Documentary Screening: Take Me Home Huey

As part of the Take Me Home Huey helicopter exhibit display by artist Steve Maloney over Memorial Weekend, please join us in our main Presidential Learning Center auditorium for a free screening of the documentary, Take Me Home Huey.

The film won the Mercedes-Benz Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature at the Palm Springs International Film Festival in January 2017, where it had its World Premiere.

Produced by the artist with filmmakers Alicia H. Brauns and Christine N. Steele, the 70 minute-long film documents the role played by Huey helicopters during the Vietnam War, as told by pilots, mechanics and helicopter crew members.

Combining contemporary and historical footage, the film portrays the journey of one particular Huey – #174 – from Medevac helicopter shot down during the conflict to its resurrection and transformation into the colorful centerpiece of Maloney’s mixed media sculpture. During the helicopter’s restoration by Light Horse Legacy (LHL), a nonprofit and USA Vietnam War Commemorative Partner focused on aiding veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress, Dave Barron, co-founder discovers the history of the helicopter and locates the surviving crew. As the iconic Huey 174 morphs from wounded war bird into vivid sculpture, viewers of the documentary witness the power of art to heal surviving soldiers and families of the fallen.

There is no greater desire for active duty soldiers than to complete their tour honorably and return home safely. Soldiers relied on the Huey to carry them home. Vietnam veterans share a common feeling of relief when they hear the phrase “Take Me Home Huey.” The film reflects and, most importantly, respects that sentiment.