ABOUT TOM MALTHANER
By: Gary Vacin
Malthaner started building models as a
boy back in
All are built to the same scale –1/72
– or one inch to six feet -- and all are exact replicas of the genuine
things. Most measure between six and
twelve inches in length. The smallest, a German Bucker BU-133 Jungmeister , has
a 3 ˝ inch wingspan. The largest, a
German Messerschmitt ME-321 Gigant heavy glider transport, measures 30 inches.
Among his
collection:
·
A five-engine
German plane designed to tow gliders into the air.
·
Adolph Hitler
riding his Mercedes Benz, standing up and giving the Nazi salute to the crowd
·
John F.
Kennedy’s PT-109
·
Three German
Stuka dive bombers, each painted in distinctive campaign colors.
·
A German Tiger
tank like those used in the
Malthaner built most of his models
from 1957 to 1984 while living in
His collection remained in storage for
eight years, until he decided to unpack and display them in his home in Sun
Lakes Phase 1. He started building models again, and built two large display
cases to house his collection of 333 scale models of World War II aircraft,
ships and vehicles.
Now he wants to pack his entire
collection once again and donate it to a museum that would provide a suitable
place for display to the public. “My
goal is to find a museum nearby so I could help maintain and collection and add
to it as I build more models,” he said.
So far he has had little success in
finding a suitable location, but has not given up. If anyone has any ideas in
this regard, I’d love to hear from them, he said.
Malthaner also has a keen interest in
World War II history. He has accumulated a huge collection that includes more
than 300 books and magazines and articles of reference.
The Internet opened a new source of
historical information on the war, particularly armored vehicles and
ships. He has printed out hundreds of
pages of information and photos of World War II weaponry, including many items
in his collection.
His library includes the complete
39-volume collection of Time-Life World War II History Books. The books were
published every two months, and it took me nearly seven years to complete the collection,
he says. He received a letter of
congratulations from the publishers when he received the last volume, becoming
one of only 500 persons to have the complete set.
A book by General Colin Powell holds a
special place in Malthaner’s library. “I wrote to the General after reading his took, telling him how
much I enjoyed it, Malthaner said. He
proudly displays a letter he received back from the General, thanking him.
If World War II history and building
scale models are not enough, Malthaner has
developed an interest in Laurel
and Hardy and the Three Stooges. He has a large collection of books and memorabilia about the comics, and
photos and posters of them adorn one wall of his office.
He is a virtual walking encyclopedia
of information about the comics. Laurel
and Hardy earned more than $1.5 million during their acting careers, but both
had little left when they died, he said.
“Both were married numerous times, and most of their earnings went for
alimony payments.
“Moe, Shemp and Larry were the
original Three Stooges. Moe and Larry
were regulars in all the Stooges films, but three different persons played the
role of Curly.”
Malthaner has collected almost 250
films made by the comics.
Although he does not consider himself
a public speaker, Malthaner has given
several presentations on World War II and aviation history, as well as
on Laurel and Hardy and the Stooges. He says he’s available to speak on these
topics to interested local groups. He
can be reached at 480-895-7261.
Left, one of the show
cases Tom constructed to house his models.
Right, at work
on model number 334, a huge German transport
plane with six engines.