Who Was Lucky Lindy?

　　In May 1927, in the plane named after the city whose residents financed his flight, Charles A. Lindbergh left for New York City to attempt a transatlantic airplane flight.
On May 21, 33 1/3 hours later, the Spirit of St. Louis touched down in a surprised farmer's field outside of Paris -- and Lindbergh walked out into the pages of history.

　　Many aviators had attempted the transatlantic flight, but Lindbergh was the first success. He claimed a $25,000 prize proposed in 1919 by a New York hotel owner to complete a transatlantic flight.

　　Tall, handsome, and self-effacing, "Lucky Lindy," as he was called by the fawning press, became the first international superstar and media-created modern hero. In Paris, "The Lone Eagle" was honored by European leaders and won many medals, including the
English Royal Air Cross. The retuning champ received the Distinguished Flying Cross from President Calvin Coolidge, and was made a colonel in the Air Reserve.
Lindbergh's book about his flight, "We," became a best-seller, and in The Spirit of St. Louis, he flew to 75 U.S. cities and Mexico as an "ambassador of goodwill."

　　In 1930, Lindbergh and his wife set a new transatlantic flight record. He became a technical adviser to airlines and pioneered several routes to other countries.But then fate shifted for Lucky Lindy. In 1932, his only child, an infant son, was kidnapped and killed in a story made for the sensationalistic journalism of the era.

　　In 1935, feeling hounded by the press, the Lindberghs moved to Europe. In 1939,Lindbergh served briefly in the Air Corps(the precursor of the U.S. Air Force), but he then became a spokesmen for neutrality and those opposed to the U.S. entering World War II.

　　He later resigned his commission after President Franklin Roosevelt publicly criticized his stance, and the fickle press vilified him as a traitor.While Lindbergh went on to important work as an aviation technical adviser and pilot, America's love affair had ended with Lucky Lindy.
　　
　　Still, the Spirit of St. Louis is the star attraction of the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.