ALMOST ANY fairly frequent movie fan of the last 20
years knows Reginald Denny as the guy who plays those likeable but
dim-witted Britisher roles; but relatively few know there is another
and for more important side to the actor. He is the inventor of a
midget robot plane-very, very hush-hush during the war - used
extensively by both Army and Navy Air Forces as targets in the training
of aerial and antiaircraft gunners.
Denny is not a scientist nor unusually mechanically
minded. It all started when he tried to help a youngster fly a model
plane and it crashed. The actor sent for a new one, and before he knew
it he was making all sorts of models himself.
Then, back In 1934, Denny had his idea of the radio
controlled target plane for gunnery training, and no one would listen
to him, but when the war came on, the Government took interest, and had
him manufacture them in quantities. They are named after the actor,
being called Target Drone Dennys.
The services still use them Furthermore. Denny believes
there are commercial uses of the plane, one of which is shown taking
off In the photo and controlled by Denny. He says they could make
crop-dusting safer and more efficient and be used in fighting forest
fires.
Denny's latest film role was in Mr. Blandings Builds
His Dream House. He has 3 children and his principal diversions
aside from the robots, are gardening painting, and sailing.
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