🛫Ben Smotherman was a B-17 pilot who was shot down on his 7th mission over occupied Europe in 1943. He was captured and ended up in the POW camp Stalag Luft III. While he was interned, he drew and painted his experiences in the camp. He also created the intrepid war correspondent Penny, the star of one of the camp newspapers comic strips. His daughter, astronaut Dr Jan Davis, joins us to tell us about her father through the pages of his war log.
📖Get your copy of Air Born: Artistic Musings of a WWII Pilot and POW by Jan Davis from Ballast Books here: https://ballastbooks.com/purchase/air-born-artistic/
📖Get your copy of Air Born: Two Generations in Flight by Jan Davis from Ballast Books here: https://ballastbooks.com/purchase/air-born/
Visit Jan's website at: astronautjandavis.com
Follow Jan on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/AstronautJanDavis/
Follow Jan on X here: https://x.com/astro_jan
-----------------------------------------------------
🛫 Become a Damcasteer today on Patreon! Join from just £3 + VAT a month to get ad-free episodes, chat with Matt, and receive a personalised welcome pack. Click here for more info: https://www.patreon.com/thedamcasters
-----------------------------------------------------
✈️Get the latest from the Pima Air and Space Museum by following their socials!
Website: https://pimaair.org/
https://www.facebook.com/PimaAirAndSpace
https://www.instagram.com/pimaair
https://www.youtube.com/c/PimaAirSpaceMuseum
👕Get your aviation on with 909 Apparel today! Check out their website here: https://www.909apparel.com/
-----------------------------------------------------
The Damcasters © 2025 by Matt Bone is licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International
-----------------------------------------------------
0:01 Welcome to the Damcasters
2:35 Meet Ben Smotherman
20:30 Life in Stalag Luft III
31:47 The Adventures of Penny
44:22 The Journey Home
47:10 Wrap Up
","author_name":"Matt Bone"}