Take Me Home Huey

If you're under 50, one of the iconic images of the Vietnam War is likely to be the helicopter attack in the movie Apocalypse Now. The choppers in that scene were from the Bell UH-1 series, or "Hueys." If you are old enough to remember the war itself, you will know that Hueys were indeed an indelible, defining aspect of the conflict. At its peak, there were nearly 3000 operating in Vietnam. Huey #174 was one of these, shot down in 1969 during an attempted rescue in which crew chief Gary Dubach and medic Stephen Schumacher died. This is the helicopter artist Steve Maloney transformed into his remarkable mix-media sculpture, Take Me Home Huey, which was exhibited at Palm Springs airport in the spring. The accompanying documentary traces the evolution of Maloney's art work as he meets with veterans as well as Dubach's sister and non-profit partners Light Horse Legacy, who restored the Huey for the project. The film features vivid 1960s newsreel footage and sobering statistics about veteran suicides today, but what is most moving is seeing the impact the sculpture has on the vets: how art can help bring people together and heal. (Palm Springs International Film Festival)