He is red-headed and looks more like a stereotypical school nerd. August 30, 2019 (age 76) (Amarillo Texas). Rocket Boys. Even though Sonny's father thinks that he has no talents, Sonny becomes interested in space - especially rockets. But he was eventually accepted into the group and turned out to be a very valuable asset. Eventually, Batman creators Bob Kane and Bill Finger alongside their frequent collaborator Jerry Robinson created Dick Grayson as "Robin, The Boy Wonder", a sidekick for their hero and the initial concept for the Batman Family was introduced.. Batman and Robin operated as a solid team for many years. Later editions were published under the title October Sky as a tie-in to the 1999 film adaptation. the Rocket Boy in charge of measuring how high the different rockets went with his theodolit: Billy Rose: the smartest Rocket Boy: Quentin Wilson: the BCMA's chief scrounger: Jimmy O'Dell Carroll: because he had a car, he was a driver of the Rocket Boys: Roy Lee Cooke: the Rocket Boy who limped because of his polic: Sherman His story consists of his teenage life in the small coal mining town of Coalwood, West Virginia. They employ several fuel mixtures including rocket candy and a mixture called "zincoshine", which is composed of zinc dust and sulfur, along with alcohol from moonshine, supplied by a local bootlegger, as a binder for the mixture. All of our fathers worked in the coalmines and most of us had never traveled outside the state. Homer Hickam, Jr. Roy Lee Cooke - Roy Lee is Homer's best friend from childhood through high school. He is the founder of the Rocket Boys. Rocket Boys Introduction + Context. You can help out on the Wiki by expanding it. It is fueled by flash powder from old cherry bombs. The book won the W.D. Homer asks Quentin to help him with the rockets. Quentin Wilson intelligent member of the Rocket Boys and the person who does the most math out of the entire group. It is a story of growing up in a mining town, and a boy's pursuit of amateur rocketry in a coal mining town. Some of the characters were combined for the film. Starting with no knowledge of how to build a rocket, we began to try to learn all we could. All helped Homer build rockets and eventually went on to win the National Science Fair and all got scholarships and never worked in the mine. It explodes violently, destroying his mother's fence. Quentin Taylor Wilson (November 21, 1942 – August 30, 2019) was an American engineer and one of the original Rocket Boys, featured in the book October Sky, as well as the film adaptation October Sky, where he was portrayed by Chris Owen. Sherman: Sherman Siers has a … If so, you know sometimes the best way to do a good job on a group project is to divide up responsibilities between group members. Quentin was considered to be the brains of the Rocket Boys group. Since the conception of Batman, the character was a loner on his crusade against crime. All of the boys except Quentin were from Coalwood. They also won a National Science Fair gold medal for their rockets and project titled "A Study of Amateur Rocketry Techniques. Homer Hadley Hickam Jr. (born February 19, 1943) is an American author, Vietnam War veteran, and a former NASA engineer who trained the first Japanese astronauts. In real life, there were six in the group: Homer, Billy Rose, Quentin Wilson, Jimmy O'Dell Carroll, Roy Lee Cooke and Sherman Siers. The members of the BCMA were Homer "Sonny" Hickam (me), Quentin Wilson, Roy Lee Cooke, O'Dell Carroll, Billy Rose, and Sherman Siers. Rocket Boys Character Analysis | LitCharts. Quentin is portrayed by Chris Owen. Together they created the Big Creek Missile Agency. That's exactly what ends up happening with the Big Creek Missile Agency (BCMA). imitating, incorrectly, Quentin's favorite saying. He played the nerdy Quentin, a surprising addition to the Rocket Boys' friend group. At first, we failed everything we tried. He is excitable and often confounds the other members and … Not to be confused with the television presenter and motoring expert Quentin Willson. Quentin carries a suitcase stuffed with books wherever he goes and finds excuses to get out of gym class. The bi-monthly program “The History around Us” at the Reynolds Homestead in Critz, Virginia, will host former “Rocket Boy” Roy Lee Cooke on Wednesday at noon. ", Learn how and when to remove these template messages, Learn how and when to remove this template message, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=October_Sky_(book)&oldid=1004543466, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 3 February 2021, at 03:11. Quentin was preceded in death by his parents Eston Wilson, and Jessie F. Richardson Wilson; Brother Richard Wilson, and sisters Eula Vee Wallace, Dona Sanders, and Bonnie Huckaby. 1 talking about this. (Note: In the book Rocket Boys, the main character is always called Sonny. October Sky was followed by The Coalwood Way (2000), Sky of Stone (2002), and Carrying Albert Home (2015). Quentin Wilson (b. November 21, 1942, d. August 30, 2019) was an American engineer and one of the original members of the Big Creek Missile Agency. A companion to "Rocket Boys," this book tells us much more about the lives and times of the people of Coalwood, West Virginia. Sonny, however, is terrible at sports and has no special skill that would get him "out of Coalwood". Quentin tells him that he doesn't allow people to copy his homework. Quentin Wilson is one of the more intelligent members of the Rocket Boys, the one who does the most math. Order Online Autographed Copy Amazon Barnes & Noble iBooks IndieBound Homer Hickam’s short article about his life as a young boy growing up in Coalwood, WV and aspiring to be a rocket scientist was called “The Big Creek Missile Agency” and was written for Air & Space Magazine in 1994. Auk 1 flies six feet before the solder melts, and the nozzle, a washer, separates from the casement. Quentin Willson is an award-winning motoring journalist and transport campaigner. Friends (Other Rocket Boys) Quentin Wilson, Roy Lee Cooke, Sherman Siers, Jimmy "O'Dell" Carroll, and Billy Rose. Quentin is interested in building rockets as well. Rocket Boys was made into a film in 1999, titled October Sky (an anagram of "Rocket Boys"). This article is a stub. Initially, his family and later his classmates think he has gone crazy and is wasting his time, especially when he teams up with Quentin Wilson (Chris Owen), the school's math geek who also has an interest in rocket engineering. Quentin Wilson is another of the founding members of the BCMA . What happened to Quentin in October Sky? But the class has only six spots, raised from five so that all the boy’s in the club can take it. Their first real rocket, powered by black powder, is named Auk 1. [edit | edit source]Welcome to the Rocket Boys Wikia, a Fandom Wikia page for all information from Homer Hickam Jr.'s unforgettable Rocket Boys book trilogy. Weatherford Award in 1998, the year of its release. ... Jake Mosby comes from a wealthy family, and frequently shows off his wealth by driving expensive cars and going on expensive dates. Sonny: Homer "Sonny" Hickam, Jr. is the main character and of the story. From escaping the mines of Coalwood, West Virginia by learning rocketry to becoming a NASA engineer, he speaks about a career which eventually added the title of best-selling author to the mix. Quentin carries around a suitcase stuffed with books wherever he goes and finds excuses to get out of gym class. Quentin Wilson, who is the most intelligent in the class, doesn't really fit it with others and is socially awkward. Quentin was from Bartley, a small coal camp a few miles away. Quentin Wilson, who is the most intelligent in the class, doesn't really fit it with others and is socially awkward. Take as much time as you need on this quiz and printable worksheet, which will assess your knowledge of the rocket boys in ''October Sky''. In the movie October Sky, he is called Homer.) They call themselves "Rocket Boys" and call the place where they are launching their rockets "Cape Coalwood", in honor of Cape Canaveral. Quentin Taylor Wilson (November 21, 1942 – August 30, 2019) was an American engineer and one of the original Rocket Boys, featured in the book October Sky, as well as the film adaptation October Sky, where he was portrayed by Chris Owen. He’s written for numerous national publications, and campaigned tirelessly on behalf of Britain's 40 million drivers. Roy Lee is the only one of the Rocket Boys with a car, so for much of the novel he is relied upon for transportation. Rockets Have you ever had to work with a group on a school project? Quentin is interested in building rockets as well. Quentin Wilson (b. November 21, 1942, d. August 30, 2019) was an American engineer and one of the original members of the Big Creek Missile Agency. Rocket Boys is Homer (Sonny) Hickam Jr.’s memoir of his life growing up in West Virginia, the son of a coal mine superintendent. Quentin was one of the smarter people to work on the rockets with Sonny, to smart some of the others thought. This an allusion to the great auk, which is a flightless seabird that became extinct in the mid-19th century. Sonny has a large group of friends that include Quentin Wilson, Roy Lee Cook, Sherman Siers, Jimmy O’Dell Carroll and Billy Rose. Quentin Wilson (b. November 21, 1942, d. August 30, 2019) was an American engineer and one of the original members of the Big Creek Missile Agency. His real life handsome appearance and Homer's geeky appearance are switched around in the movie. Homer Hickam, Jr. We will be adding interviews with other community members soon. He presented Top Gear for a decade along with many other motoring and consumer shows. All of the boys except Quentin were from Coalwood. Sonny, after seeing the Russian satellite Sputnik, decides to join the American team of rocket engineers called the Missile Agency when he graduates from school. Rocket Boys Wiki is a FANDOM Books Community. What happened to Quentin, Roy Lee, O'Dell, and Homer in the future? Quentin: Quentin Wilson is the most intelligent member of the Rocket Boys and the person who does figures out most of the math in the group. Quentin Wilson intelligent member of the Rocket Boys and the person who does the most math out of the entire group. Though Homer, better known as Sonny, is the group leader, e… The Rocket Boys enjoy mixed success during their three-year rocket launching campaign (1957 to 1960). Homer asks Quentin to help him with the rockets. October Sky is a 1999 American biographical drama film directed by Joe Johnston and starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Chris Cooper, Chris Owen, and Laura Dern.The screenplay by Lewis Colick, based on the memoir of the same name, tells the true story of Homer H. Hickam Jr., a coal miner's son who was inspired by the launch of Sputnik 1 in 1957 to take up rocketry against …