Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War

by Robert Coram

The apartment on Beauregard Street became a symbol of how Boyd’s family suffered because of his devotion to his work. In the years following the move, Boyd’s family life devolved into a state of disarray from which it never recovered. Stephen began repairing television sets and stereos and various electronics. His sadness about his handicap had left him withdrawn and fiercely independent. Kathy’s quiet and gentle nature slowly changed into a clinical depression. Jeff, shy and gentle, was hammered in discussions with his father. He found refuge with his collection of spiders and poisonous snakes. John Scott and Boyd had tumultuous arguments that turned into scuffles and, in at least one instance, into a fight. Mary Ellen was more like her father than any of the others; she was his “Snookums,” and she broke his heart when she became ensnared in the drug culture. For years they did not speak. And all the children say today that their anger toward their father is rooted in his insistence on living in the tiny apartment.