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INTERNAL CONFLICTS:
The Epic Novel of the Turbulent Sixties

(Release date: November 1, 2009,
Cable Publishing, Inc.)

by Flint Whitlock

ISBN-13: 978-1-934980-69-9
$14.95 (softcover)

Recently on National Public Radio, an author said, "A good novel raises more questions than it answers."

By that standard, Internal Conflicts is certainly a "good novel," for it raises all sorts of questions about life, death, love, sex, war, peace and the meaning of human existence. In fact, nearly every page confronts the protagonist with a question, a choice, a dilemma.

One of the major questions that Peter Luton seems to constantly encounter is: "What must I do to prove that I am a man?"

According to psychologist Dr. Wayne W. Dyer, author or The Hazards of Being Male, women never have to "prove" their femininity. Many young males, on the other hand, often feel compelled to "prove" to themselves and others that they are worthy of being considered "real men."

It is this drive to prove one's masculinity that is at the heart of Internal Conflicts, the debut novel by acclaimed author and military historian Flint Whitlock, that is part romance novel, part war story, part murder mystery, and part psychological study.

Set in the turbulent 1960s, when America was being pulled apart by war, racial issues, and political assassinations, Internal Conflicts is the story of Peter Luton, a young, idealistic Army officer who has joined the military in hopes of discovering his manhood while he hunts for sex, love, and the meaning of life in a world turned upside down.

Having grown up in the shadow of his older, more athletically gifted brother Jack, the angst-ridden, ultra-sensitive Peter is forever tormented by self-doubt and insecurities, and is given to impetuous acts that always seem to backfire on him. Yet, when it comes time for him to demonstrate courage in the face of death, he finds an inner strength that he never knew he possessed.

Told with style, warmth, and humor, as well as insight and surprising plot twists, the fast-paced Internal Conflicts takes the reader to some intriguing locales: El Paso, Texas, and the mean streets of Juarez, Mexico; Airborne training in Georgia; a shipboard romance on the North Atlantic; the tensions of a nuclear missile base in West Germany during the Cold War; a steamy sexual encounter in Paris; the riot-torn streets of Chicago during the 1968 Democratic National Convention; and a battle-scarred highway in Vietnam.

Along the way, the reader meets a host of lifelike, unforgettable characters: Peter's older brother Jack, All-American jock; Martin "Frog" Randall, Peter's anti-war college roommate; Lieutenant Duncan Matheson III, a hedonist and minister's son; Susan Delehaye, Peter's former college fiance; the racist Sergeant Krieger; Sabrina Mondragon, one of Peter's many failed love interests; Army buddy Lieutenant Styles Van Dellen; the sexually voracious librarian Margot Sills; Peter's insufferable commanding officer, Boswell "Porky Pig" Taggert; Army nurse Lieutenant Meredith Keller; Peter's boss in Vietnam, Lieutenant Colonel Herbert Aholm; his nemesis Captain Todd Gorman; and Australian Army Captain Graham Birdsong—all of whom play important roles in propelling the novel to its shattering, inevitable conclusion with an emotional impact that few readers will be able to resist. Or forget.

No wonder that one reviewer called it "the Great American Novel."

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TURBULENCE BEFORE TAKEOFF:
The Life and Times of Aviation Pioneer Marlon DeWitt Green

by Flint Whitlock

(416 pages, 80 photos)
Publication Date: February 2, 2009
Cable Publishing, Inc.
(Hard cover $24.95, Softcover $17.95)

As incredible as it may seem today, until the mid-1960s there were no African-American pilots flying for any major U.S. airline.  

It took the indomitable will of one accomplished U.S. Air Force pilot, his sacrifices and those of his wife and family, the efforts of a tireless attorney, and a unanimous decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to finally end segregation in the nation's cockpits.  But the victory did not come without immense personal loss and pain.  

From an early age, Marlon DeWitt Green dreamed of becoming an airline pilot but, during the 1950s and 60s, found America's commercial cockpits barred to him because of his race.

Turbulence Before Takeoff is the previously untold story of how Green defied an entrenched, segregated airline industry and overcame defeat in two courts of law to finally realize his dream.

Flint Whitlock’s explosive book is the often inspiring, often heart-breaking story of Green's long battle, set within the larger context of the fight for civil rights and equality that nearly tore America apart in the 20th century. 

Growing up in a poor family in El Dorado, Arkansas, in the 1930s and 40s, Marlon was an outstanding student.  After converting to Roman Catholicism, he won a scholarship to the all-black Xavier Prep School in New Orleans and graduated as co-valedictorian.  Setting his sights on a future as a priest, he was unexpectedly expelled from the seminary.  He then decided to enlist in the Air Force which, in 1947, was still racially segregated.

Never one to shrink from a challenge, he applied for and was accepted to flight school, earned his pilot’s wings, and spent over nine years on active duty.  During this time he also married Eleanor Gallagher, a white woman from Boston who campaigned against racism and discrimination as hard as he did, at a time when interracial marriages were considered taboo—and even illegal in many states.

To earn more money to support his growing family (the Greens eventually had six children), he resigned his Air Force commission in 1957 and sought work with the airlines, which he had been led to believe would welcome minorities.  Despite his excellent flying abilities and spotless military record, he found no airline willing to defy convention and hire a black pilot.

Fortunately, Green was not alone in his fight.  Turbulence Before Takeoff is a controversial book that details the efforts of his Denver attorney who fought the system of institutional racism all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court to secure the justice that had been denied Marlon and other pilots of color. 

Marlon Green’s determined effort to earn the right to fly airliners was a long, difficult, and costly battle, and was finally achieved when Earl Warren’s United States Supreme Court ruled unanimously in 1963 that Continental Airlines had discriminated against him and must offer him a job.  Once that barrier was broken, the skies were suddenly opened to pilots of color.  A special group, the Organization of Black Airline Pilots (OBAP), was formed in the wake of his victory.

But the long struggle had taken its toll and, although Green was hired and flew for Continental for fourteen years, his personal life took a downward spiral that resulted in family tragedy.

Besides telling the story of one man’s courageous battle against discrimination, Turbulence Before Takeoff frames Green’s story against the larger tapestry of the Civil Rights movement that exists to this day.

Capt. Marlon Green's life is an amazing, untold chapter in American history of how one man overcame incredible odds to achieve his goals, but paid a heavy price—emotionally, personally, and financially—along the way.  Yet his perseverance is an inspiration to anyone who has a dream. 

Turbulence Before Takeoff is an important story that won't soon be forgotten.

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Flint is also currently working on several other book, magazine, and film projects. Be sure to check back periodically for updates.