It was 1969, the Vietnam War was raging, and only months away from the first moon landing when 19 year old Paul Gorman left home on a cross-country hitchhiking trip to Europe. As a harbinger of things to come, eighteen hours later he was a fugitive after a 120 mph car chase between cops and ex-convicts.Shortly after landing in Luxembourg, Gorman headed south to escape Northern Europe's winter. He settled in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria Spain. Not only were prices cheap there, but it was crawling with attractive bikini clad Scandinavian girls. What could be better if you were a teenage American boy. Unfortunately, it wasn't long before he was nearly broke.
"At the time, I was a shy 19 year old kid traveling around Europe on my own, sleeping in youth hostels, abandoned cars, and on beaches, living on canned sardines and baguettes. Eventually, I got into trouble in Las Palmas, Gran Canarias Spain and wound up in notorious Prisión de Barranco Seco." The U.S. Department of State became involved in his case using his as a pawn in political intrigue.
"Fifty years later I wrote a book about my experiences named, “Into Trouble."
In so doing, he left out a humorous experience he had in Las Palmas, in April, 1969 and has turned it into a short story.
Asked why he wrote the book and short story, Gorman said, "The experiences I had there are forever etched in my memory. It feels like they happened yesterday. I still can't believe I actually did the things I did. That’s why I had to write the book. I had to put it into a context that fit the person I’ve become. The experience changed my life for the better."
Along the lines of "Catch Me If You Can, "Into The Wild" and "Midnight Express", Gorman's book, "Into Trouble" was edited by Barbara Noe Kennedy, previously a senior editor with National Geographic and currently editor of the best seller, “Bad Karma: A Trip to Mexico from Hell.”
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