Beirne Lay , Jr . Beirne Lay , Jr . , ( September 1 , 1909 - May 26 , 1982 ) was an American author , aviation writer , Hollywood screenwriter , and combat veteran of World War II with the U . S . Army Air Forces . He is best known for his collaboration with Sy Bartlett in authoring the novel " Twelve O ' Clock High " and adapting it into a major film . Early life . Born September 1 , 1909 , in Berkeley Springs , West Virginia , Lay attended St . Paul ' s School in Concord , New Hampshire , and Yale University , graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English in 1931 . As an undergraduate he boxed and rowed . Early military career . Lay enlisted in the United States Army in July 1932 and began pilot training at Randolph Field , Texas . In June 1933 he earned his pilot ' s wings and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Army Reserve at Kelly Field , Texas . He was assigned to the 20th Bombardment Squadron at Langley Field , Virginia , flying the Keystone B - 6 and Curtiss B - 2 Condor bombers . In February and March 1934 , he was part of the Army Air Corps unit delivering U . S . mail during the Air Mail scandal , flying the Chicago - to - Nashville route . The operation was unsuccessful , marred by several fatal accidents in which the Air Corps took the brunt of public blame . Upset by what he viewed as the injustice of the criticism , Lay began his writing career while still on active duty by submitting rebuttal articles and pieces on aviation in general , published in " The Sportsman Pilot " , " Esquire " , " The Saturday Evening Post " , " Today " , and " Harper ' s " . In November 1935 he left active duty but remained a Reserve officer , promoted to 1st lieutenant on August 16 , 1936 . Return to civilian life . Lay went to work for " The Sportsman Pilot " and became its Managing Editor . In 1936 he began writing an autobiographical book about his experiences in pilot training titled " I Wanted Wings " , published by Harper Brothers in 1937 . He was approached by Hollywood producer Arthur Hornblow , Jr . to sell the film rights to Paramount Pictures and to write the screenplay for a film adaptation . Lay agreed and worked three years on the project , but the final product was largely the result of re - writes by a team of screenwriters brought into the project . During this time he met and married Philippa Ludwell Lee , and made the acquaintance of Capt . Frank A . Armstrong at Barksdale Field , Louisiana , where Armstrong commanded the 13th Bomb Squadron . World War II service . Lay returned to active duty at his own request just after the outbreak of World War II in 1939 , as a flying instructor in Chino , California . The publication of " I Wanted Wings " brought Lay to the attention of the staff of Army Air Forces Col . Ira Eaker , chief of the Air Corps Information Division and himself a writer . After meeting Lt . Lay , Eaker arranged his transfer to Headquarters USAAC in Washington , D . C . in early 1940 . There , promoted to captain , he worked primarily as a speechwriter for General Henry H . Arnold , Chief of the Army Air Corps . In January 1942 Eaker was made brigadier general and was deployed to England to create what would become the Eighth Air Force . Lay was made part of Eaker ' s staff cadre , as Eighth Air Force Historian and Film Unit commander . In the first half of 1943 , he commanded Holywood director William Wyler ( then a Major ) while Wyler and his team were in England making the promotional movie " Memphis Belle " . Lay was promoted to lieutenant colonel , and in August 1943 he was granted permission to obtain combat experience in preparation for possible command of a combat unit . During that month he flew five missions with the 100th Bomb Group , a B - 17 Flying Fortress unit stationed at RAF Thorpe Abbotts , including the Regensburg portion of the costly Schweinfurt - Regensburg mission , which he flew as a co - pilot . Lay wrote a detailed critique of the mission for Brig . Gen . Curtis LeMay and used much of the content in an article entitled " I Saw Regensburg Destroyed " , which appeared in the November 6 , 1943 , issue of " The Saturday Evening Post . " The same material also became a chapter in " Twelve O ' Clock High " . Lay was then returned to the United States , where he was assigned to a B - 24 Liberator unit undergoing group training at Salt Lake City , Utah , the 490th Bombardment Group . On February 28 , 1944 , he was given command of the 487th Bombardment Group at Alamogordo , New Mexico , which he took overseas to Lavenham , England , in April . On May 11 , 1944 , Lt . Col . Lay led his group to Troyes , France , on its fourth combat mission . His group encountered heavy flak near Châteaudun , the location of a Luftwaffe fighter airfield , and both Lay ' s B - 24 and that of his deputy commander were shot down . Lay parachuted from his aircraft near Coulonges - les - Sablons and was hidden by members of the French Resistance . As news of the Allied approach following D - Day reached Lay , he decided to attempt to join up with the Allied advance units . Lay did this without being shot by his own side and returned successfully to England in August . Lay was prohibited from further combat because of his knowledge of underground activities . From this experience he authored a second book , published by Harper Brothers in 1945 , " I ' ve Had It : The Survival of a Bomb Group Commander " , which was re - issued in 1980 by Dodd , Mead and Company under a new title , " Presumed Dead " . Lay also wrote an episode for the television series Combat ! entitled : " The Milk Run " , which would appear to be loosely based on his own experiences . Second return to civilian life . Lay returned to Hollywood after the war . He was working there in 1946 when he was approached by Sy Bartlett , another Eighth Air Force veteran , to collaborate on the novel - screenplay project which became " Twelve O ' Clock High " , published in 1948 and released in 1949 , respectively . Lay continued as a colonel in the Air Force Reserve and with fellow reservist James Stewart approached Paramount with a concept for the film " Strategic Air Command " . Lay continued as a screenwriter for movies and television during the 1960s , while in the employ of Networks Electronics Corporation in Chatsworth , California as Vice President . In the mid 1960s , he was joined by Gale Cleven who joined the company as Senior Vice President , and a year later by General Curtis LeMay . He retired in Westwood , California , where he died on May 26 , 1982 , of cancer . He was survived by his wife and two daughters , Philippa Ludwell Lay and Frances Custis Lay .