My name if Randolph P. Mains. I wrote a book in 1992 that was published by Avon Books entitled
Dear Mom I'm Alive--Letters Home from Blackwidow 25. It sold over 18,000 copies. Unfortunately it is our of print but the second edition can be found and ordered at Trafford.com. If you go to Amazon.com I think they can find copies, too.
I am currently working at Abu Dhabi Aviation. I would estimate that over 100 or so of the pilots here have read the book and have given it good reviews. Several have purchased more than on copy. One pilot, a New Zealander, purchased ten copies to give to family members and friends. I figure, if I can please my fellow helicopter pilots with a book written about helicopters that is an excellent endorsement for the book. It is certainly a vote of confidence I am very proud of.
The book is not a Rambo story and I didn't write it to be one. I wrote it to give those interested in what it was like for one helicopter pilot over there. The book details my one-year tour in Vietnam with the 101st Airborne Division, Charlie Company Blackwidows from October 68-69. I am very proud to say that it is currently being optioned to be made into a movie. Filming is set to begin sometime in 2011 in Hawaii. I asked the production company if I could do some of the flying and they said I wasn't going to get off that easily, that they want me to be the Technical Advisor on the film.
Letters from Black Widow 25 is currently in script development by 500 Sheets Productions. If you are interested, check out 500sheetsproductions.com a website dedicated to the movie which is in the early stages of development.
I got the idea for the book when, in 1988, my Mom gave me all the letters I had written to her during my one-year tour over there. We used to have a name for the letters we wrote home calling them "I'm Alive" letters. That is because what was important about them wasn't the content of what we said in them. What was important was that on
that date the family knew you were alive. That was their true value.
I was working as a helicopter pilot for the Royal Oman Police at the time so I re-read those letters on my long flight back from Southern California to the Middle East. When I re-read them I realized they didn't say what I was
really doing over there because I knew that if I told the family the real story they would have freaked out.
I wrote the 260-page book with each chapter representing one month over there in my twelve-month tour. I have included the letters sent home as they were written at that time of that month, for example, if the letter was written on the 15th of August 1969 I inserted it in the middle of that chapter.
I estimate that probably 85 or 90 percent of the book is the real story I couldn't tell them about so the book reads like two stories in one, the letters home as I wrote them, and the true story I couldn't tell them at the time.
When asked by the production company to give them a sentence to sum up the real meaning and essence of the book (such a sentence is called high concept) I came up with this:
Dear Mom I'm Alive is the story of a politically naive but extremely patriotic young Army helicopter pilot who is trying to make it through his one-year tour in Vietnam alive with his humanity and humor in tact.
Like I said, it is not a Rambo story. I did fly 1042 combat hours over there. I was awarded the DFC and 27 air medals and the bronze star medal. If you read the book you will see that the Army and I were not suited. I loved the flying but on the ground I was what could be termed being "route step" which means walking out of step with the others.
If any of you do have an opportunity to read the book I sincerely hope that you enjoy it. I can only say that others have and, as they are mostly my peers who have read it, all equally experienced as I am, I consider that the best endorcement I could receive.
If you have any comments you may contact me at
[email protected]. I'd love to hear from you.
Randolph P. Mains.