|
|
The Gervais-Irene
| 1940s-1982 ID'd Irene Craigmile (Gervais-Irene) |
|
| ...slight weight gain, nose work, dental, cosmetic changes; "The Gervais-Irene" |
| News photo, 1940s-1982 ID'd Irene Craigmile Bolam. |
|
| AKA 'The Gervais-Irene' in Japan, 1963, five years after she married Guy Bolam of England. |
The Gervais-Irene, whose image appeared nowhere as 'Irene' prior to the 1940s, truly exhibited
a haunting physical and character trait congruence to Amelia Earhart. (Less the fixed tooth gap and her deviated septum rhinoplasty;
see before-after comparison directly below.) Seemingly appearing from out of the blue in the U. S. in the mid-1940s, from
the World War Two era on she was identified as 'Irene Craigmile' until 1958 when she became 'Irene Bolam' after marrying the
distinguished Guy Bolam of England (whose main enterprise was overseeing Radio Luxembourg in Europe.) It became a general
consensus Guy Bolam had been linked to the Council on Foreign Relations, a derivative of world wide notables dating back to
the 1920s and at least, partly, what later became known as England's MI6 program. Even Guy's brother, John Bolam expressed
his own certainty of Guy having been an MI-6 operative. When retired Air Force Major Joe Gervais met and photographed Irene
and Guy Bolam in 1965, the true depth of what he was getting involved with evaded him. Guy died in 1970,
and the Gervais-Irene Craigmile remained known as 'Irene Bolam' until her own passing in 1982.
|
The Original Irene
| Irene Craigmile, 1930 |
|
| The 'Original' Irene Craigmile, Amelia's friend, seen no more after the 1930s. (Full frame below.) |
| The Original Irene O'Crowley Craigmile, 1930. |
|
| Shown with her husband & father. |
|
| The original Irene Craigmile in 1932; Amelia and Viola Gentry's friend. |
Above: The woman shown directly
above was the original Irene (nee O'Crowley) Craigmile, who had married one Charles Craigmile in 1927. (Charles died suddenly
of appendicitis in 1931.) The orginal Irene Craigmile remains an enigma to this day.
She was a friend of Amelia Earhart and Viola Gentry, who helped her to learn how to fly after Charles Craigmile died. She
fell in love with one of her flight instructors, Al Heller, and she became pregnant out of wedlock by him in mid-1933. The
two eloped to be married, yet after she gave birth to their son in early 1934 there is no further record of her visual image,
and no information pertaining to what became of her. [Her son was mostly raised during his childhood by the Non Gervais-Irene
on the right.] Note: The women shown in these three different columns; the Gervais-Irene, the Original Irene
Craigmile, and the Non Gervais-Irene were all different human beings, although at various times they were identified as one
in the same 'Irene (nee O'Crowley) Craigmile' (with 'Bolam' added in 1958.) Of course there was only ever one original
Irene (nee O'Crowley) Craigmile, leaving the true forensic identities of the other two women unaccounted for to this day.
Beyond 37' believes enough circumstantial and forensic evidence exists, that equates the Gervais-Irene as the 'former' Amelia
Earhart, and the Non Gervais-Irene as the grown 'family secret' 1924 born-out-of-wedlock daughter of Amelia Earhart and Lloyd
Royer.
|
The Non Gervais-Irene
| Irene Craigmile, circa 1945 |
|
| The Non Gervais-Irene, by the mid-1940s she'd left, leaving the Gervais-Irene as 'Irene Craigmile.' |
| Older version of the 'Non Gervais-Irene' |
|
| Shown in 1982, estimated true age then: Fifty-eight years old. |
Above: The Non Gervais-Irene (AKA 'Irene Jr.') was described as 'born in 1924.' In 1984 an elderly
Lucy McDannel, who was a past good friend of the original Irene Craigmile's family (the O'Crowleys of Newark, New Jersey)
did describe how 'Irene Jr.' had been taken in to be raised by the O'Crowleys in the late 1920s. As a teenager Irene Jr. helped
look after the original Irene's 1934 born son, and she evidently was identified as 'Irene Craigmile' from the late 1930s into
the 1940s, even though, as Lucy described Irene Jr. was only "16-17 years old in 1940." It appears evident Irene
Jr. and the original Irene's son were relocated to Mineola on Long Island New York in 1938, where they lived with their 'Aunt
Gert' (AKA Gertrude Ferguson) into the early 1940s. Irene Jr. all but left the O'Crowley fold in a public sense,
after the Gervais-Irene became the 'new' Irene Craigmile and was furrther regarded as the mother
of the original Irene's son.
|
Above: Reprinted from
the Beyond 37' study, only the Irene Craigmile displayed in the middle was the original 'Irene Craigmile,' although the study
also revealed how by the 1940s the other two women had the same 'Irene Craigmile' identity attributed to them as the original
Irene no longer appeared. It seemed curious but did make sense in 2006, when the 1934 born son of the original Irene Craigmile,
one Larry Heller admitted he grew up believing his mother always existed as one person. (After the final elements of Irene's
photo history were obtained, the study's eye comparisons alone forensically eliminated the possibility of only one individual
having used the 'Irene Craigmile Bolam' identity.)
The study's forensic research also discovered how the three different women shown above all
knew each other, although the Non Gervais-Irene was much younger, separated a generation age wise from the other two. In 2006
The original Irene's son offered how he held no photos of his 'mother' pre-dating the year of 1947. He still recognized both
the Gervais-Irene and Non Gervais-Irene as his early childhood mother figures though, while evidently only the Gervais-Irene
filled the role from his boarding school days on. It also became clear how the original Irene's son grew up never really knowing
his biological mother. Again, no one is certain about what became of the original Irene Craigmile, and so much looms as a
skeleton in the closet of the overall 'Earhart mystery.'
It remains uncertain what became
of the original Irene Craigmile in the mid-1930s. It is clear, within a year after pilot friends Viola Gentry and Amelia Earhart
helped introduce her to the world of flying airplanes on Long Island, the original Irene became pregnant out of wedlock in
mid-1933 courtesy of one of her flight instructors. However, after she gave birth to a son in early 1934, a solid trail of
the original Irene Craigmile's life appeared almost non-extant any further, in a physical image sense. It appears by the late
1930s to the early 1940s the Non Gervais-Irene, AKA 'Irene Jr.' of the O'Crowley family of Newark, New Jersey was known to
help care for the original Irene's toddler and growing child, Clarence 'Larry' Heller. (The original Irene had eloped to marry
the father to be, flight instructor Al Heller, however by 1940 their marriage had been legally annulled, reverting the name
back to Irene Craigmile. Irene Jr. was serving as Irene Craigmile by that time. Below the following photos & text, read
more about the 'original' Irene Craigmile.) It is understood how by the mid-1940s Irene Jr. had left Newark, New Jersey, around
the time the Gervais-Irene stepped is as the new, permanent 'Irene Craigmile.' Larry Heller had been placed in a boarding
school at a young age. The ealiest photo of his parents he claims to hold is from 1947, when he graduated from his boarding
intermediate school at age thirteen. In the photo one sees young Larry standing with cap and gown, and his parents standing
behind him, the Gervais-Irene Craigmile and Alvin Heller. In 2006 Larry Heller clearly recognized the younger Non Gervais-Irene
image (upper right) as his early childhood mother figure.
|
| The original Irene Craigmile in 1932; Amelia and Viola's friend. |
The original Irene's first husband, Charles Craigmile died
suddenly of appendicitis in 1931. By 1932 his widow,
Irene Craigmile was taking flying lessons at Roosevelt Field on Long Island. Her goal was to
earn her pilot's license. Well known pilots Amelia Earhart and Viola Gentry who both knew Irene helped her early on, and in
late May of 1933, after several months of some inconsistent at times training she was awarded her pilot's license. She had
soloed the required amount of hours and demonstrated her overall skill as a pilot. Alvin Victor Heller was her last flight
instructor, and, not long after being awarded her license, Irene Craigmile realized she was pregnant with Alvin Heller's child.
Soon the two eloped to wed, and Irene Craigmile Heller gave birth to a son in early 1934. It does appear to be the case, the original
Irene is no longer visible from this point on in the 'physical image' history of her person. Her marriage was soon legally
annulled as well, leaving the surname of 'Heller' to be dropped. Meanwhile the original Irene's 1934 born son, Larry Heller
spends time today between Long Island and Florida. Of note, the two
other women who used the original Irene Craigmile's identity from the late 1930s to 1982 are clearly distinguishable from
each other in the study and as shown herein. In 2006 both were recognized by Larry Heller as his 'mother figures' dating back
to his early childhood and teen years, when he was being co-raised and educated at a boarding school. Although on record he
has never publicly endorsed its reality, it is clear Larry Heller never knew his biological mother. Below: The two other 'non original' Irenes...
Below: It's fairly easy to find Amelia again by using the 1945 Zonta photo
from almost a decade after she was said to have 'disappeared.' The photo marks the first known to have publicly identified
her as (a new) 'Irene Craigmile.' True, the Zonta organization for professional career women has always refused to comment
about the 1945-1970s Zonta membership of Irene Craigmile (Bolam.) Recall too, by the 1930s Amelia Earhart had grown to become
the most famous Zonta member. Even today the Zontas award its most prestigious annual scholarship in Amelia's name. There
is virtually no doubt, high level Zonta officers from the 1940s were in confidence with the non-public reidentification process
of changing 'Amelia' to 'Irene.
| The 1945-1982 ID'd Irene Craigmile. |
|
| A look to the right shows how a few 'changes' made her harder to recognize here. |
|
| Before deviated septum rhinoplasty... |
|
| ...prior to a slight weight gain, dental work, & cosmetic adjustments: The Gervais-Iene. |
|
"After all she'd been through, she did not want to be Amelia
Earhart any more." Quote of Monsignor James Francis Kelley, former President of Seton Hall University talking about his
late close friend Irene Craigmile Bolam (the Gervais-Irene) in 1991.
The 1945-1982 identified 'Gervais-Irene.' She
appeared nowhere in photos identified as 'Irene' prior to the 1940s. However two other women; the Original Irene and the Non
Gervais-Irene did. In the next panels down following this one, see how closely the Gervais-Irene aligned with Amelia Earhart.
| 1945-1982 'Gervais-Irene' |
|
| Married to Guy Bolam of England in 1958. |
|
|
| Left and right images combined display the congruence. |
|
| 1945-1982 Gervais-Irene in 1965. (Gervais photo.) |
|
| AKA "Irene Craigmile" AKA "Irene Bolam." Same photo appeared in 1970 book "Amelia Earhart Lives." |
|
In its forensic analysis Beyond 37' discovered how
in 1982 Irene Jr.'s older-version photo image appeared in a newspaper identifying her (for the first time in forty years)
as 'the late Irene Craigmile Bolam,' even though it was the Gervais-Irene who had actually passed away that year. To this
day some believe Irene Jr. was the concealed, out-of-wedlock birth daughter of Lloyd Royer and Amelia Earhart from four years
before Amelia suddenly became famous at age thirty. After the original Irene's son, Larry Heller in 2006 identified both the
Gervais-Irene and Non Gervais-Irene as childhood mother figures he had, no other O'Crowley or Earhart family member acknowledged
an awareness of there having been more than one person known as Irene Craigmile. The analysis revealed how it is obvious there
was more than one identified Irene Craigmile, just as it made it equally obvious to realize, however hard to conventionally
accept, the Gervais-Irene was the somehow survived, name changed, and public image altered 'former' Amelia Earhart.
| Younger 'Non Gervais-Irene' |
|
| c. 1947, age 23 |
|
|
| Left (younger) and right (older) in an overlay congruence. |
Lucy McDannel clearly described the enigmatic
girl who had been taken in to be raised by the O'Crowleys, adding how she was referred to as 'Irene Jr.' She also included
how by 1945 'Irene Jr.' was no longer intimate with the O'Crowleys. Irene Rutherford O'Crowley, who was a prominent New York
attorney, Zonta figurehead, and friend and advisor of Amelia's (and was the original Irene's Aunt) had primarily cared for
'Irene Jr.,' who by the late 1930s was serving as a sitter, then a live-in nanny figure for the original Irene's son, Larry
Heller.
|
| Older 'Non Gervais-Irene' |
|
| 1982, age 58 |
|
Again, who was the Non Gervais-Irene? She wasn't
the original Irene, nor was she the Irene who retired Air Force Major Joe Gervais met and photographed in 1965 at a gathering
of well known retired pilots. Still, the son of the original Irene, Larry Heller did recognized her as his 'early childhood
mother figure.' By 1945 Larry Heller was living at a boarding school as the Non Gervais-Irene segued out of his life, and
the his birth-mother's identity from then on. Again, after Irene Bolam's death was reported in 1982, a few months later the
Memorial Dinner cover photo above on the right, along with the 1982 New Jersey News Tribune series marked the first time the
Non Gervais-Irene's image was identified as 'Irene Craigmile Bolam' in four decades. By the mid-1940s the Non Gervais-Irene
had purportedly relocated to Scotland where as a single mother she had a child of her own who she placed up for adoption,
and she later returned to the United States to resume a quiet life in Connecticut. Again, to date the Non Gervais-Irene has
yet to be identified for who she truly is, or was.
| The original Irene Craigmile (Bolam), circa 1930 |
|
| Husband Charles Craigmile (left), and her father Joe O'Crowley (Right). |
Below: Older and younger
versions of the two 'non-original' Irene Craigmiles:
| Irene Craigmile, 1940s |
|
| As identified by the original Irene's Son in 2006 |
|
| Irene Craigmile, 1982 |
|
| Same person as shown to the left, the original Irene's Son supplied this 1982 news series photo. |
|
| 1945-1982 ID'd Irene [1945 'Zonta' labeled photo] |
|
| Earliest known photo of this particular Irene Craigmile (later "Bolam") |
|
| 1945-1982 identified Irene Craigmile Bolam |
|
| Same person as shown to the left, photo taken in 1965 by USAF Major Joe Gervais, (Ret.) |
|
About The Original Irene Craigmile (Bolam)
As revealed by the Beyond 37' Forensic Analysis (Plural Humans/Same
Identity; 2002-2007) there were no less than three different women who at times employed the same Irene Craigmile (Bolam)
identity. Directly above is the best known example of a legitimate photo of the 'original' Irene Craigmile (Bolam). She was
born "Irene Madaline O'Crowley" on 10/1/04 in Newark, New Jersey according to record. [No birth certificate for
her person was located by family or researchers.] She was an only child. Her mother, Bridgett Doyle O'Crowley died when the
original Irene was twelve, leaving her to be taken in and further raised by her paternal grandmother, Sarah Rutherford O'Crowley
and her paternal aunt I. M. O'Crowley in Newark (the original Irene's father's sister.) The original Irene's father, Richard
Joseph O'Crowley (Joe) who is seen on the right in the above photo, slipped into alcoholism after losing his wife. (He died
in 1943.) (Curiously, the 1920 census listed the original Irene as "fourteen years old" while she lived with her
grandmother Sarah and attorney-aunt I. M. O'Crowley, differing from her described 1904 birth year and supporting an actual
birth year rumor of 1906.)The
original Irene's first husband, Charles James Craigmile who was fifteen years older than she (featured above left) was a Newark
Civil Engineer from a prominent Rantoul, Illinois family. The original Irene and Charles Craigmile were wed in 1927. (Info
to later surface from the original Irene's second husband, Al Heller described how he understood the original Irene was 'pregnant
with another man's child' when she married Charles Craigmile. It appears the child, a boy was born to the original Irene and
reared by her extended O'Crowley family.) The original Irene's first husband, Charles Craigmile was stable and well liked.
The 1930 census showed the couple living in Pequannock, New Jersey, yet during a road trip in 1931 Charles took ill of appendicitis
and died, leaving the original Irene a widow.A year later, in late 1932 Viola Gentry and Amelia Earhart arranged for some flying lessons for their bereaved
friend, the original Irene. (The two well-known women pilots had met the original Irene in 1928 through her attorney aunt,
I. M. O'Crowley who was also a good friend and Zonta sister of Amelia's.) The original Irene's flying lessons took place
in Long Island, New York. In 1933 the original Irene met and dated Alvin Victor Heller, one of her flight instructors. Just
after earning her pilot's license in late May of that year, the original Irene realized herself to be pregnant with Al's child.
(According to record the original Irene never flew again after logging only a handful of flight hours.) In August of 1933
Al Heller and the original Irene Craigmile eloped to be married, and in early March of 1934 came the birth of their child
in Newark, a son they named Clarence Alvin Heller, (later to be informally known as "Larry Heller.") Sometime afterward
the original Irene Craigmile Heller disappeared from view. Childbirth complications were eventually bantered on, to have left
her physically stricken and mired in postpartum depression. Where so, what ended as her true demise was never publicly conveyed.
In 1994 Diana Dawes, a later life good friend of the Gervais-Irene described on tape how she "understood someone had
died (the original Irene, to be hushed) and that's how she (the Gervais-Irene) was able to get her new identity." By
the late 1930s the paper trail began showing how a legal annulment process had commenced, and by 1940 the marriage of Al and
Irene Heller was determined null and void, leaving the name of Irene Heller to revert back to Irene Craigmile. Thus, such
a full name historically ended as "Irene Madaline O'Crowley Craigmile Heller Bolam," although "Heller"
had been legally removed. And in the 1940s a different Irene Craigmile (the 1945-1982 identified 'Gervais-Irene') was appearing
in the original Irene's place. She bore a striking resemblance to Amelia Earhart; the world famous pilot-hero who the original
Irene had known.Hitler's
invasion of Poland in late 1939 caused people to less recall how Amelia was said to have 'vanished without a trace' in 1937
while still safely airborne, and was suggested to have ended up 'lost at sea.' Meanwhile the Non Gervias-Irene (Irene Jr.)
who helped with the rearing of Larry Heller was later described as "no longer intimate" with the O'Crowleys of Newark,
New Jersey by 1945. Again, some feel Irene Jr., who remains to be forensically identified for who she truly was, evidenced
the 1924 born love-child of Amelia Earhart and Lloyd Royer who had been taken in to be co-raised by Amelia's attorney friend
in 1928, I. M. O'Crowley, after Amelia suddenly became famous that year at the age of thirty. Whether or not such a postulation
is true, there did exist a rumor of a pre-fame child Amelia had and concealed 'around 1924,' a year of great transition in
Amelia's life when she and her mother and sister all relocated from Los Angeles, California to Boston, Massachusetts. During
that odd year-long period of 1924, Lucy Challis, Amelia's cousin later described how it was "as if the Earhart's had
fallen off the edge of the earth" then. Amelia herself was recalled in 1924 to have been dealing with her own medical
(sinus) and emotional (depression) issues, but there seems to have existed a non-conveyed undercurrent about why all three
ladies so stealthly slipped away from their southern California home, beginning wth Amelia herself in January, with her not
resurfacing again in a 'regular' way until the spring of 1925. Again, three years later in 1928 world-fame suddenly
struck Amelia, the year Irene Jr. turned four years old. Beyond all of this it is true anymore, how ever since the 1940s two individuals who were
not the original Irene; the Gervais-Irene and the Non Gervais-Irene were identified as "Irene Craigmile (Bolam)."
Due to recent-years stronger evaluating of the overall Earhart disappearance case, who they really were and where they actually
came from at last proved a true mystery to behold, equal to what became of the original Irene Craigmile, whose identity both
the Gervais-Irene and the Non Gervais-Irene later used.
Below, a strip of four 'non-original Irene Craigmile' photos:
| 1.) Irene Craigmile, 1940s |
|
| Long Island 'Zonta' photo, 1945-1982 ID'd 'Gervais-Irene' |
|
| 2.) Irene Craigmile, 1940s |
|
| 'Irene Jr.', AKA the 'Non Gervais-Irene' |
|
| 3.) Irene Craigmile, 1923 |
|
| Forgery |
|
| 4.) Irene Craigmile, 1976 |
|
| The Gervais-Irene at a Detroit Zonta function |
|
Numbered 1, 2, 3, & 4 above, see the following descriptions of each: The #1 'Irene' displayed
in the far left photo was met and candidly photographed by Joe Gervais in 1965. Their meeting took place at a gathering of
well known retired pilots in the Long Island, New York Hamptons. The photo, dated 1945 is the first time this 'Irene' appears
in the photo history of Irene Craigmile. The #2 photo to the right of her was identified by the original Irene's Son in 2006. In reality she
was/is likely the 1924 born "Irene Jr.", who some suspect to have been the illegitimate child of Lloyd Royer and
Amelia Earhart, born out of wedlock four years before Amelia became famous at the age of thirty, and kept as a family secret
always. The 'familial similarity' appears as real, and it could be her existance marked one of the the non-recognized reasons
for the so called 'mystery' of Amelia Earhart people have been stumbling over in wrong directions ever since Amelia Earhart
was said to have 'vanished without a trace.' To this day 'Irene Jr.' has never been identified for who she truly was. She
was not the original Irene Craigmile, nor was she ever Amelia Earhart. The question therefore became, and still remains; who
was she? Although the original Irene's Son avowed he grew up never knowing more than one woman was attributed to his mother's
identity, in the "Closer Look at Eyes and Faces" link the separation of individuals is clearly distinguishable.
The next #3 shoddy looking profile photo
supposedly identified Irene Craigmile as she looked in 1923 when her surname was still "O'Crowley." It was determined
to have been a forgery. The
final #4 photo on the far right shows the 1945-1982 identified Irene as she looked in 1976. Taken at a Detroit Zonta function,
her profile matches Amelia's. Notice her nose difference though. No doubt some work was done there; via the described 'deviated
septum rhinoplasty' procedure. It hardly matches the nose on the forgery either, one that displays a slight convex curvature.
(Such a convex curvature is slightly detectable in the original Irene's photo.)
Below, the different 'post 1930s' identified
Irene Craigmile referred to as "Irene Jr."
| 1940s 'different' Irene Craigmile (Bolam) |
|
| ID'd by the original Irene's Son in 2006, National Geographic refused to display her image on TV. |
Below: Elmo Pickerill
responded to a query letter from Joe Gervais, reaffirming how he knew Irene Craigmile (Bolam) while also confirming her past
friendship with Amelia Earhart and Viola Gentry. Mr. Pickerill expressed his belief Irene was bonafide, and he appeared to
know nothing about the shared identity of Irene Craigmile (Bolam), or at least, it seemed that way. He also appeared not to
know the original Irene Craigmile hardly ever flew at all. As well, where forensic comparisons were not conducted back then,
no one realized how Viola Gentry would have had two friends who looked so hauntingly similar to each other in Amelia Earhart,
who disappeared in 1937, and in the Gervais-Irene, who appeared from out of nowhere in the 1940s to become a 'new' Irene Craigmile:
Once more, from the mid-1940s
until her passing in 1982, only the Gervais-Irene appeared as 'Irene Craigmile Bolam.' In the end, the obfuscation of blending
three different human beings into one identity, void of public awareness, appeared to have been done with a purposeful intent.
It is also evident how the survived families and close friends of Amelia and the original Irene traditionally dismissed the
Irene-Amelia conveyance out of hand while encouraging curious historians to do the same thing. No matter, the controversy
was always very real.
The
study includes head to toe comparisons, a handwriting comparitive analysis, other character trait comparisons, and past friend
and family relationships to complete the overall forensic argument.
Note: While this Home Page is comprehensive, for a Table of Contents
click on the 'Introduction' link, top upper left.
| Dubrovnik, Yugoslavia 1976 |
|
| The Gervais-Irene |
|
| The transition back begins... |
|
| ...images in alignment... |
|
| Gervais-Irene + Amelia |
|
| = Irene-Amelia |
|
Below: Different looks of 'the Gervais-Irene.'
She was dubbed the 'Gervais-Irene' to distinguish her as the 'Irene' who retired Air Force Major Joe Gervais met and photographed
in 1965 at a gathering of well-known retired pilots. After researching her background for years, Gervais found her to be a
true enigma who was familiar with the same people and interests Amelia used to be.
| 1945 |
|
| Long Island, New York |
|
| 1963 |
|
| Kobe, Japan |
|
| 1965, Joe Gervais photo. |
|
| Long Island, New York |
|
| 1976 |
|
| Dubrovnik, Yugoslavia |
|
| 1978 |
|
| Jamestown, New Jersey |
|
Beyond 37's Tod Swindell first received attention
from the Associated Press in 2002 via a national wire service story by John Staton. Since then the forensic analysis verified
how the Gervais-Irene did not appear as 'Irene Craigmile Bolam' in the United States prior to the 1940s, and she did display
a significant head to toe congruence to Amelia Earhart. Some researchers now believe the public never understood the Amelia
Earhart and privacy became her preference. There also exists a hub of aviation history scholars who have grown to accept the
reality of Amelia's name-changed survival as a new 'Irene Craigmile (Bolam),' citing no other explanation for who else she
possibly could have been.
| 1930 |
|
| The 'Original' Irene Craigmile. |
The new question realized; What became of the original
Irene? Evidently by the 1940s she had, unknown to the general public, become the actual 'missing person' (as opposed to her
friend Amelia Earhart, who also unknown to the general public had continued to exist after she was said to have 'disappeared.')Realize
as well, people remained unaware of this reality until recent years, and many contrarians still campaign over the internet
against the new Irene-Amelia truth using false argument foundations while doing so. Those (such as Alex Mandel of the Ukraine)
who supplied non-truthful information to Wikipedia about Irene Craigmile Bolam, mark a prime example of such false counterpoint
argumentations.
| Irene Craigmile (Bolam) |
|
| AKA the 'Non Gervais-Irene,' 1940s, positively ID'd as Irene Craigmile (Bolam.) |
|
| In November of 1970 this Irene Craigmile Bolam... |
|
| ...held a major press conference in New York to refute the new book 'Amelia Earhart Lives.' |
|
Note: Status-quo Earhart enthusiasts downplay
or dismiss the realities shown here. No matter; four decades later the Amelia Earhart vs. Irene Craigmile Bolam controversy
still remains, and has yet to be 'officially' addressed by the Smithsonian Institute.
| Irene-Amelia overlay blend... |
|
| ...of Amelia and the 1945-1982 ID'd Gervais-Irene Craigmile Bolam. |
|
| The transition back begins... |
|
| ...to the 1945-1982 Irene Craigmile Bolam. |
|
| News photo, 1945-1982 ID'd Irene Craigmile Bolam. |
|
| AKA 'The Gervais-Irene' in Japan, 1963. |
|
| Is This Real? |
|
| Click on this photo overlay and decide for yourself. |
| 1945-1982 Gervais-Irene Craigmile Bolam |
|
| Shown at Cocoa Beach, Florida in 1965. |
|
| The transition begins... |
|
| ...see Amelia's image becoming apparent. |
|
| Amelia's image starts to take over... |
|
| ...notice the congruent alignment; face, chin, neck, shoulders, et al. |
|
| Amelia's image dominant. |
|
| From a 1935 photo taken during Amelia's pre Hawaii to Oakland flight sea voyage. |
|
Below: Larger sample of the 1987 '50th Anniversary' Marshall
Islands stamp series depicting the 1937 rescue of Earhart and Noonan. As recently as 2006, even the United Nations Ambassador to the Marshall Islands, Alfred Cappelle described to the National
Geographic Society how Amelia Earhart "definitely came to the Marshall Islands in 1937" and so much is viewed as
"common knowledge" in his country. No matter, the Smithsonian Institute (a ward of the U. S. Government) has never
been permitted to conduct its own investigation into Earhart's disappearance, and due to 'official silence' towards the matter,
historically it has dismissed-out-of-hand all accounts about Earhart and
Noonan's fate that differ from the simple 'crashed and sank' explanation. See the complete enlarged stamp series further down.
| In the 1987 Stamp series a Japan naval officer... |
|
| ...stands with Noonan (knee bandaged) and Earhart. "Picked up, not a capture." |
U.
S. Navy Admiral Chester Arthur Nimitz, Commander of the Pacific Fleet during World War Two willfully
cooperated with CBS Radio Journalist Fred Goerner for five years as Goerner investigated Earhart's 1937 disappearance. Nimitz
was instrumental in creating avenues for Goerner to pursue by way of declassified military intelligence channels in Washington
DC, and certain military individuals Goerner interviewed. There is no doubt anymore something happened, or was happening with
Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan in 1937 the public was left unaware of. Again, years ago Admiral Nimitz admitted it was quietly
"known and documented in Washington" how Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan ended up existing under the auspice of Japan
after their purported disappearance, although 'circumstances' left the U. S. Executive Branch unable to publicly explain it.
It's amazing how the people of the United States lost sight of this, but it is how The Mystery of Amelia Earhart was born in a more modern sense in the 1960s. Got truth? If you're looking
for a quick synopsis click on the upper left 'Conclusion' link.
| From a 10/18/82 New Jersey Tribune article: |
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| A decade later Msgr. Kelley told the truth about his late friend 'Irene' in a taped interview. |
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| Mnsgr. Kelley & the Gervais-Irene, 1980 |
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| The former Seton Hall Univ. President finally told the truth about his friend Irene on tape in 1991. |
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R. Reineck: "We believe Jackie Cochran was sent
to Japan to help bring Amelia home. Are you aware of that?" Monsignor Kelley: "Yes, I was involved with that." The above exchange was excerpted from a 1991 taped conversation between USAF Colonel
Rollin C. Reineck (Ret.) and Monsignor James Francis Kelley of Rumson, New Jersey. It was recently verified how the well known
Monsignor Kelley knew well and actually helped the Gervais-Irene after World War Two. Msgr. Kelley admitted, in the face of
'official silence' and dismissals emanating from Irene's and Amelia's survived relatives, as well as the Smithsonian Institute
and the National Geographic Society, yes all of this notwithstanding, to Monsignor James Francis Kelley the Gervais-Irene
formerly was, no doubt... known as 'Amelia Earhart' in the 1930s. (See more photos and comparisons below.)[Click on the Kelley/Bolam
photo above to read more about Msgr. Kelley.]
| The Gervais-Irene... |
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| ...photo overlayed with Amelia Earhart. [From the Beyond 37' Study] |
| From the Beyond 37' study... |
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| Gervais-Irene's handwriting in 1967, and Amelia's own "Amelia M Earhart" signature at age eighteen. |
| Another of the study's Irene-Amelia 'morphs.' |
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| Click on the photo to see more comparisons. |
| Eleanor Roosevelt & Amelia Earhart |
|
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| Amelia's image + the Gervais-Irene's image... |
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| ...displays a congruence. |
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| Orville Wright & Amelia Earhart |
|
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| Amelia's image + the Gervais-Irene's image... |
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| ...displays a congruence. |
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Believe what you will, and accept how important sounding
people will still try to tell you this isn't true. Yet always question their authority as 'official historians' where official silence has forever plagued this story. Hence, no 'Official Historians'
have ever expounded on Amelia's 1937 disappearance. True, the national media has only ever reported on theories presented
by private citizens, to include Elgen Long's Nauticos theory (Elgen, a private
citizen) Richard Gillespie's TIGHAR theory (Richard, a private citizen) and
Bill Prymak's Amelia Earhart Society theory (Bill, a private citizen.) Notice
how all of these theories are completely different ones, and the various organizations that promote them, or 'cottage industries'
are also privately run and have absolutely no connection to those who are endorsed to write the pages of official United States
history books. Realize too, the mystery of Amelia Earhart exists because it's supposed to exist, not because it ever really
did exist among the people who knew what happened, and who knew what ultimately became of Amelia Earhart. They simply chose
silence instead of talking about it, leaving the story of Earhart's disappearance and fate fair game for anyone else's inventive
mind to try and explain. Yet to simplify such a quandary try puting it this way: How does one solve a missing person case?
Answer: Find the person, or find the body of the person. I believe it's clear anymore, the body evidence of Amelia Earhart
blatantly existed in the form of the Gervais-Irene, except for many years, decades even, the American public was persuaded
not to believe it, mostly by 'official silence.'" Beyond 37's Tod Swindell, 2009
| The Gervais-Irene, 1978. |
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| A long-hidden-from-the-public official truth now appears to be revealing itself. |
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| 1945-1982 Gervais-Irene, harder exposure... |
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| ...different angle too, all of eighty years detectable. |
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| Amelia Earhart, age twenty-six. |
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| 1923 into a mirror self-photo portrait. She would become famous in 1928. |
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| As Anyone Can See... |
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| ...Amelia Was Still In There |
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It is now clear how when this controversy first broke
in 1970 it was deliberately pushed aside by historical dictum. As well, Amelia's 1930s friend and fellow famous flier, Viola
Gentry (who was also a later life good friend of the 'Gervais-Irene') had worked with Amelia's Sister, Muriel to cover the
story. Also, and most importantly missed since the 1960s, was how no national press circuit reporter since Fred Goerner of
CBS has ever been endorsed, let alone 'permitted' to conduct a thorough forensic investigation into Amelia Earhart's 1937
disappearance, or into the complete life history of Irene Craigmile Bolam for that matter. References about the Irene story
occassionally surfaced now and then, to include mentions by the Smithsonian and the National Geographic Society, but they
have never been of a first person nature, while they always appeared diminished and carefully obfuscated as they were conveyed.
In one way, national news circuit wise it's referred to as 'playing ball' in order to keep 're-sweeping' a controversial story
under the rug of official history.
| It may be hard for people to believe or accept... |
|
| ..yet the long-hidden-from-the-public 'official truth' was/is, Amelia survived and changed her name. |
"After watching some [of his] video and looking at
the self-published book by researcher, Tod Swindell, who employed the methods and expertise of forensic anthropologists to
compare AE and IB physically, I think Joe Gervais was right." International News Journalist, Rosalea Barker of New Zealand from an edition of 'Stateside.' Ms. Barker had just
covered an Oakland Western Aerospace Museum symposium about Amelia Earhart attended by three hundred Earhart-curious individuals.
"Foudray also thinks Gervais' and Swindell's
research is 'just the tip of the iceberg." "All the evidence all put together, I feel
like she (Amelia) did survive." "I think she survived
and came back to the United States." Excerpts from two interviews
with Lou Foudray of the Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum on the investigative research of Joe Gervais and Tod Swindell; from
a Topeka Capital Journal article by Jan Biles and a 2009 interview conducted by Lara Moritz of KMBC TV Kansas City. [See Press
Notices link for more.]
| 'Look familiar? Amelia always had sinus trouble. |
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| Info on her post-loss 'deviated septum rhinoplasty' and dental work is included in this website. |
| A rare philatelic cover left behind by Amelia. |
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| This one she signed and gave to Margot DeCarie, her personal secretary. |
"We don't discuss that around
here." President Richard Nixon, 1970, responding to the then national news story about the just released McGraw-Hill
book, Amelia Earhart Lives. The book implied Irene to be the 'former' Amelia Earhart.
Irene held a press conference at the Time-Life building in New York, (alone) damned the book as "a pack of lies"
and "a fantastic story," and strongly stated "I am not a mystery woman and I am not Amelia Earhart." She
then stormed out after fielding no questions. Joe Gervais remarked,"She handled the press like a pro." Years later
her good friend, Monsignor James Francis Kelley indicated she saw no choice but to react as she did. He also pointed out by
1970 she had 'not been' Amelia Earhart for many years so her denial in the present tense, especially to her, was not necessarily
a non-truthful statement. In 1979 Kelley also told his friend, Donald Dekoster how by the 1960s she "barley recognized
herself anymore for who she used to be." Irene sued McGraw-Hill but after five years refused to submit her fingerprints
as 'proof positive' of her identity, so in early 1976 a ten dollar consideration was paid by her to Gervais and the book's
author, Joe Klaas, who in turn paid her the same amount to end a separate suit she levied against them. McGraw-Hill did pay
a mid five-figure settlement to her for 'damaging her reputation' by way of a few specified false allegations, to include
the suggestion she was never legally married to her British husband, Guy Bolam who she had wed in New York in 1958.
*
* *
After initially agreeing to do so, observe
here what independent filmmaker Noel Dockstader did not discuss or show in his self-produced film 'Where's Amelia Earhart'
occasionally seen on the National Geographic Channel. Mr. Dockstater declined to address the
recent discovery of more than one person having used the same Irene Craigmile Bolam identity. According to the history
of Irene Craigmile Bolam she was born in 1904 and died in 1982. Yet the Irene Craigmile Bolam who Joe Gervais met and photographed
in 1965, then spent several years investigating the background of, only appeared in the photograph history of Irene Craigmile
Bolam from 1945 to 1982. Again, just recently this became newly recognized forensic
reality information. Shown directly below, the woman featured on the cover of Irene Bolam's
1982 Memorial Dinner program was not the Irene Craigmile Bolam who Joe Gervais
met and photographed in 1965 at a Long Island, New York gathering of well know retired pilots.
| Eyes and Faces forensically compared... |
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| ...this 1982 'family ID'd' Irene Craigmile Bolam was a different person than the 1945-1982 Irene. |
The National News Media 'Big Three' Earhart
Investigators
It is essential to realize: Although they represent completely different theories, one Elgen Long of the Nauticos Group, one Bill Prymak who heads
the Amelia Earhart Society, and Richard
Gillespie who maintains the TIGHAR organization, (all fairly wealthy
and influential private citizens) have dominated public perception of Amelia Earhart's 'mystery' through the news media for
the past three decades. Recently their influence guided the National Geographic Channel's latest profile of Earhart's 1937
'disappearance.' Mr. Long, a past good friend of Amelia's late Sister Muriel has always touted the 'crashed and sank' version
of Earhart's fate. (After the 1960s Muriel and United States history quietly seemed to favor this ending as well.) Bill Prymak
suggested Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan were possibly spies who ended up in the Japanese mandates and somehow perished
there. And Richard Gillespie offered how the duo ended up at Nikumororo of the Phoenix Islands where they radioed for help
for three days before the tide pulled their plane out to sea to sink, leaving them to die of hunger and dehydration. Curious,
no authenticated evidence ever substantiated any of their claims, and few academic historians have ever taken any Earhart
theory seriously. Elgen Long used to lecture to audiences with Muriel sitting beside him, and more recently he was engaged
as an advisor for the Hilary Swank/Fox-Searchlight movie, 'Amelia.' Contrary to Elgen Long's opinion, over time Bill Prymak
became to main media go-to person regarding the age old 'spy' theory; and since 1990 Richard Gillespie has held many TIGHAR
press conferences about his Nikumororo claim. [Recently Mr. Gillespie held one announcing how Earhart's DNA evidence was possibly
retrieved from Nikumororo, mentionioning it will take "a year" for a Canadian lab to test some items he found there.
Experts regard it as a sensational suggestion lacking true merit and creating false hopes. For one thing, the items he referred
to were attributed to previous ships known to have moored there or run aground, and at least one brief attempt made at habitation.
For another, the last 'official' radio message from Earhart was received while she was still safely airborne. True, after
she stated one final line of position her radio fell silent while her plane was estimated by experts to still have 'four or
five hours of fuel left.' No "we're in trouble" nor were any SOS signals ever authentically accounted for, and thus
bore the basic mystery of Amelia Earhart.] The 'Earhart spy theory' was introduced in the 1960s although to date it too has
never been authenticated or ever accepted. Meanwhile, as if time washed them away, there were many conveyed reports of Amelia
Earhart's continued existence under the auspice of Japan among its Imperial Islands after she turned up missing in 1937. As
mentioned in the Joe Gervais paragraph shown above, the first collection numbering greater than seventy in individual affidavits,*
was confiscated by top U. S. military officials in Japan in 1960 at the Fuchu U. S. Air base. [*From The Search For Amelia Earhart by Fred Goerner, Doubleday, 1966.] Many more surfaced since then as "official
silence in Tokyo and Washington" always prevailed. * * *
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