After graduation from High School in 1985 I had a trip planned to Tuscon Arizona to visit my sister and her family for three weeks. This would be my first time on a commercial airline having previously only flown in smaller aircraft.
A few weeks before going on my trip a movie was playing on television that captured my attention. It was a movie in which an aircraft crashes in the Florida Everglades killing 103 passengers. The movie starred the wonderful Ernest Borgnine who was one of the passengers killed in the crash. His ghost appears on other planes throughout the remainder of the movie warning folks of impending danger.
As I boarded the plane from Nashville to Dallas on the first leg of my trip, I made my way through the 1st Class seating on the American Airline flight. There was a familiar face sitting in one of the seats in 1st Class and at second notice I realized it was Ernest Borgnine. To be honest as I made my way back to my seat I found myself asking was that really him or was it the "Ghost of Flight 401" making an appearance...haha
As our flight began one of the attendants came by and asked if I needed anything. I responded and asked if she'd do me a favor. I told her that I thought Ernest Borgnine was on the plane and wanted to see if she would find out. To my suprise she didn't even know who Ernest Borgnine was. I explained to her which seat he was in and she made her way to the front of the plane. In a few moments she came back in all seriousness and said, "I asked that gentleman and he said no his name was Jimmy Stewart."
RIP Mr. Borgnine and thanks for a wonderful memory and a great laugh.
