Which State Should Take Credit for the Wright Brothers?

Since 1903, when the Wright brothers flew the world's first airplane, both Ohio and North Carolina have taken credit for the famous siblings. Ohio license plates boast “Birthplace of Aviation.” North Carolina plates proclaim “First in Flight.”

Now visitors to the FlightHumor.org Web site can watch a five-minute comedy about the long-standing struggle over which state should take credit for the Wright brothers.

Wrighting the Wrongs, created by writer-director Jim Sutherland, follows one man's attempt to correct history one license plate at a time. The film asks thought provoking questions such as “If I go to Burger King, get a no. 3 value meal to go and eat it in my room, does that make my dorm the 'Home of the Whopper?'” The film also suggests alternative North Carolina slogans such as “First in Flying Ohio-Built Planes.” Wrighting the Wrongs won the “Best Film Made in North Carolina” category at the Hi Mom Film Festival and a silver award for comedy at the 2001 Atlantic City Film Festival.

“So far the reaction in both states has been really positive,” said Sutherland. “But it's hard to tell for sure until they name a street after me.”

Sutherland, who grew up in Dayton and went to college in North Carolina, says the Dayton-Wright brothers connection was drilled into his head from an early age.

“I won an essay contest in first grade for writing 'I like Ohio because it's a nice place to live and the Wright brothers are from there,'” said Sutherland. When he arrived in North Carolina for college he realized that the state was “full of North Carolina license plates.”

FlightHumor.org was created by the University of Dayton's Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop to celebrate the 100th anniversary of flight and “100 years of laughter in the air.” The Web site, which was picked as a top ten “indispensable Web site for travelers” by SmarterLiving.com, includes funny stories and jokes about flying as well as a contest in which visitors can submit their own stories and jokes. A panel of judges &#0151 from Ohio, North Carolina and even geographic regions with license plates that do not mention flight &#0151 will pick the five funniest entries. Winners will be announced in July 2003 and receive Dayton Flyers T-shirts. The Flyers is the nickname of the University of Dayton's athletics teams. The contest entry deadline is Friday, June 13, 2003.

What's next for filmmaker Sutherland, who now lives in Los Angeles?

“I want to write and direct feature films,” he says. “Maybe an epic cycle about license plates &#0151 'Hidden Secrets of the Show-Me State' and stuff like that.”

To view Wrighting the Wrongs, visit www.FlightHumor.org.