to attack China. So…Japanese involvement is not out of the question. (Just to be clear, items 1 and 2 were not taken seriously.) ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/6 "2009-10-23T14:10:44Z")
> [@](#): > > Does Amelia Earhart still live in Seacaucus NJ? An article in the “National Inquirer” reported (years ago) that Earhart faked her disappearance; and wound up living quitely in NJ. The person you’re thinking of was Irene O’Crowley. She lived in New Jersey and died in 1982. Joseph Gervais wrote a book in 1970 claiming that O’Crowley (also known at various points by her married names of Craigmile, Heller, and Bolam) was really Amelia Earhart and had faked her own death. His theory was pretty ridiculous. O’Crowley was a former pilot but plenty of people and documentation were able to confirm that she had been around before Earhart disappeared in 1937. O’Crowley sued Gervais and won. His book had to be withdrawn. Gervais tried again after O’Crowley’s death and remade his claim. But it was once again proven completely false. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/7 "2009-10-23T14:27:24Z")
I spent a fair bit of time a few months ago reading up on the latest theories on her disappearance. There seem to be a few tantalising shreds of evidence that Amelia and Fred may have crash-landed on an island called [Nikumaroro](http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=8160365&page=1&page=1#) (or Gardner Island). Local islanders told tales of aircraft wreckage lying on the reef at around the right time, but how much is truth and how much is legend seems impossible to sort out. The wreckage itself, if it was there, would have washed off the reef long ago. Edit to add: See the hypothesis [here](http://tighar.org/Projects/Earhart/Overview/AEhypothesis.html). I’m not fully convinced, but it’s interesting stuff. Also note: The National Inquirer is not a newspaper, any more than The Onion is. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/8 "2009-10-23T14:29:26Z")
One of the strangest theories is that she was captured by the Japanese and was forced to be one of the Tokyo Roses on the radio. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/9 "2009-10-23T14:50:40Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > One of the strangest theories is that she was captured by the Japanese and was forced to be one of the Tokyo Roses on the radio. \*Some say she resurfaced as a Tokyo Rose Talking on the radio, telling sweet lies But remember when the farmer asked, ‘Have you flown far?’ She just smiled back at him and said, ‘I’ve come from America’ \* Excellent [song](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKI4wEP-wJ4) (although I can’t vouch for the quality of that performance, as I have no sound on this PC!) ---
**Author:** ![psycat90](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@psycat90](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psycat90)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/10 "2009-10-23T20:20:22Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > The person you’re thinking of was Irene O’Crowley. She lived in New Jersey and died in 1982. > > Joseph Gervais wrote a book in 1970 claiming that O’Crowley (also known at various points by her married names of Craigmile, Heller, and Bolam) was really Amelia Earhart and had faked her own death. His theory was pretty ridiculous. O’Crowley was a former pilot but plenty of people and documentation were able to confirm that she had been around before Earhart disappeared in 1937. > > O’Crowley sued Gervais and won. His book had to be withdrawn. Gervais tried again after O’Crowley’s death and remade his claim. But it was once again proven completely false. Yep, Irene O’Crowley. And not Secaucus, at least that’s not what I heard growing up. My mother and other folks always filled my head with rumors of Amelia Earhart being alive and living in one of the gated retirement communities in the town I grew up in in NJ, Monroe Twp. It’s about 40 miles south of Secaucus. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2009, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/11 "2009-10-23T22:29:06Z")
Nothing to add, other than this thread reminds me of when I was ten. I was a bit of a clown then (no, really), and I make some crack in class. The teacher said he was going to report me to the Amelia Earhart Fan Club. (To get me kicked out, or something, since it was obvious I was a member.) ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/12 "2009-10-26T19:23:06Z")
[News item](http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2009/10/23/amelia-earhart.html) from today. ---
**Author:** ![elelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f0a364/32.png) [@elelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elelle)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/13 "2009-10-26T20:09:37Z")
Last week, the NPR show with Dick Gordon, [_The Story_](http://thestory.org/archive/the_story_889_Betty_Klenck_Brown.mp3/view), reran an interview with Betty Brown, who, at 15, heard a distress call from Amelia Earhart on her dad’s shortwave radio, and transcribed it. They brought it to the attention of the authorities at the time, but nothing came of it. Decades later, the TIGHAR team mentioned above found it to be quite relevant. Worth the listen. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/14 "2009-10-26T20:53:55Z")
> [@UncleRojelio](#): > > [News item](http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2009/10/23/amelia-earhart.html) from today. I’m not surprised. With the release of the film, I expected new evidence to turn up. I’ve always thought TIGHAR’s hunches about Nikumaroro were the most likely explanation about her disappearance. If such is indeed the case, it’s very sad that they made it to land only to die under the harsh conditions. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/15 "2009-10-26T23:48:16Z")
> [@UncleRojelio](#): > > [News item](http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2009/10/23/amelia-earhart.html) from today. This headline from the National Post is amusing: Amelia Earhart landed on Pacific Island to be eaten by giant coconut crabs, group says ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2009, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-amelia-earhart/514843/16 "2009-10-26T23:55:06Z")
> [@UncleRojelio](#): > > [News item](http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2009/10/23/amelia-earhart.html) from today. “Legendary aviatrix.” How quaint.