Original subtitles

#

[INDISTINCT TALKING]

ORVILLE: # If you refuse me Then you will lose me

# Then you'll be all alone

# Oh, baby, call up

-# And Tell Me I'm Your Own -AGNES: I'm Your Own

BOTH: # Hello, hello, hello, there

# Hello, my baby Hello, my honey

# Hello, my ragtime gal

# Send me a kiss by wire...

Where's Wilbur?

He's still back at the shop.

He's always at the bicycle shop.

I... I'll go find him.

Hmm. Thank you, Katherine.

-You know Casey? -Yeah.

Okay.

# Casey would walk with

# A strawberry blonde

# And the band played on

# He'd walk 'cross the...

[ALL CHEERING AND WHISTLING]

ORVILLE: "For some years, my brother Will

"has been afflicted with the belief that

"flight is possible to man.

"His obsession has increased in severity

"and I feel that it may cost him his life.

"In 1895,

"we read of the experiments of Otto Lilienthal

"who was making glider flights in Germany.

"In 1896, he was killed in a gliding accident

"while risking his life to learn by doing."

KATE: Wilbur?

Wilbur?

Wilbur Wright.

What are you doing here?

Why?

Well, I suppose you've forgotten all about the picnic.

Oh, yes, I did.

And about Elizabeth Mayfield.

You promised you'd spend the day with her.

Wilbur, you are being rude.

Did Elizabeth say that?

Never mind who said it.

Come on.

#

[CHEERING]

I'm sorry to keep you waiting.

Oh, that's all right, Will.

Everybody knows how busy you are.

I appreciate your patience.

Will, I've been thinking.

If there were some way that I could help you in your work...

Until you succeed.

The only thing that worries me is that you'll get hurt.

Don't worry about that.

Do you really think you can do it?

Fly?

See that skyrocket?

Someday we'll be riding on them.

#

HARLAN: I just don't know.

Well, it looks impressive.

Where the hell is Kitty Hawk?

The coast of North Carolina, Mr. Mumford.

How far is that?

About 500 miles.

Good Lord, that's 1,000 miles round trip. Why go that far?

When I wrote to the weather bureau

and told them my requirements,

they recommended Kitty Hawk.

Requirements?

Yeah.

Wind.

Reasonably steady and consistent.

And miles and miles of sand dunes.

Sand?

What do you need sand for?

Well, it's not the sand,

it's the open spaces,

the lack of trees.

Well, if it isn't the sand...

Well, there's plenty of open pasture land around here.

I don't see why you have to go all the way to Kitty Hawk.

Mr. Mumford, I'm going to Kitty Hawk.

That's all there is to it.

No, that is not all there is to it.

You know bank regulations prohibit

the early withdrawal of funds without good cause.

Will you release the funds or won't you?

Well, what does Orville say about this?

Does he also want to withdraw this money?

Yes, sir.

What's bothering you, Mr. Mumford?

[SIGHING] Will, a man could get killed

flying around on a thing like this.

But if I get this into the air with me on it,

I'll be making history.

That's worth a few risks, isn't it?

[LAUGHING]

All right, Will, I'll make the withdrawal.

-How much did you say? -$600.

$500. Took a long time to save that money, Will.

[HARLAN CHUCKLING]

Well, I think Wilbur should do as he likes.

He's earned this opportunity.

Earned, you say?

That's exactly my point.

He's using the savings and loan money.

All over the world, men are building gliders trying to fly.

And getting killed.

But they are doing it now.

What about now? And here?

You boys are just beginning to make the bicycle shop pay a dividend.

Father, I am now 33 years of age.

In those years, I have managed to do one thing of significance

and that is graduate from high school.

Now, I am not an engineer like Chanute up in Chicago,

nor do I have government backing like Langley in Washington,

but I am convinced

that with Orville's help, I can be the first into the air.

Or Orville can.

The fact is I don't give a hoot about the bicycle business.

It's a living.

But flying,

conquering the air...

I think that's a reason for living.

Well, it just doesn't seem right to me in the...

In the natural scheme of things.

Will?

Do it.

[WIND WHOOSHING]

ORVILLE: Will went on to Kitty Hawk first.

Rather than take the glider with him,

he decided to build one there.

Its wingspan will be determined by the length

of the lumber he can obtain.

Our sister, Kate, has reminded him

not to take any dangerous chances.

WILLIAM: Well, we're fishing folk, mainly,

even though there ain't too much money in it.

Still, we're comfortable enough.

We don't need too much in the way of luxuries.

I tell you what.

When you want something special,

you just come to me or my brother.

We'll see what we can fix up for you.

Halt. Halt. Halt.

This is my wife and children.

This is, uh, Mr. Wilbur Wright of Ohio.

Pa, is he staying with us?

WILLIAM: I think he is, Tom.

WILBUR: Two pounds of bacon...

Two dozen eggs and a dozen tomatoes.

I especially like tomatoes.

TOM: The store don't carry that much for the whole island.

WILBUR: Well, see what you can manage.

Pa says you've come to fly kites.

Oh? Well, one big kite.

How big?

Big enough to carry me up to the sky.

Like a bird?

Those are the wings.

You're really gonna make something out of all that?

I'm gonna fly in it.

-Fly in it? -Or on it.

Can I watch?

You can help, Tom.

You and your father.

I'm gonna need all the help I can get.

Oh, boy! I gotta tell Pa.

Well, what do you think of her?

She's the most beautiful creature I've ever seen, Will.

I thought you'd be pleased.

I'd like you to meet a friend of mine.

Tom Tate.

Tom, this is my brother Orville Wright.

Glad to meet you, Tom.

And that, I presume, is your moderately priced resort hotel.

It'll grow on you.

[LAUGHING]

[SIGHING] Well, what are we waiting for?

We have some work to do if we're going to get her into the air.

[WIND WHOOSHING]

WILBUR: She'll fly a lot better with one of us aboard!

Good Lord, Will, I don't know.

Isn't she a beauty?

Are you serious, Will?

Oh, I think she'll do, Orv.

Absolutely! She'll kill both of us.

Oh, no, she's got a lot of lift, Orv.

Do you see the way she pulled herself back up?

I ain't normally one to butt into other people's business,

but you boys got me worried.

WILLIAM: If you got a mind to jump on that thing,

all I can say is there's cheaper ways to kill yourself.

Thank you for your concern, Mr. Tate. We know the risks.

Ain't no risk to it. It's a sure and certain thing.

We're not rushing into anything, Mr. Tate.

We've been studying the winds.

WILLIAM: Orville, you can study them winds from now

until hell ices over and you won't learn nothing useful.

You may well be right, Mr. Tate, but we still have to try it.

Eagles, hawks and buzzards,

the only wings around can stand up to them winds.

From those same winds, we'll learn velocity and mean direction.

WILLIAM: Yeah, "mean" is right.

They'll blow you and your glider clean into Georgia,

they'll be picking you up in small baskets.

Pa, we promised to help.

I gave my word, boy, and I'll stand by her.

But I don't hold with people killing themselves,

and I want them to know it.

I think it's secure now.

[WIND WHOOSHING LOUDLY]

WILBUR: Thanks, Tom.

Right here. That'll be just fine.

She looks awful pretty, Orv.

You set?

Easy, Will.

All right?

-WILBUR: Ready, Orv? -Mmm-hmm.

TOM: Fly it, Mr. Wilbur! Fly it!

There you go, Will!

Easy! Easy!

Will! Will!

Will!

Will! Will!

Will! You all right, Will?

You hurt?

I thought you were gonna get killed.

WILBUR: So did I, Tom.

So did I.

ORVILLE: Will!

Will!

WILBUR: Look at that buzzard, Orv.

You see his wings?

They're almost at the same angle as the wings on our glider, Orv.

Look!

Look how hard it is for the buzzard to maintain equilibrium.

Professor Langley's about to fly his motorized glider.

Hawks and eagles don't have that trouble, Orv,

because they have the agility to respond to changes in the wind.

Didn't you hear what I said?

It's control! It's control, Orv.

Just because Langley has the motor doesn't put him ahead of us.

Fine. Fine. Then we won't worry about him.

Langley's about to fly?

#

Model's all proved my theories, Dr. Bell.

Now nothing can stop us from flying.

BELL: How long will it take you to have a full-sized aerodrome

built and operating? Would you say five years?

We will fly in three years, Dr. Bell!

Three years?

It's all very exciting.

Your invention will be for you what the telephone was for me.

True, but in your case you were lucky.

You managed to beat your nearest competitor

to the patent office by a matter of hours.

Now, I have no competition since Tom Edison gave up the chase.

[MEN LAUGHING]

[WIND WHOOSHING]

It's a full gale!

WILBUR: Did we tie it down securely enough?

-The tent? -The glider!

ORVILLE: It would take at least a week to fix it...

if we had the material.

TOM: Mr. Orville! Mr. Wilbur!

Mail for ya!

Thank you, Tom.

Ah! Darn wind.

"The lord giveth and the lord taketh away."

Nice if he'd make up his mind.

Note from Kate.

Ha!

WILBUR: That fabric is French sateen, Tom.

Do you think your mother would like to have what's left?

Might make a dress.

It's yours.

TOM: Are you gonna try again?

I don't know, Tom.

She says Professor Langley's being given more government funds.

Fine!

I'm sick of hearing about Langley.

He's the competition.

No, Orv, he isn't the competition,

he's merely the gadfly.

ORVILLE: Will decided, and I agreed,

it's best to keep our experiments and work secret.

We need time alone to either succeed or fail.

We need the opportunity to test the full possibilities of our ideas.

Oh!

ORVILLE: You're not holding that spar straight.

WILBUR: It's hard when you're in this position, Orv.

Do you expect me to hold this forever?

ORVILLE: Let me do this my way.

WILBUR: Then start hammering.

[LIGHT HAMMERING]

Good Lord.

WILBUR: What? ORVILLE: I didn't say anything.

WILBUR: Well, somebody said "good lord."

BISHOP: I said good Lord.

Father! I thought you were in Indiana.

I got home this morning. We adjourned the senate.

Oh! My, my, my.

What in the world is this?

Our new glider.

This looks more like Mrs. Barton's laundry.

It'll be bigger than last year's.

-Well, will this model have a cabin? -No.

You're going to lie out there on the wing again

holding on by the skin of your teeth?

That's right.

Couldn't there be some kind of safety device?

-Something that would... -It would restrict your movements.

Well, that's exactly my point.

It will restrict you from falling 60 feet from the air onto your heads.

There's not much danger of falling out, Father.

I'll be the judge of that, Wilbur.

[GROANS]

Well, Katherine sent me over here

to find out when you'll be leaving for Kitty Hawk.

In about a week.

ACE: What the heck you got in there, Wilbur, the mad river bridge?

Well, Mr. Hutchin, we'd rather not say what it is.

Oh! Just a minute, Orville, you gotta declare what's in it.

I mean, you can't ship on the B&O unless you say what's in that box.

Ace, you put me in a terrible position.

Well, I don't care, Orville.

-Orv? -Well, all right, Ace. If you say.

Well, I do. It's my wont and duty.

All right, Ace.

You see, Ace, our great-aunt Hepsiba

got run over by a traction engine... Squashed her flat.

The only thing we could do is pack her up for shipment back east.

Oh, no.

No, you ain't gonna ship no dead body on this line.

-Ace, it's the glider. -It's the what?

It's the glider I've been building over in my shop.

Oh! You, Orville!

Always making jokes.

How much it gonna cost, Ace?

-Um, $206.81. -One way?

That's right, and that's only if I can figure out where to put it.

I mean, we ain't got no room left in the baggage car.

You mean this glider might not go on the train?

That's what I mean for a fact.

Ace, that glider's going or that train isn't going.

I don't care how...

If the engineer has to carry it on his back, that glider's going.

All right, Will, if you say so.

Would you mind telling me, what are you gonna do with the glider?

I'm gonna fly in it.

Does he mean...in the air?

'Fraid so, Ace.

You see, Will's never been quite right in the head.

Oh, I understand.

You have to humor him.

Don't you worry. I'll get the box on the train.

Appreciate it, Ace.

[CHUCKLING]

Thanks, Orv. Appreciated it.

WILBUR: We built our new glider

according to Lilienthal's known calculations.

By shifting our weight in the hip cradle

like a bicycle rider,

we can engage the wires and pulleys

which warp the wings

and, we hope, balance the glider in flight.

-That's it! - We believe we can overcome the danger of crashing

by adding a moveable front elevator,

and at the same time control our lift,

glide and landings in the crosswinds at Kill Devil Hill.

WILBUR: Orv, remember,

this is your first time!

Nothing fancy, you hear?

I hear.

Okay, take it easy, Orv. Here we go.

Up she goes.

Orv? Orv!

WILBUR: Keep the wings level!

Straighten 'em out!

Turn it back.

Warp the wings, Orv!

Straighten 'em out!

Turn it back!

Get the nose up!

[GROANING]

You all right, Orv?

I told you not to take any risks.

Risks?

Lord, Will, I didn't even take a deep breath.

It was like shaking hands with the wind.

The wind started to turn me, Will.

There was nothing I could do about it.

When I came down, I realized I don't even know how to land.

[WILLIAM SIGHS]

WILBUR: That's right, Orv!

Keep the wind level!

Keep the nose up!

Great job. That's it.

Raise it up.

ORVILLE: It's too strong!

It'll give us the necessary speed.

It'll break your neck!

Orv,

I never figured to live forever.

Come on!

ORVILLE: Easy, Will!

You're pulling the nose up too far, Will!

Will, bring the nose down!

Bring it down!

Bring the nose down!

Bring it down!

You're gonna stall!

Will!

My Lord! Will!

Will?

Will? Oh! Will.

Oh! [GROANING]

Exactly how Lilienthal died.

We need more lifting power.

Oh! Yeah. Yeah, lifting power.

What you need is your head examined.

WILBUR: How's the glider?

ORVILLE: I figure it'll take about three days to unbend.

WILBUR: Well, we need a new one,

a new design.

We have to run our own tests.

We can't trust Lilienthal's tables.

You're gonna try to fly it again after that crash?

Next year.

Maybe I'll let Orv do it.

Are we packing it in?

Uh, you go on back home

and set up shop.

I'll stay back here awhile and... And pack up.

Be back next year for sure?

Well, I might not be.

I'm too young to die.

WILBUR: It's about time somebody told the world Lilienthal was wrong.

If I get anything out of this backache, that's it.

ORVILLE: Will, we need proof.

#

MAN: This isn't McKinley you're dealing with, Professor.

Roosevelt wants results and he wants them soon.

He's not interested in models.

The weights will drop here,

releasing the wire attached to the machine,

thus catapulting the aerodrome clear of the deck

and skyward across the Potomac.

The October winds should be light...

It's not the wind or the motor that worries us, it's the Wright brothers...

Never mind the Wright brothers.

They're a pair of bicycle salesmen.

I personally saw Professor Langley's invention fly.

No less an authority than Octave Chanute

gave a speech on the Wright Brothers' work at the Chicago meeting.

Never mind Chanute!

But Chanute made quite a case for the Wrights.

I was very impressed. You should read the Chanute speech.

Chanute is getting old, gentlemen.

Please, Professor Langley's proven experiences

and downright genius make comparison

with these Ohio brothers ridiculous.

To continue, my pilot will strap a compass

to his leg to find the boat.

Dr. Bell, we have studied and restudied what Chanute had to say.

Now, apparently you don't think that's very important.

Should the flight be of such duration and distance that he might be lost...

Professor, the army would feel a great deal more comfortable

if the test could be arranged privately,

to be certain.

Certainty is my business, gentlemen.

A public flight in four weeks

seems an unnecessary risk of Congress's money and our reputation.

There is no need to remind you of his reputation, of course.

Congress will not put one more cent into these flying experiments.

Which is precisely why the age of flight

will proceed as I have scheduled it.

And you can tell that to the Wright Brothers.

[MACHINERY WHIRRING]

Built it myself. Even the motor.

You did this by yourself?

Without me?

You said we have to run our own tests.

If we can't trust Lilienthal's tables,

then we have to be able to trust our own.

It's positively brilliant, Orv.

Just brilliant.

ORVILLE: October 6th.

We will test the effects of wind velocity

on camber and wing curvature

using 150 sheet metal wings

cut to scale.

Two years ago,

Will and I agreed our experiments

should not infringe on the time and money needed

for our bicycle business.

I know now Will's obsession for our tests

will never allow him to keep his own agreement.

October 13th.

Langley's values on wind velocity are based on still air.

Any increase in the average pressure

due to fluctuations of the natural wind

would cause his anemometer to over record.

Discussions of logic often now end

in bad-tempered arguments between us.

Yet a good scrap takes the edge off our tension.

We discover arguing to be the one pleasure we have.

November 10th.

48 differing surfaces have been measured,

each tested at 14 varying angles.

We have lost all notion of time.

Will pays little attention to eating

and he's becoming increasingly fatigued and irritated

with me and his work.

December 11th.

With an eight degree descent,

Lilienthal's lift is double anything we find reasonable.

Clearly, Lilienthal was in greater error than we thought.

There are the specifications for flight.

Now all we have to do is design and build it.

July and August...

That'll give Kate enough time to teach us how to sew.

Sew?

300 square feet of fabric,

every inch of it double stitched.

ORVILLE: We are certain our wind tunnel experiments

have solved the problem of lift.

We've decided to add a tail to the new glider

to help stabilize the craft.

Kate has sensed the tension and furor of excitement

that has begun to occupy all our waking hours.

ORVILLE: Gently... Steer down gently.

Shift your weight!

A little more warp!

Try turning it, Will!

That's it!

Ease her in!

Will!

18.5 and 48 feet further!

Fine, but it's all straight ahead.

If you can't turn, you're not much better than a cannonball.

Next time, we try turning.

Sure...

As long as it's my turn.

WILBUR: Turn it, Orv!

Turn it!

More!

Turn it, Orv, turn it!

Orv?

Couldn't you turn it anymore?

[GROANS]

You all right, Orv?

Just call me cannonball.

ORVILLE: Three years and we feel we're right back where we started.

The wires from the hip cradle control the wing warping perfectly.

We have a stabilizing tail.

The front elevator is maintaining our angle of incidence.

We don't stall anymore.

But the wind is still controlling us.

The wind turns us when it wants to.

Even if I had an idea,

Will is certain to say he has a better one.

I thought it all out before I went to sleep.

So did I.

You're thinking of replacing the fixed tail with a moveable tail.

Right?

Running a set of wires from either side of the new tail to the wings?

That's right.

The rear rudder will be linked with the wing warping control,

which will counteract warp drag

and give us a single unit of lateral control.

Couldn't have said it better myself.

This is the key, Orv.

One control over all three axes.

ORVILLE: Take it slowly, Will.

Take your time!

Easy.

Turn it, Will. Turn it!

Turn it, Will! Turn it!

-[ALL CHEERING] -You did it, boy!

We were right! We were right, Will. We did it!

-He did it, I tell you! He did it! -We did it, Will!

Ahhh! We did it!

#

WILBUR: Thus the movement with wires

between wings and tail rudder

provide the flying machine

with balanced equilibrium while in flight,

which is the basis for the invention of improvements in flying machines.

We're ready to file for our patent immediately.

Mr. Toumlin, how long will it take?

The patent.

Mmm...

A year.

Maybe more.

That's the least of your worries.

[CLEARS THROAT] Worries?

Mr. Wright,

In patent law, unfortunately, there is a fine line

between an invention and a discovery.

You haven't designed a new mousetrap here or a can opener.

You've come up with an idea,

a concept...

A historical one to be sure,

one that asks for a pioneer patent.

But ideas are very difficult to patent.

And they're even more difficult to protect.

That's what we're hiring you for.

I shall do my best.

Who knows?

The world may even treat you fairly,

hail your genius,

pay you the license fees you want.

More than likely, the world is going to try and steal you blind.

Is there any place else in the world they're doing

experimental work with gliders?

In France and Germany.

Well, we'll file abroad, too, Germany and France.

Of course,

none of this means much unless you manage to fly before Langley does.

We're working on a four-cylinder motor.

And designs for a propeller.

Good.

Good.

Filing fee for patents is $15.

ORVILLE: I have asked automobile manufacturers

to build us a 12 to 16 horsepower engine.

They lacked the knowledge and the interest, or both.

So we will design our own engine.

Once more, we must rely on our own instincts.

I believe we are now in a race against ourselves as well as Langley,

for our bicycle business now suffers greatly from our neglect.

While the government supports Langley,

there is no-one to help Will and I except Will and I.

The strain of this is affecting Will more than he'll admit.

I find our arguments are no longer a pleasure.

Will seems pursued by a blind fate

from which he is unable to escape.

Will, I've got to have eight more revolutions!

And I've got to have 90 pounds of thrust!

-I gave you 90. -You gave me 87!

Well, whatever I give you, you always want more!

And I always will!

Are you two arguing again?

Whatever Orville gives you, you're always going to want more.

And like your older brother, you'll never settle for less.

What is happening between you two?

I will not allow this machine

to tear apart the bonds of this family.

No propeller, motor, wings, struts, spars...

No, not even flying can become so God Almighty important

that it reduces you to the level of quarreling and dissent.

Is that clear?

Yes, Father.

-Is it? -Yes, Father.

Let that be an end to it.

I gave you 90.

ORVILLE: Our flying machine is to be a biplane

with skids like sled runners for the undercarriage

and flattened wings with a wingspan of 40'4".

It will employ entirely new principles of control.

We have named it after one of our bicycles.

The Wright Flyer.

Easy, Will.

Go!

How was it?

10 seconds.

It's got to be faster.

Let's try it again.

If we're gonna do much more of this, Will, we could use some help.

WILLIAM: I can get you the coast guard boys from the lifesaving station.

WILBUR: Fine! But they mustn't tell anyone what we're up to!

[MOTOR GRINDING]

[RUMBLING]

The propeller shafts...

They're not holding!

Blast it, Orv!

The alignment of those shafts was your responsibility.

How come everything that breaks suddenly becomes my responsibility?

I guess you'd have to chalk it up to cause and effect.

Why don't you try turning the new shafts yourself?

That way you'll know they'll be perfect. Like you are!

WILBUR: Come back here, Orv!

[RUMBLING]

-Kate! -[HORSE WHINNIES]

[EXCLAIMING]

Oh, my, Orville.

What was all that shouting about in there?

There wasn't any shouting. What are you doing here?

Well, I have come to tell you that you are both in trouble

with your lady friends.

Lady friends?

Agnes Osborne is about to get engaged to Blaine Massey.

And Elizabeth Mayfield is seriously thinking

of joining an order of Episcopal nuns.

You came 400 miles to tell us that?

Well, yes, that and about Professor Langley.

-What about him? -He failed.

Rode his fool airplane right into the Potomac.

Whoo-hoo!

Will! Will!

Will!

Kate's here!

She says Langley failed!

Kate, tell him!

What about Langley?

Oh! Well,

he launched his aerodrome off the top of a great houseboat.

Well, it went rumbling down to the end

and plunged right into the river.

Poor Langley.

Well, I guess that does it for him.

No, he says he's going to try it again in three weeks.

Three weeks?

It'll take at least that long to make new shafts.

I can have those new shafts turned in two weeks.

Then we've got an honest shot at it.

Well, you two have been pushing yourselves much too hard.

Now help me.

We are going to rearrange this moderately priced resort hotel

and have dinner,

an outrageously priced standing roast of beef.

There's no roast beef in all the outer bank islands.

Wilbur, I brought it from the mainland.

Well, you two are certainly a proper pair of hermits down here, aren't you?

We don't mind it.

Of course, we miss you and the family.

But you get used to Kitty Hawk.

Best clams in the world.

Well,

I have been thinking...

Oh! There's going to be a big fair in St. Louis next summer,

and I was sort of hoping

that we could all go together.

Oh! We'd have a wonderful time.

And... you could take your flyer

and show the whole world what you've accomplished.

I don't think so, Kate.

We've still got a long way to go, a lot of work.

Kitty Hawk's the best place for that.

[SIGHING]

Well, you can't just bury yourselves down here every summer

for the rest of your lives.

We haven't got a patent yet.

Secrecy is our only protection.

I'm not talking about your airplane.

I'm talking about your personal lives.

About Agnes Osborne and about Elizabeth Mayfield.

Wilbur, do you know what Elizabeth Mayfield is thinking of doing?

Elizabeth Mayfield is thinking of becoming an Episcopal nun!

Well, surely you remember her.

Oh, yes, Elizabeth Mayfield...

I think she'd make an excellent nun.

Oh... [GRUMBLING]

Degenerate, impervious oafs.

What did I say?

I don't know.

I think Elizabeth would make an excellent nun.

What good do you think it's gonna be to run us into the wind?

TOM: Mr. Wilbur? Mr. Wilbur?

What the heck is that?

WILBUR: A flying machine.

Is that fella gonna fly it?

WILBUR: That's what he keeps telling me.

Well, he must be as crazy as that nitwit in Washington.

Which one?

That fella name of Langley.

Two days back,

he flied a machine right into the Potomac river.

[LAUGHING] Second time he done it.

Yeah! Ha!

Orv!

Langley, Orv,

he did it again,

smack into the Potomac.

He should be building boats.

Gentlemen,

any news of what happens here today

should only come from my brother or me.

Is that understood?

Yes, sir!

You ready, Orv?

Sure you wouldn't want to flip again?

No, it's your turn today, fair and square.

Two...

Mr. Daniels?

Now here's the ball.

You stand behind here.

And when Orville gets to the end of the track, you squeeze it.

TOM: It don't look like he pointed right, Will.

Looks like it's set too high.

No, it isn't, Tom. By the time Orville gets there,

it'll be two feet off the ground.

Ready?

Is he really going to fly this time, Will?

Yes, Tom.

All right, let's go.

WILBUR: Easy!

Hey!

[ALL CLAMORING]

REPORTER 1: Miss Wright, are your brothers trying

to keep this machine of theirs a secret?

Have they figured out how much to charge the government

now that Langley has failed?

[MURMURING CONTINUES]

REPORTER 2: All we want is confirmation.

Only the Bishop can confirm you.

REPORTER 3: He means confirmation of the flight.

What proof do you have that they flew?

Well, of course they flew!

Miss Wright, if you don't mind, we'd like to speak to them.

You haven't been listening to what I've been saying.

You can't talk to them,

they have guests.

Oh! Uh, you may step out of the rain.

Thank you!

The reporters will want to see you fly your machine.

They'll demand to take pictures of it.

Demand? They do any demanding around this house,

I'll take a bed slat to them.

Thank you, Bishop. With all due respect, may I continue?

And then the photographs will be studied by everybody.

Everybody from the war department

to every kid who ever built a kite.

They'll all draw their imitations.

Thousands of them will send their plans to the patent office.

I don't see how that affects us, as long as we get there first.

You never know who has friends in Washington.

Things get confused, papers get shuffled.

ORVILLE: It seems that that's exactly what we're paying you for,

to see that the papers don't get shuffled and our rights are protected.

Yes, well, I'll do my best but you two have got to help.

No photographs, no interviews,

sequester yourself, give up flying until after the...

That's out of the question! Just when we're on the...

All right, all right. But at least stay away from Kitty Hawk.

But Kitty Hawk is the best place in the country...

Then find the second-best place! Look, Orville, Wilbur,

I'm not much but I'm the best in the country at what I do

and that's filing patents and making them stick.

Please do as I say.

You insist on flying? All right.

But either find yourself a new sand dune

or find yourself a new lawyer.

ORVILLE: You can't beat it for convenience, Will.

Only a trolley ride from the shop.

Mr. Huffman says we can have it all for next to nothing.

WILBUR: I'm not concerned about the price.

ORVILLE: What are you concerned about?

The wind. I don't think there's enough wind, Orv.

-ORVILLE: There will be. -And the trees are perfect for crashing into.

ORVILLE: They do give us privacy.

WILBUR: They baffle the wind and we don't know how to fly without wind, Orv.

ORVILLE: Well, I guess we'll just have to learn how.

We could put the shed over there.

ORVILLE: While awaiting our patent,

we intend to remain at Mr. Huffman's pasture in secrecy,

learning to build better engines and propellers,

to fly circles, figure-8s,

to fly higher and still higher.

Will has only one wish for our flying machine,

once our patent has been granted,

we will sell it to the United States Government

so that our country will be the first in the world

to own such a valuable invention.

We will have done for the United States what Langley could not do.

WILBUR: I think it's time we both said how we feel, Elizabeth.

The only thing close to me these days is our machine.

Flying is going to be one of the next great human adventures, Elizabeth.

And I believe Orville and I will have a great deal to do with it.

I know how you feel about me.

The truth is, I've been thinking of going away for some time.

I lack the necessary courage for the religious life.

But there are many openings for secretarial positions,

even book keepers, in Cleveland.

Well, I know what it is to go away and try something new.

I did once offer to help you.

I still could.

I appreciate it.

My life is my invention.

I best be getting back.

Happy New Year, Will.

Happy New Year, Elizabeth.

Gid up!

That's all the thrust we can...

That's all the thrust I can give you, 185 pounds.

You were right, Orv.

I want more than you can give. 16 horsepower tops.

That's not enough.

Langley had 50 horses. Look where it got him.

Curtiss, Glenn Curtiss, out of Hammondsport, New York.

Perhaps you've heard of me.

Your man at the shop told me I'd find you out here.

I told him we're all in the same business.

-We are? -We should be.

I'm the best motor man in the world.

May I?

I read about you in December.

I waited to read that you'd flown again. Never did.

What's your reputation got to do with us?

From what I can see here, everything.

I'm on my way to the big fair in St. Louis.

I tried to call you from Columbus.

Uh, seems like you fellows don't have your name

in the Dayton Bell directory anymore.

Obviously you didn't need the telephone.

[CHUCKLES]

You probably don't know, I am world speed champ in motorcycles.

Now I build my own engines.

Last year in Florida, I turned 10 miles

in eight minutes, 54 and 2/10 seconds.

That is a world record.

-Congratulations. -Well, thank you.

Now I can't build one of these

and you can't design motors, not like you need.

You give me one month, I'll design you a vertical eight

that'll supply all the horsepower you'd want.

Now what do you say?

I say there's a faster way to St. Louis

from New York than coming by way of Dayton.

Gentlemen.

WILBUR: The competition is closing in.

-I'll fly next week. -The wind?

What do you know about building catapults?

Catapults?

After all, it was the only good idea Langley had.

ORVILLE: After three years of waiting,

our patent has at last been granted.

We believe it best to say nothing to anyone

and allow no-one outside our family

to see the machine on the ground or in the air.

Until the flyer can be sold to our government,

we must guard against those who may seek to duplicate

the simplicity of our invention.

GLENN: Everyone knows you and Langley have been friends for years.

Langley lies dying, being laughed to death by the world.

It's up to me to see his work through.

I didn't come here to be turned down.

I build motors for flying machines, not kites.

Uh, Mr. Curtiss,

do you know how much money a government contract

to build airplanes could be worth?

I'm flattered you've come to me,

especially considering who you are, Dr. Bell,

but the answer is still no.

Well, then why did you tell everyone in St. Louis

that you were going to fly?

I am, but not on one of those contraptions.

I am going to build myself a Wright Brothers machine.

Wright Brothers?

What do you know about them or their machine?

I've seen it.

You've actually seen it, close up?

They invited me over to their house,

we had quite a pleasant dinner together.

Could you really build one just like it?

I work for money, Dr. Bell.

Exactly so.

Mr. Duke!

Bring the contract.

Come, come, come, come.

[MOTOR WHIRRING]

ORVILLE: I hope it's enough weight this time.

WILBUR: Orv, all we're trying to do

is get off the ground a little faster.

Besides, I calculated it.

I've never been wrong yet.

Whose turn to fly is it?

ORVILLE: Yours, Will. It's all yours.

#

WILBUR: Higher. Higher.

It can do 125 miles an hour.

I am still the fastest man on earth.

And I'm shooting for 130.

The airplane, Mr. Curtiss, where is it?

I want it fast, Mr. Bell, powerful.

In order to fly, I need the correct engine.

You were supposed to build it for me by now.

Well, I had to go and close out the St. Louis fair

and get paid for my work.

I see.

Well, if you need more money, discuss it with Mr. Newell.

I'm moving into your house, Mr. Curtiss.

We're gonna work side by side to build that airplane.

I want a machine better than the Wrights'.

Well, that should be easy.

You should still study their plans.

Nobody ever got anywhere in this country

without improving on somebody else's idea.

It's what makes Henry Ford first.

[CHUCKLING]

I'll be moving in on Monday.

Your contract provided that you will build an airplane that flies

within six months.

WILBUR: There can only be one reason Curtiss has been hired.

To steal our idea.

The only thing worse would be if Henry Ford set out to build flying machines.

He's done enough to the bicycle trade.

You've never cared about the race.

This time, we're in a race against our own invention.

Well, then it's time we move.

Without lawyers, on our own.

WILBUR: "To the Honorable William Howard Taft,

"Secretary of War, Washington, D.C.

"Dear sir,

"the series of aeronautical experiments

"which my brother and I have been engaged in for the past five years

"has ended in the production of a flying machine

"fitted for practical use by our government."

TAFT: "Our flights prove flying has at last and conclusively

"been brought to a point of great practical use,

"one of which is that of scouting

"and carrying messages in time of war.

"Early interest on your part

"will greatly assist us in making future plans.

"Sincerely,

"the Wright Brothers."

Just remember, gentlemen,

Langley is your boast...

not mine.

Oh! I wish he'd go a bit higher above the trees.

Now do you have time to open your mail?

ORVILLE: Okay.

[CHUCKLING]

[INDISTINCT]

What does it say, Orville?

It's from the Secretary of War William Howard Taft.

"Regarding your application for funding,

"The board of ordinance and fortification of the United States army...

"declines to make any financial allotments

"for the experimental development of devices

"for mechanical flight

"and has further determined

"that your machine has not yet been brought to the stage

"of practical operation."

BISHOP: I've never seen Wilbur so happy.

It's too bad he can't just stay up there.

[ALL CHEERING]

[ENGINE SPUTTERING]

[SPUTTERING INCREASES]

Glenn!

You can be very proud, Glenn.

We've accomplished in a little a year

what it took the Wright Brothers four years to do!

Not hardly.

Glenn, you're the first American to fly a mile in public.

Scientific American gave you the trophy!

Well, you can give it to the Wright Brothers

when you see 'em next.

They deserve it.

What did I do? I'll tell you what, I flew.

Did you see me turn?

I nearly lost the airplane and my life.

What difference does it make if you fly a mile or 100 miles?

If you can't turn with confidence,

you can't even compete with barn swallows.

[SIGHING]

How is it that the Wrights can turn easily and you can't?

Because I don't know everything they know.

#

ORVILLE: Being rejected by our own government

and our financial resources nearly gone,

we are now forced to do what we did not want to do.

In the company of an agent who has sold the submarine to Russia,

we will offer to sell our invention to all of Europe.

For all our years of work, we have achieved some fame and no money.

Curtiss, in far less time, is taking both prizes.

I cannot be sure which has hurt Will more,

being unwanted in his own country

or Glenn Curtiss's success.

ORVILLE: Higher and higher the magnificent glider rises above your marvelous big top

of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey circuses,

borne aloft into God's blue sky by a powerful hot air balloon,

higher and higher,

astonishing the people watching in the racetrack grandstands below.

And now, two men prepare to defy death.

As the balloon releases the glider,

the daredevil Wright Brothers are cast adrift

500 feet above the earth!

Will they survive? Can they bring their craft safely to earth?

It does not seem possible, for if God had meant men to fly,

he would have given them wings.

-They're falling. They're falling... -Orville? Orville!

-Here they come! -Drop everything, we've got to talk.

MAN: Wait, wait, he's right in the middle!

-It can't wait! -What about the Wright Brothers?

I'm looking after the Wright Brothers if you don't mind.

-What happens? -They land safely in the middle of the racetrack.

Don't worry. We won't talk to Buffalo Bill until we have your answer.

Buffalo Bill? Have you lost your mind?

No, just a bit of pride. What is all this about?

President Roosevelt has called William Howard Taft

and his generals on the carpet.

He wants to know why Wilbur Wright was forced to go to Europe

to sell his airplanes.

Tell him the Honorable Mr. Taft doesn't believe we can fly.

Cable Wilbur.

The President wants him back here.

You're to fly for the army as soon as you can get ready.

Good heavens.

How long have we been waiting to hear that?

What does the army want us to do?

Fly for an hour at 40 miles an hour,

and build a machine that can carry two men.

-Can you do it? -We've already done it.

#

REPORTER 1: Five years ago this Christmas you wouldn't talk to me.

Are you talking to me now?

I was there at your first public flight.

Four years is a long time to hide, Mr. Wright.

How does it feel to be a part of history on two continents?

REPORTER 1: How come you're not answering our questions, Mr. Wright?

REPORTER 2: How come you been hiding so long?

I'm not interested in making history, gentlemen.

I'm not interested even in talking.

REPORTER 3: What are you interested in then, Mr. Wright?

ORVILLE: Just speed, gentlemen, just speed.

Clear the way.

She's really good, isn't she?

[ALL CHEERING]

[PLANE STALLING]

What?

[PEOPLE SCREAMING]

[ALL MURMURING]

Compound fracture of the tibia...

Four fractured ribs.

Barring any internal injury,

you're a very lucky man.

Lieutenant Selfridge is dead.

That does not make me lucky.

Sergeant, Orville Wright is a friend of mine.

I'm here to discover what caused this crash.

I've got orders, sir, to let nobody in here.

I am Dr. Alexander Graham Bell,

the President himself has authorized me to conduct aerial investigation.

I don't care who you are.

I'm Glenn Curtiss. You know me?

Oh! Yes, sir. I do.

You can understand why we have to get in here.

Sir... Sir, I...

How in the world did he ever survive this?

Now the patent says the vertical tail is operated by wires

controlling the wing tips.

I'm not interested in that patent.

I want to know why they crashed.

Look, you can see it. It's just like their patent.

It's a coordinated action of wing-tips and rudder.

BELL: Forget the patent, Glenn.

I want to find out why he crashed.

That's a set of wires so uncomplicated

that the best scientists in the world couldn't see it.

You'll be using their idea without permission.

Come on, Dr. Bell, I'm about to get rich and famous...

without so much as a telephone call.

[CHUCKLING]

#

ORVILLE: The crash at Fort Myer

did not deter acceptance of our flying machine.

The army gave us a contract.

Almost immediately, the navy gave their contract to Curtiss.

We share Europe with him, too.

Wherever Will, Kate and I go,

Curtiss has already been there or is on his way.

Mr. Toumlin always did say Will and I were frank as schoolboys,

but will put it right in print in theScientific American

for all the world and Curtiss to read,

charging him with using our patent to make profits for himself.

We have no objection to anyone using our invention for pleasure,

but not for profit.

We have decided to file a patent suit against Curtiss.

To Will, Glenn Curtiss had stolen his dream...

the only dream will ever had.

#

The Hudson-Fulton Celebration.

$15,000 plus expenses.

All you have to do is fly 10 miles up the Hudson river

and return.

They've never seen an airplane fly in New York.

You couldn't ask for a better showcase

for Wall Street and all those big money boys.

It's all yours.

It's not enough.

Now, Glenn, I can't go asking them for more money.

I want to fly against Wilbur Wright.

-You don't need him. -Ha! I do.

Oh, don't be a fool. Why ask him to share in your glory?

Because I want the skies all to myself.

I want the world to know that Glenn Curtiss is not only a better inventor,

he is a better aviator as well.

Wilbur Wright's tired.

He's worn out from Europe.

All he wants to do is to build his airplanes and retire.

I'll retire him, Mr. Newell.

You get Wilbur Wright to New York.

ORVILLE: I agree with you, Will.

Our patent suit against Curtiss is going to take years.

I would feel better about this

if you had more time to rest

and regain your strength.

No, Kate, I have to go along with Will.

He's never flown publicly in his own country.

It's his decision to make and he made it.

Pride has nothing to do with Will's health.

You are 42 years old, Wilbur,

giving away eight years of reactions to Curtiss.

If I've made a mistake,

it was keeping our invention from the public for too long.

We'll all be there.

It's not just Will who's accepted Curtiss's challenge, it's all of us.

Look, Will, the last rose of summer.

It's not the competition, is it?

Or the money or the glory?

It's more than that, isn't it, Will?

Recognition, Kate.

Recognition of our first flight.

Not all the roses,

just one.

#

[WIND WHOOSHING]

What did the Wright Brothers say?

The Wrights are stubborn people.

They don't talk to no-one.

But I've sent word to them same as I'm telling you

-as Mayor of New York. -Wind can't last forever.

What's the wind got to do with flying an airplane?

People are laughing at me already for bringing you two here.

Millions of people are waiting for you to fly.

Either do so or forfeit the $15,000 we're paying you.

Driver.

I've got a good show in St. Louis booked for next week.

You don't need this!

They're not gonna risk this wind any more than you are.

WILBUR: Depending on the wind,

I should make it to the first checkpoint in 10 or 15 minutes.

KATE: Watch out where you're going, Will.

WILBUR: And once over grant's tomb, I'll circle back

-to the Statue of Liberty. -Oh! I am sorry.

Charlie has the weights ready?

Yes, he said he'd have it all set by midnight.

-Good. -I'm awfully sorry.

-We probably don't even need them. -Will.

-[WIND WHOOSHING] -[TALKING INDISTINCTLY]

KATE: ...safer than you and your canoe. I beg your pardon.

[WILBUR GRUNTS]

-You all right? -Yeah, I'm fine.

You just make sure I don't hit anybody.

I'm awfully sorry.

[WIND CONTINUES WHOOSHING]

I remember sitting up with Langley

the night before his last flight.

It was a windy. Long cold night.

We had no choice but to risk the winds over the water, Glenn.

You do!

If a man's not first, he's nothing.

I've worked to be a winner all my life.

Think I'm stopping here?

Not if you live long enough.

The winds will be calmest just before dawn.

[WIND WHOOSHING]

WILBUR: It's not quite the sea plane

Curtiss is building for the navy.

[LAUGHING] $50 buys a lot at Abercrombie.

You know, Kate?

I'd like to build us a house.

A house?

Father will have his own library.

You'll have your own music room all to yourself.

And Orv and I will have our own workrooms.

That sounds wonderful.

And it won't be just any house.

It must be on a hill

with the grandest view in all Ohio.

And I'll design it and we'll all live there together.

Well, there he is, right on time.

I always figured him to be crazy.

He wouldn't take it if he weren't worried about failing.

WILBUR: Windy morning.

GLENN: We'll talk about that when I get back.

Assuming you do get back.

I see you're planning a canoe ride.

Maybe.

But you don't have to worry

because your plane isn't fast enough or strong enough

-to get off the ground in these winds. -You think so?

You're a summertime flier, Mr. Curtiss,

when the weather's hot and the winds are calm.

You don't know me or my airplane.

I know you have the courage of a thief.

Now show me what you know about the winds.

[ENGINE STARTING]

[ENGINE RUMBLING]

[ENGINE WHIRRING]

#

ORVILLE: Three years after that historic flight over New York City

and around the Statue of Liberty,

Will became ill with typhoid fever

during the bitter patent fight with Glenn Curtiss.

He never lived to see the house he wanted to build.

He died on May 30th, 1912,

just two years before the courts confirmed our patent.

Will saw the future

as sure as if he had lived it.

The flyer was a result of known technology of the day,

our own skills, and the one thing that sets man apart,

the ability to create what did not exist before.

The invention was his life.