River of January

the long version

Hailing from rustic beginnings, Montgomery "Chum" Chumbley challenged the US Navy's rigorous flight program, receiving his wings in 1927. A pilot in the early days of aviation, he won the 1933 Darkness Derby, a night race from Los Angeles to New Yorkl. His world of aviation included acquaintances including Amelia Earhart, Helen Hayes, and Howard Hughes. Helen Thompson also came from precarious beginnings. She was an aspiring dancer pushed by a resolute stage mother, and crossed paths with the likes of Humphry Bogart, Sophie Tucker, Maurice Chevalier, and mobster Charles "Lucky" Luciano. Helen and Chum eventually find each other and true love when they meet in Rio de Janeiro in 1936.