To Commander Lees
A great friend and old timer
that tried to make a flyer out
of me in 1918.
Ralph de Palma
1953
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| Ralph de Palma Greets "Old Buddy", Walter Lees | ||
| The photo is autographed: To Commander Lees A great friend and old timer that tried to make a flyer out of me in 1918.
Ralph de Palma |
| HI PAL! --- Says Ralph de Palma, left, former Indianopolis
speedway king, as he greets an "old buddy" Walter Lees, retired naval air commander who now resides in Turlock. De Palma, who
won the 500 mile classic in 1915, was a guest speaker at a Turlock Exchange Club luncheon meeting Wednesday. He is touring
valley towns for the General Petroleum Corporation showing films of the 1952 race and telling stories of "the old days." Lees and de
Palma first met when Lees was a test pilot at Dayton, Ohio. De Palma, director of flying at the Dayton airfield, was unable to complete his training because World War I ended that year. He said he did not mind because he had traveled at greater speeds on the ground than airplanes could make at that time. Lees and de Palma had not seen each other since 1935. Gallery 12 
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