John Painter was a man of many talents. John remembered that his earliest memory was at the tender age of four. His grandmother perched him on the railing of her porch and pointed to the heavens. He saw Haley's Comet and the year was 1910. He viewed the comet again in November-December of 1985 as it made it's 75 year return trip. Not many people are around to see Haley's Comet twice in a lifetime.
He was one of the first in the United States to acquire a private pilot's license and he owned his own Piper Cub. He was a trooper with the New Jersey State Police in the 1930's and guarded Bruno Hauptmann, the Lindbergh baby killer, during his sensational trial in Flemington, NJ. John's boss was Norman Schwarzkopf, Sr.
Later he was employed at the General Motors plant in Linden, New Jersey. He was manager of the trim shop. It is there he met Miles Carpenter, an engineer, ten years his junior, who was to become his business partner and life long friend. In 1942 Grumman signed a contract with General Motors to produce carrier fighter aircraft. The first Grumman Wildcat fighter, designated FM-1, rolled off the assembly line on August 31, 1942. John and Miles would assist in building 1,150 FM-1 and over 4,700 FM-2 fighter planes during the war.
After the war John left General Motors declaring "Once you build an airplane, you can never go back to automobiles!" John and Miles moved to Martha's Vineyard and established Machine & Marine Service in Vineyard haven. John was an excellent motor man. He was adept at fixing mechanical problems with the Johnson line of outboard motors they sold. His prowess as a machinist was not nearly as accomplished as Miles, but his ability to find solutions to difficult mechanical problems was amazing. Both men felt that common sense was the solution to most any problem.
His partnership with Miles was successful where most others fail. John liked to get to the shop early and work on projects, while Miles preferred staying later and dealing with the public. They balanced each other extremely well. And from the beginning they shared each others good times and hard times.
John loved acting and was in many local plays in the 40's and 50's. In 1975 he appeared in the movie blockbuster "Jaws". He played one of the characters in the "armada" scene and also scenes in the town hall and on the dock where the shark was displayed.
John Painter was a man who championed the oppressed and showed great compassion for the downtrodden. Everyone who knew him admired his heart felt compassion for those less fortunate.
John liked to tell this story about his fallen son. Johnny, a Navy pilot, called his father from New Hampshire and told him that he would be flying a Navy jet down to Pensacola, Florida. He told his dad to get out on the lawn near the bank of the Lagoon located near his home on Martha's Vineyard. He went on to say that he would be flying by in about 15 to 20 minutes and to be on the lookout. John took a lawn chair and sat on the edge of the bank. After a little while he heard a jet aircraft approaching from the north. All of a sudden Johnny and his jet zoomed into view as he brought the plane down closer to the water's surface. As the jet flew by the house, Johnny tipped his wings to his dad. John's heart was pounding with the excitement and thunder of the jet engines so close to him. Johnny and his jet were gone in an instant. What a wonderful tribute to a father from his son. Johnny was killed in Vietnam in 1971.
John Painter passed away hours before his 80th birthday on July 19, 1986. A man with spiritual and very special human qualities was gone. His memory lives vibrantly on in his family, and every Christmas his grandchildren place his fragrant old pipe on the tree. A loving family ritual that hopefully will continue through generations.
He was one of the first in the United States to acquire a private pilot's license and he owned his own Piper Cub. He was a trooper with the New Jersey State Police in the 1930's and guarded Bruno Hauptmann, the Lindbergh baby killer, during his sensational trial in Flemington, NJ. John's boss was Norman Schwarzkopf, Sr.
Later he was employed at the General Motors plant in Linden, New Jersey. He was manager of the trim shop. It is there he met Miles Carpenter, an engineer, ten years his junior, who was to become his business partner and life long friend. In 1942 Grumman signed a contract with General Motors to produce carrier fighter aircraft. The first Grumman Wildcat fighter, designated FM-1, rolled off the assembly line on August 31, 1942. John and Miles would assist in building 1,150 FM-1 and over 4,700 FM-2 fighter planes during the war.
After the war John left General Motors declaring "Once you build an airplane, you can never go back to automobiles!" John and Miles moved to Martha's Vineyard and established Machine & Marine Service in Vineyard haven. John was an excellent motor man. He was adept at fixing mechanical problems with the Johnson line of outboard motors they sold. His prowess as a machinist was not nearly as accomplished as Miles, but his ability to find solutions to difficult mechanical problems was amazing. Both men felt that common sense was the solution to most any problem.
His partnership with Miles was successful where most others fail. John liked to get to the shop early and work on projects, while Miles preferred staying later and dealing with the public. They balanced each other extremely well. And from the beginning they shared each others good times and hard times.
John loved acting and was in many local plays in the 40's and 50's. In 1975 he appeared in the movie blockbuster "Jaws". He played one of the characters in the "armada" scene and also scenes in the town hall and on the dock where the shark was displayed.
John Painter was a man who championed the oppressed and showed great compassion for the downtrodden. Everyone who knew him admired his heart felt compassion for those less fortunate.
John liked to tell this story about his fallen son. Johnny, a Navy pilot, called his father from New Hampshire and told him that he would be flying a Navy jet down to Pensacola, Florida. He told his dad to get out on the lawn near the bank of the Lagoon located near his home on Martha's Vineyard. He went on to say that he would be flying by in about 15 to 20 minutes and to be on the lookout. John took a lawn chair and sat on the edge of the bank. After a little while he heard a jet aircraft approaching from the north. All of a sudden Johnny and his jet zoomed into view as he brought the plane down closer to the water's surface. As the jet flew by the house, Johnny tipped his wings to his dad. John's heart was pounding with the excitement and thunder of the jet engines so close to him. Johnny and his jet were gone in an instant. What a wonderful tribute to a father from his son. Johnny was killed in Vietnam in 1971.
John Painter passed away hours before his 80th birthday on July 19, 1986. A man with spiritual and very special human qualities was gone. His memory lives vibrantly on in his family, and every Christmas his grandchildren place his fragrant old pipe on the tree. A loving family ritual that hopefully will continue through generations.
John Painter was a man of many talents. John remembered that his earliest memory was at the tender age of four. His grandmother perched him on the railing of her porch and pointed to the heavens. He saw Haley's Comet and the year was 1910. He viewed the comet again in November-December of 1985 as it made it's 75 year return trip. Not many people are around to see Haley's Comet twice in a lifetime.
He was one of the first in the United States to acquire a private pilot's license and he owned his own Piper Cub. He was a trooper with the New Jersey State Police in the 1930's and guarded Bruno Hauptmann, the Lindbergh baby killer, during his sensational trial in Flemington, NJ. John's boss was Norman Schwarzkopf, Sr.
Later he was employed at the General Motors plant in Linden, New Jersey. He was manager of the trim shop. It is there he met Miles Carpenter, an engineer, ten years his junior, who was to become his business partner and life long friend. In 1942 Grumman signed a contract with General Motors to produce carrier fighter aircraft. The first Grumman Wildcat fighter, designated FM-1, rolled off the assembly line on August 31, 1942. John and Miles would assist in building 1,150 FM-1 and over 4,700 FM-2 fighter planes during the war.
After the war John left General Motors declaring "Once you build an airplane, you can never go back to automobiles!" John and Miles moved to Martha's Vineyard and established Machine & Marine Service in Vineyard haven. John was an excellent motor man. He was adept at fixing mechanical problems with the Johnson line of outboard motors they sold. His prowess as a machinist was not nearly as accomplished as Miles, but his ability to find solutions to difficult mechanical problems was amazing. Both men felt that common sense was the solution to most any problem.
His partnership with Miles was successful where most others fail. John liked to get to the shop early and work on projects, while Miles preferred staying later and dealing with the public. They balanced each other extremely well. And from the beginning they shared each others good times and hard times.
John loved acting and was in many local plays in the 40's and 50's. In 1975 he appeared in the movie blockbuster "Jaws". He played one of the characters in the "armada" scene and also scenes in the town hall and on the dock where the shark was displayed.
John Painter was a man who championed the oppressed and showed great compassion for the downtrodden. Everyone who knew him admired his heart felt compassion for those less fortunate.
John liked to tell this story about his fallen son. Johnny, a Navy pilot, called his father from New Hampshire and told him that he would be flying a Navy jet down to Pensacola, Florida. He told his dad to get out on the lawn near the bank of the Lagoon located near his home on Martha's Vineyard. He went on to say that he would be flying by in about 15 to 20 minutes and to be on the lookout. John took a lawn chair and sat on the edge of the bank. After a little while he heard a jet aircraft approaching from the north. All of a sudden Johnny and his jet zoomed into view as he brought the plane down closer to the water's surface. As the jet flew by the house, Johnny tipped his wings to his dad. John's heart was pounding with the excitement and thunder of the jet engines so close to him. Johnny and his jet were gone in an instant. What a wonderful tribute to a father from his son. Johnny was killed in Vietnam in 1971.
John Painter passed away hours before his 80th birthday on July 19, 1986. A man with spiritual and very special human qualities was gone. His memory lives vibrantly on in his family, and every Christmas his grandchildren place his fragrant old pipe on the tree. A loving family ritual that hopefully will continue through generations.
He was one of the first in the United States to acquire a private pilot's license and he owned his own Piper Cub. He was a trooper with the New Jersey State Police in the 1930's and guarded Bruno Hauptmann, the Lindbergh baby killer, during his sensational trial in Flemington, NJ. John's boss was Norman Schwarzkopf, Sr.
Later he was employed at the General Motors plant in Linden, New Jersey. He was manager of the trim shop. It is there he met Miles Carpenter, an engineer, ten years his junior, who was to become his business partner and life long friend. In 1942 Grumman signed a contract with General Motors to produce carrier fighter aircraft. The first Grumman Wildcat fighter, designated FM-1, rolled off the assembly line on August 31, 1942. John and Miles would assist in building 1,150 FM-1 and over 4,700 FM-2 fighter planes during the war.
After the war John left General Motors declaring "Once you build an airplane, you can never go back to automobiles!" John and Miles moved to Martha's Vineyard and established Machine & Marine Service in Vineyard haven. John was an excellent motor man. He was adept at fixing mechanical problems with the Johnson line of outboard motors they sold. His prowess as a machinist was not nearly as accomplished as Miles, but his ability to find solutions to difficult mechanical problems was amazing. Both men felt that common sense was the solution to most any problem.
His partnership with Miles was successful where most others fail. John liked to get to the shop early and work on projects, while Miles preferred staying later and dealing with the public. They balanced each other extremely well. And from the beginning they shared each others good times and hard times.
John loved acting and was in many local plays in the 40's and 50's. In 1975 he appeared in the movie blockbuster "Jaws". He played one of the characters in the "armada" scene and also scenes in the town hall and on the dock where the shark was displayed.
John Painter was a man who championed the oppressed and showed great compassion for the downtrodden. Everyone who knew him admired his heart felt compassion for those less fortunate.
John liked to tell this story about his fallen son. Johnny, a Navy pilot, called his father from New Hampshire and told him that he would be flying a Navy jet down to Pensacola, Florida. He told his dad to get out on the lawn near the bank of the Lagoon located near his home on Martha's Vineyard. He went on to say that he would be flying by in about 15 to 20 minutes and to be on the lookout. John took a lawn chair and sat on the edge of the bank. After a little while he heard a jet aircraft approaching from the north. All of a sudden Johnny and his jet zoomed into view as he brought the plane down closer to the water's surface. As the jet flew by the house, Johnny tipped his wings to his dad. John's heart was pounding with the excitement and thunder of the jet engines so close to him. Johnny and his jet were gone in an instant. What a wonderful tribute to a father from his son. Johnny was killed in Vietnam in 1971.
John Painter passed away hours before his 80th birthday on July 19, 1986. A man with spiritual and very special human qualities was gone. His memory lives vibrantly on in his family, and every Christmas his grandchildren place his fragrant old pipe on the tree. A loving family ritual that hopefully will continue through generations.
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