Thor Heyerdahl

Your story about Thor Heyerdahl’s passing omits one important Hollywood connection (April 19). After his sensational trip by raft from Peru to Tahiti and the publication of his bestseller book “Kon-Tiki,” Thor courted my father, producer Sol Lesser (and vice versa), about making a movie based on his adventure. My father succeeded in working Heyerdahl’s and Olle Nordemar’s 30-minute documentary (16mm black-and-white amateur footage) into an international smash feature, released in 1950 by RKO.

At Academy Awards time the next spring, their joint film won an Oscar for best documentary feature.

Julian “Bud” Lesser

Palm Desert