Gold Coast local legend Nick Belloff releases autobiography written by Diana Todd-Banks
A former merchant sailor who spent his days in port drunk and brawling has told of how a “wakeup call” made him reach for the sky.
Gold Coast
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A FORMER merchant sailor who spent his days in port drunk and brawling has told of how a “wakeup call” made him reach for the sky.
Gold Coast resident Nick Belloff, 93, has shared details of his life as a seaman and then later as a chief pilot in an autobiography written by Diana Todd-Banks called Boats, Bars, Brothels and Cockpits.
Mr Belloff was a seaman on the Windjammer Pamir – the last commercial ship to sail some the world’s stormiest seas from Australia to Europe.
During his time in port Mr Belloff said he would get “pissed” and visit a brothel but an epiphany while at the pictures watching a Mr. Magoo cartoon ended those days.
“I could have ended up a drunken bum in a foreign port, but then I had a wakeup call,” he said.
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“I’m quite proud because instantly, within seconds, I changed my life. I stopped everything.
“And just for the hell of it I decided to fly to keep me off the booze.”
Mr Belloff gave up a life living on the sea and instead became a pilot flying tiger moths, chipmunks and helicopters.
“I never thought of my life as being unique, but then my grandson said, ‘Why don’t you write a book?’ And it just so happened that I heard Diana did books,” Mr Belloff said.
Ms Todd-Banks said the pair met in Southport while she was sitting on a bench, drinking a coffee with her toy poodle in her lap.
She said after a few days of chatting and reading Mr Belloff’s draft autobiography, she agreed to write his book.
“It’s (the book) about a humble man who never thought he did anything special in his life,” Ms Todd-Banks said.
“And most people have a same view, they don’t think they should write a book because they’re not worthy, but everyone has a story to tell.”
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