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On April 23, 1965, Cole Palen departed the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome flying his newly restored 1912
Thomas Pusher. His destination was New York City, where he was scheduled to appear on the
television game show “I’ve Got a Secret.” The previous winter Cole had flown to Florida to visit with W.T.
Thomas, who had designed the pusher over fifty years before. Thomas provided all the important
documents related to the machine, and Cole set to work rebuilding the aircraft in his living room. Cole
had set a strict deadline for completion of the pusher, and he kept the whole project shrouded in
secrecy. According to Gordon Bainbridge’s account from his book “The Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome”,
Cole wasn’t giving away any details about the trip to New York City or about how the plane was going to
be used at the Aerodrome. Predictably, all of the mystery and waiting produced all sorts of rumors and
speculation among Cole’s friends.
After a great deal of effort, restoration of the
aircraft was completed, and Cole moved on to
mastering the pusher’s control surfaces. Because
there were no conventional controls for aircraft in
1912, the Thomas Pusher was designed to operate
as much like an automobile as possible. Rudder
movement was achieved by steering a wheel from
right to left, while the throttle was opened and closed
using a foot accelerator. These controls are the exact
opposite of a modern aircraft. Today foot pedals
operate the rudder, while turning the wheel operates
the ailerons. In the Thomas Pusher, aileron
movement was accomplished by swaying back
and forth in the seat, mimicking the natural leaning
motion one might implement to balance something
like a small boat.
Having all of the control surfaces switched while
preparing for a 100-mile flight in a 53-year-old design with a strict deadline presented many challenges
for Cole, but he tackled the problems with the trademark laugh and great attitude that personified Cole
Palen.
To become more acquainted with the controls, Cole spent a lot of time taxiing the pusher up and down
the grass strip at the Aerodrome. When he finally decided to hop the machine, he confused the throttle
for the rudder and had to make a forced landing, which badly damaged the landing gear. The second
test flight followed the same pattern as the first, except this time the pusher was damaged even worse
than before; but Cole never wavered, and immediately set to work on repairs, living up to the quote he
had used so many times, “Adversity, meet it, greet it, defeat it!”
After yet another week of repairs, the Thomas Pusher was ready for its third flight. This time, Cole was
aloft for fifteen minutes, and the whole flight went off without a hitch. Cole had mastered yet another
antique aircraft, and he was ready for the flight to New York City.
Cole departed early in the morning and was followed by a modern escort plane piloted by Dave Fox.
Cole’s friends Gordon Bainbridge, Bob Love and Mike Lockhart were also heading down to witness the
flight and the filming of the episode. Cole’s OX-5 powered Thomas Pusher plugged away at 50mph,
and reached an altitude of 3,000 feet during the flight. The trip would last three days with overnight
stops at Stormville Airport, Armonk Airport, and finally Flushing Airport on Long Island. The flight was
hampered by wind conditions and various repairs to the engine, but all went well. The aircraft was
disassembled and trucked to the studio where the episode was to be filmed, and on April 25, 1965,
Cole Palen and his Thomas Pusher appeared on “I’ve Got a Secret.”
Cole was the first guest on the episode, and after being introduced to the audience and panel he
whispered his secret (which was “I flew here in a 1912 airplane”) to host Steve Allen. The panel then
had the opportunity to ask Cole questions to try and figure out what his secret was. The audience and
panel had already been informed that Cole had taken several days to arrive at the studio, so his form of
transportation was immediately the first suspect. After panelist Betsy Palmer discovered that Cole had
flown a type of airplane to New York City, the obvious question of why it took so long remained. Some of
the more humorous exchanges took place trying to answer this question:
Panelist Bill Cullen: “Was this some non-powered
airplane, a glider type?”
Cole Palen: “No.”
Bill Cullen: “It did have power?”
Cole Palen: “Yes.”
Bill Cullen: “And it was not man-powered?”
Host Steve Allen: “No.”
Bill Cullen (confused): “Was it animal powered?”
Cole Palen (laughing): “No.”
The confusion carried over to panelist Henry Morgan:
Henry Morgan: “Does this thing have a propeller?”
Cole Palen: “Yes.”
Henry Morgan: “And wings?”
Cole Palen: “Yes.”
Henry Morgan: “And a fuselage, and a tail?”
Cole Palen: “Ah…” (whispers to Steve Allen that the
pusher has no fuselage.)
Steve Allen: “Well, in a way…”
Cole Palen: “In a way.”
Steve Allen: “A loose fuselage.”
(Audience laughter)
Henry Morgan: “Did you have trouble with your
scotch tape or what?”
Although the panel came very close to guessing
Cole’s secret, they never definitively figured it out.
When they finally revealed that Cole had flown in
a 1912 airplane and showed footage of the flight,
the panelists were visibly impressed and panelist
Bill Cullen complimented Cole saying, “I do know
in order to fly those things you have to be quite a
pilot, Mr. Palen. They aren’t easy to fly like today’s
airplanes.” Cole received this compliment uneasily,
with a shy smile and glance at the floor. At this point,
the pusher is revealed to the audience. Cole walks
over to the machine, answers questions about the
early aviators, the controls of the aircraft, and his
flight to NYC. During a humorous exchange with
Steve Allen, Cole delivers what is probably the best
quote of the whole segment:
Steve Allen: “What the heck are these ski things
on the front…what is that?”
Cole Palen: “Well, that’s supposed to save the
pilot when it tips over.”
Steve Allen: “Oh, does it?”
Cole Palen: “Ah, they usually break first. In fact
the first second I was in the air I broke both of them.”
(Audience laughter)
Steve Allen: “Oh.”
Betsy Palmer: “Oh My…”
As the segment concludes, Cole steps down
from the pusher. According to witnesses of the
filming and Cole himself, he became tangled in the
flying wires and tripped climbing off the aircraft. None
of this is visible while watching the segment. The
show cuts to Steve Allen the second Cole touches
the ground (with both feet), and although he appeared
to struggle a little getting out, it was no more than when
he got into the machine during the segment.
After the television appearance, the Thomas Pusher was trucked back to Rhinebeck and flew at the
Aerodrome until the following year, when it was retired to the museum buildings, where it remains to
this day.
Thomas Pusher. His destination was New York City, where he was scheduled to appear on the
television game show “I’ve Got a Secret.” The previous winter Cole had flown to Florida to visit with W.T.
Thomas, who had designed the pusher over fifty years before. Thomas provided all the important
documents related to the machine, and Cole set to work rebuilding the aircraft in his living room. Cole
had set a strict deadline for completion of the pusher, and he kept the whole project shrouded in
secrecy. According to Gordon Bainbridge’s account from his book “The Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome”,
Cole wasn’t giving away any details about the trip to New York City or about how the plane was going to
be used at the Aerodrome. Predictably, all of the mystery and waiting produced all sorts of rumors and
speculation among Cole’s friends.
After a great deal of effort, restoration of the
aircraft was completed, and Cole moved on to
mastering the pusher’s control surfaces. Because
there were no conventional controls for aircraft in
1912, the Thomas Pusher was designed to operate
as much like an automobile as possible. Rudder
movement was achieved by steering a wheel from
right to left, while the throttle was opened and closed
using a foot accelerator. These controls are the exact
opposite of a modern aircraft. Today foot pedals
operate the rudder, while turning the wheel operates
the ailerons. In the Thomas Pusher, aileron
movement was accomplished by swaying back
and forth in the seat, mimicking the natural leaning
motion one might implement to balance something
like a small boat.
Having all of the control surfaces switched while
preparing for a 100-mile flight in a 53-year-old design with a strict deadline presented many challenges
for Cole, but he tackled the problems with the trademark laugh and great attitude that personified Cole
Palen.
To become more acquainted with the controls, Cole spent a lot of time taxiing the pusher up and down
the grass strip at the Aerodrome. When he finally decided to hop the machine, he confused the throttle
for the rudder and had to make a forced landing, which badly damaged the landing gear. The second
test flight followed the same pattern as the first, except this time the pusher was damaged even worse
than before; but Cole never wavered, and immediately set to work on repairs, living up to the quote he
had used so many times, “Adversity, meet it, greet it, defeat it!”
After yet another week of repairs, the Thomas Pusher was ready for its third flight. This time, Cole was
aloft for fifteen minutes, and the whole flight went off without a hitch. Cole had mastered yet another
antique aircraft, and he was ready for the flight to New York City.
Cole departed early in the morning and was followed by a modern escort plane piloted by Dave Fox.
Cole’s friends Gordon Bainbridge, Bob Love and Mike Lockhart were also heading down to witness the
flight and the filming of the episode. Cole’s OX-5 powered Thomas Pusher plugged away at 50mph,
and reached an altitude of 3,000 feet during the flight. The trip would last three days with overnight
stops at Stormville Airport, Armonk Airport, and finally Flushing Airport on Long Island. The flight was
hampered by wind conditions and various repairs to the engine, but all went well. The aircraft was
disassembled and trucked to the studio where the episode was to be filmed, and on April 25, 1965,
Cole Palen and his Thomas Pusher appeared on “I’ve Got a Secret.”
Cole was the first guest on the episode, and after being introduced to the audience and panel he
whispered his secret (which was “I flew here in a 1912 airplane”) to host Steve Allen. The panel then
had the opportunity to ask Cole questions to try and figure out what his secret was. The audience and
panel had already been informed that Cole had taken several days to arrive at the studio, so his form of
transportation was immediately the first suspect. After panelist Betsy Palmer discovered that Cole had
flown a type of airplane to New York City, the obvious question of why it took so long remained. Some of
the more humorous exchanges took place trying to answer this question:
Panelist Bill Cullen: “Was this some non-powered
airplane, a glider type?”
Cole Palen: “No.”
Bill Cullen: “It did have power?”
Cole Palen: “Yes.”
Bill Cullen: “And it was not man-powered?”
Host Steve Allen: “No.”
Bill Cullen (confused): “Was it animal powered?”
Cole Palen (laughing): “No.”
The confusion carried over to panelist Henry Morgan:
Henry Morgan: “Does this thing have a propeller?”
Cole Palen: “Yes.”
Henry Morgan: “And wings?”
Cole Palen: “Yes.”
Henry Morgan: “And a fuselage, and a tail?”
Cole Palen: “Ah…” (whispers to Steve Allen that the
pusher has no fuselage.)
Steve Allen: “Well, in a way…”
Cole Palen: “In a way.”
Steve Allen: “A loose fuselage.”
(Audience laughter)
Henry Morgan: “Did you have trouble with your
scotch tape or what?”
Although the panel came very close to guessing
Cole’s secret, they never definitively figured it out.
When they finally revealed that Cole had flown in
a 1912 airplane and showed footage of the flight,
the panelists were visibly impressed and panelist
Bill Cullen complimented Cole saying, “I do know
in order to fly those things you have to be quite a
pilot, Mr. Palen. They aren’t easy to fly like today’s
airplanes.” Cole received this compliment uneasily,
with a shy smile and glance at the floor. At this point,
the pusher is revealed to the audience. Cole walks
over to the machine, answers questions about the
early aviators, the controls of the aircraft, and his
flight to NYC. During a humorous exchange with
Steve Allen, Cole delivers what is probably the best
quote of the whole segment:
Steve Allen: “What the heck are these ski things
on the front…what is that?”
Cole Palen: “Well, that’s supposed to save the
pilot when it tips over.”
Steve Allen: “Oh, does it?”
Cole Palen: “Ah, they usually break first. In fact
the first second I was in the air I broke both of them.”
(Audience laughter)
Steve Allen: “Oh.”
Betsy Palmer: “Oh My…”
As the segment concludes, Cole steps down
from the pusher. According to witnesses of the
filming and Cole himself, he became tangled in the
flying wires and tripped climbing off the aircraft. None
of this is visible while watching the segment. The
show cuts to Steve Allen the second Cole touches
the ground (with both feet), and although he appeared
to struggle a little getting out, it was no more than when
he got into the machine during the segment.
After the television appearance, the Thomas Pusher was trucked back to Rhinebeck and flew at the
Aerodrome until the following year, when it was retired to the museum buildings, where it remains to
this day.
| The curtain onstage is pulled back, revealing the Thomas Pusher on "I've Got a Secret." Cole and Steve Allen are on the left. Panelists appear on the right. |
| Cole laughs listening to comments from panelists on "I've Got a Secret." |
| Cole listens to questions from the panel on "I've Got a Secret." |
| Cole's secret appears on screen after he whispers it to host Steve Allen. |
| This still from "I've Got a Secret" shows Cole flying the Thomas Pusher to New York City. |
| Click this banner to view the album for the Thomas Pusher |