Ron Gatty

"You guys are nutty. It's pretty useless to try to figure out what happened. But whenever I call someone eccentric, my friends say 'Look who's talking!'"

Ron Gatty and Roger Kelley, Fiji, 2003

Ron Gatty was interviewed by Roger Kelley and Marty Moleski as part of the 2003 expedition to Fiji.

• born ~1929
• Friend of Fr. Bransfield.
• Son of Harold Gatty, "Prince of Navigators."
• Gatty's wife teaches French and French history in NYC. He commutes there often to see her.
• Taught at C.U.N.Y. for 23 years. Ph.D. in Botany/Science. Also taught business.
• Met Amelia Earhart at least once. "All I remember of Amelia is a smile--charming and open."
• Gatty met Fred Noonan, who was a good friend of Harold Gatty. He never saw Fred out of control due to drinking. He and his father enjoyed themselves. Drinking was open and accepted. Noonan was a warm and competent man. Of course, Gatty was only 8 when Fred and Amelia disappeared. Clearly this recollection needs to be taken with a grain of salt. A young boy may not have stayed up late at night with the men.
• His company:
  

Spices of Fiji, Ltd.
Wainadoi Gardens
spices@connect.com.fj

• Gatty is a man of strong opinions trenchantly expressed. It seems to have gotten him in trouble from time to time.

• When Gatty was 17-19 years old, there were only five or six sailing boats in Fiji. It was a small community. Captain Stan Brown and he were the only European skippers. Ron kept a carbine on board; Stan packed a .45 on his hip. Most of the other skippers were kai-loma (part European).
• Gatty was close to Isaac/Verrier, especially in his last years. He was a good doctor--and intelligent, "which is not too common in Fiji."
• Gatty and Isaac/Verrier had a common hobby. Gatt is writing a massive tribal history of the other large island, Vanua Levu. It is 2000 pages in manuscript on his computer. It may turn out to be eight books, with one or two provinces in each book. Gatty thinks it will be useful to people trying to trace their roots (which is important for establishing native rights).
• When he was in his thirties, Gatty looked into his Tasmanian background. He thinks his character is Aussie, but he lived for 25 years in the U.S. and has been in Fiji ever since.
• When RG was working the the states, he would return frequently to Fiji to search for plants for Johnson and Johnson. He would see Verrier on those trips. Verrier had an attic full of "native stuff." He was quite a collector.