Pacific War Museum – Current News

re-enactors

During the re-opening of the Living History Programs in the renovated Pacific Combat Zone in March, the volunteers included two students of Asian descent who came from the Dallas area to play the roles of Japanese soldiers. Robert (“Robbie”) Boucher, who is of Vietnamese descent, is a graduate student in history at Texas Christian University. His close friend, Ryan Itoh, whose father is Japanese, just graduated from TCU and will be entering medical school this fall. Both are experienced in reenacting with U.S. Civil War and Indian War groups and became intrigued with becoming involved in reenactments of Pacific War battles.

re-enactors: Robbie Boucher & Ryan Itoh

In Robbie’s view, our Museum’s programs appealed because they offer one of the most unique experiences possible for people interested in history. They allow visitors the opportunity to glimpse ever so slightly into the realities of 75+ years ago, hear the sounds of combat, and feel its stresses. Ryan elaborated by saying that being half Japanese, he had always been fascinated with the Pacific War and wanted to learn about the daily lives of the Japanese troops.

From past experiences, he knew that when you put on a uniform and enact the lives of soldiers you learn so much more: from the way the uniform fits; how the leg-wrappings cut into your legs, but provide a sturdy support; and how hot the sun becomes when you wear a steel helmet.

You also feel a small portion of their suffering when you jam your finger in the charging bolt or feel the weight of the weapon or the heat from the flame thrower. Yet, it is just a taste — you get to change clothes afterwards and go home. When asked what they hoped to achieve through their roles as Japanese combatants, both Robbie and Ryan stated that their key purpose was to humanize the Japanese soldiers as people with families, hopes and goals. Robbie said this is often forgotten due to propaganda and movies which show them as faceless fanatics charging machine guns for the emperor.

As reenactors, they hoped to dispel stereotypes created of the Japanese. Ryan stated that the Japanese soldiers and airmen were all called upon by their nation to fight for a dogma that they may not even have believed in — yet they answered the call. He believes that at the end of the day, the GIs and Japanese soldiers had more in common than differences. In sum, participating in these reenactments gives both Ryan and Robbie the opportunity to learn more than they ever could from a college textbook or documentary, and their goal is to make the audience realize there was a soul behind the Japanese uniform.

This short video from the museum tries to reenact a battle.  In reality, it did not always end so grand for anyone.

Article is from the National Museum of the Pacific War, in Fredericksburg, Texas w/ the Admiral Nimitz Foundation.

Click on images to enlarge.

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STAND ON THE BEACHHEAD

Feel what it was like to walk the wooden dock alongside a PT Boat, stand in the hangar deck of an aircraft carrier as a torpedo bomber is readied for a strike, and view Japanese battlefield entrenchments.

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Military Museum Humor –

National War Museum: ‘And I say we move this up to the 3rd floor!’

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Farewell Salutes –

Henry Andregg Jr. – Whitewell, TN; USMC, WWII, PTO, Cpl., KIA (Tarawa)

Jack Avery – Lacombe, CAN; RC Army, WWII, ETO, Signal Corps

Norma Duncan – Matariki, NZ; WRNS (WRENS), WWII

Laura Edmonson – Ft. Pierce, FL; US Coast Guard SPAR, WWII

Albert Golden – Katy, TX; USMC, WWII, PTO

Lester Habeggar – Spokane, WA; US Army, WWII, medic

Charles “Red” Jones – Knoxville, TN; US Army, 11th Airborne Division

Rodney Kirkpatrick, NM; US Navy, WWII

Howard Shearer – Fannetsburg, PA; US Army,, 11th Airborne Division

H.Gordon Turner – Troy, NY; US Navy, WWII, PTO, USS California

 

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The Elephant Company – Intermission Story (14)

Cuneo Estate; Supplied by The Public Catalogue Foundation

James Howard “Billy” Williams went to Burma in 1920, fresh out of the service for WWI, for a position as a ‘forest man’.  It was there he became increasingly educated on the intelligence, character and welfare of elephants.

When Japan invaded Burma in 1942, Williams joined the elite British Force 136.  [a unit that today would compared to Rangers, SEALs and Delta Force].  Being older and wiser in the ways of the jungles, Williams’ tale of war and daring would become legendary.

In 1944, Lt.Colonel Williams, along with his Karen workers, uzis, elephant tenders, and the animals themselves made the stairway in Burma.  They go upward, a sheer rockface escarpment, narrowly escaping the Japanese hot on their trail, through the mountains of Imphal.

While many times the massive beasts stood on their hind legs to scale an ascent that surpassed Hannibal in the Alps.  All 53 elephants were successful and the workers and refugees alike followed close behind to the ridge and eventual safety.

Williams’ sketch of the ridge.

Years later, General Slim would say of the climb, “This is the story of how a man, over the years, by character, patience, sympathy and courage, gained the confidence of men and animals, so when the time of testing came – that mutual trust held.”

Williams and his company would continue in Burma to alter history with the 270 bridges built and erected to create the largest known Bailey bridge across the Chindurin at Kalewa in December.

Williams’ sketch for his memoir cover

James “Billy” Williams was awarded the Order of the British Empire in 1945.  He would forever cherish his memories of the animals and the jungle, as shown in his memoir, “Elephant Bill” published in 1950. (originally titled, “1920-1946, Elephants in Peace, Love and War”)

Williams passed away on 30 July 1958, at the age of 60, during an emergency appendectomy operation.  His son, Treve, had gone to Australia for veterinary school a year previous.

Williams’ sketch of the Bailey Bridge

This information and pictures were derived from “Elephant Company” by Vicki C. Croke.

Click on images to enlarge.

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 CBI Roundup – Military Humor – 

“The folks at home are going to love this shot of me!”

“You can stand there all day – but you’re NOT getting a Section 8!”

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Farewell Salutes – 

Kevin Bushell – MD; US Navy, USS John McCain, Electrician Tech 2nd Class, KIA

Timothy Eckels Jr. – MD; US Navy, USS John McCain, Information Systems Tech 2nd Class, KIA

Charles N. Findley – MI; US Navy, USS John McCain, Electrician Tech 1st Class; KIA

James L. Hutchinson – CA; US Army Air Corps # 1014403, WWII, PTO, POW, KIA (Bataan, Camp O’Donnell, Section # 4)

Cory G. Ingram – NY; US Navy, USS John McCain, Information Systems Tech 2nd Class, KIA

Abraham Lopez – El Paso,TX; US Navy, USS John McCain,Interior Communication Electrician 1st Class, KIA

James McMillen – Jonesboro, GA; US Army, Korea & Vietnam, 11th and 101st Airborne Divisions, CO for 16th Battalion, Lt.Col.

Peter Roper – London, ENG; RAF, WWII, ETO / Korea, aviation medicine

Alan Sayers (102) – NZ; RNZ Navy # 1/15/2685

Louis Vetere – Brooklyn, NY; US Army, WWII, PTO

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Pacific Paratrooper Book Library – YTD

I was originally planning to include this bibliography of sorts at the end of this blog, but I did ask what books, Gabrielle, over at gehistorian had, so that site now wants to see mine.  My library is always growing, so I’m certain there will be more added to this along the way.

First shelf

WWII: A Tribute in Art and Literature – Time/Life
Return to the Philippines – Time/Life Books
The Pacific War Remembered – John Mason Jr.
Veterans of the VFW Pictorial History – Volumes 2 & 4
Movie Lot to Beachhead – Look
US Army Paratroopers 1943-45 – Gordon Rottman
Five Came Back – Mark Harris
Surviving the Sword – Brian MacArthur
Going Home to Glory – David Eisenhower
Combat Pacific – Don Cogdon
The Last Great Victory – Stanley Weintraub
The Rising Sun – John Toland
Rakassans – Gen. E.M. Flanagan
The Pacific War – Saburo Ienaga
The Great Betrayal – David Day
Yankee Samurai – Joseph Harrington
Quartered Safe Out There – George Fraser
The Pacific War Companion – Daniel Marston
The Pacific – Hugh Ambrose
With the Old Breed – E.B. Sledge
Ghost Soldiers – Hampton Sides
For Crew and Country – John Wukovits
Southern Philippines – US Government Press
Luzon – US Gov’t Press

Second Shelf

The Angels: History of the 11th Airborne Division – General E.M. Flanagan
Their Finest Hour – Winston Churchill
Churchill By Himself – Richard Landsworth
The War Lovers – Evan Thomas
The Somme – Martin Gilbert
A Sea of Words – Henry Holt
The Greatest Generation – Tom Brokaw
The Greatest Generation Speaks – Tom Brokaw
A Company of Heroes – Marcus Brotherton
More Lives Than One – Charles Hood
Recondo – Larry Chambers
American Guerrilla in the Philippines – Ira Wolfert
Band of Brothers – Stephen Ambrose
Three Came Come – Agnes Keith
***OYS OF POINTE HOC – Douglas Brinkel
Utmost Savagery – Col. Joseph Alexander USMC
Drop Zone – Michael Salazar
Section 60 – Arlington National Cemetery – Robert Poole
Vanished – Wil S. Hylton
Rifleman Dodd – C.S. FOrester
The Battle of Britain – Richard Overy
Killing Rommel – Steven Pressfield
The Imperial Cruise – James Bradley
A Treasury of Military Humor – James Myers
True Stories of D-Day – Henry Brook
WWII Heroes – Allan Zullo
Occupation – John Toland
The Los Baños Raid – Gen. E.M. Flanagan
Airborne – Edwin Hoyt
Submarines of the World

Third Shelf

The Great World Atlas
The Smithsonian Collection of Newspaper Comics
Top Gun – Andy Lightbody & Joe Poyer
Semper Fi (History of the US Marines) – Col. H.Avery Chenoweth, USMC
(Envelope) 2 Volumes of Veritas – US Army Historian, Eugene Piasecki
The Swing Era 1940-44 – Time/Life Books
The World’sGreat Military Helicopters – Gallery Brooks
Webster’s Dictionary

Fourth Shelf

Okinawa – Jim Boan
Goodbye Darkness – William Manchester
FUBAR – Gordon Rottman
Melville Goodwin USA – John Marquand
Overdue and Presumed Lost – Martin Sheridan
Reader’s Digest Illustrated Story of WWII
Hey Mac, Where Ya Been? – Henry Berry
My Detachment – Tracy Kidder
The Victory Era in Color – Jeff Ethell
Island Fighting – WWII – Time/Life Books
Warfare of the 20th Century – Christopher Chant
The Coldest Winter – David Halbertson
Unless Victory Comes – Gene Garrison & Patrick Gilbert
Flyboys – James Bradley
Gun at Last Light – Rick Atkinson

Fifth Shelf

A Covert Affair – Jennet Conant
Warpath Across the Pacific – Lawrence J. Hickle
Soldiers Stories – The Miller Family
General Kenny Reports – Gen. George Kenny
The Last Stand of the Tin Can Soldiers – James Hornfischer
US Army Combat Skills Handbook – Dept. of the US Army
Intrepid Aviators – Gregory Fletcher
Eisenhower – Stephen Ambrose
Through These Portals – Wayne MacGregor Jr.
Flags of Our Fathers – James Bradley
The Pacific War – John Costello
Dwellers in Time and Space – Phillip Oakes
The Airmen and the Headhunters – Judith Heimann
Reaping the Whirlwind – Nigel Cawthorne
Sensö – Frank Gibney, editor
Up Front – Bill Mauldin
Elephant Company – Vicki Constantine Croke
Infamy – John Toland
Mask of Treachery – John Costello
Arrogant Armies – James Perry
The Long Way Home – David Laskin
The Collapse of the Third Republic – William Shirer
Captured By History – John Toland
The Samauri Sourcebook – Stephen Turnbull
75 Years – Time Books

Sixth Shelf (L)

America At War – Maurice Isserman
Defending Baltimore Against Enemy Attack – Charles Osgood
MacArthur’s War – Stanley Weintraub
An Army At Dawn – Rick Atkinson
The Day of Battle – Rick Atkinson
I’m Staying With My Boys – Jim Proser

Sixth Shelf (R)

Island of Hope, Island of Tears – David Brownstone
Apache – Ed Macy
Wartime Writings – Marhurite Duras
You Are Not Forgotten – Brian Bender
The Pacific War Papers – Goldstein & Dillon

On a research table

Real Blood! Real Guts! – James Gleason
The Pacific War, Day By Day – John Davison
The Army – The Army Historical Foundation

We Gave Our Best – Kayleen Reusser

Our Jungle Road To Tokyo – General Robert Eichelberger

In E-Book form

The Angels: A History of the 11th Airborne Division 1943-1946 – General E.M. Flanagan (Ret.)

Helmet For My Pillow – Robert Leckie

Bahala Na (Come What May) – Rosalinda Morgan

Sink Them All – Charles Lockwood

Carrier Pilot – Norman Hanson

Kiwi Air Power – Matthew Wright
Rescue At Los Baños – Bruce Henderson
Our Jungle Road to Tokyo – Gen. Robert Eichelberger
More To the Story: A Reappraisal of US Intelligence Prior to the Pacific War – LCDR James R. Stobie
Dreadnoughts Unleashed – Matthew Wright
Blue Water Kiwis – Matthew Wright

Rescue At Los Banos – Bruce Henderson

Intrepidity, Iron Will and Intellect – Gen. Robert Eichelberger

More To The Story: A Reappraisal of US Intelligence Prior to the Pacific War – LCDR James R. Stobie

Condition Red: Destroyer Action in the South Pacific – Frederick J. Bell

The Things Our Fathers Saw – Matthew A. Rozell

Check Six: A Thunderbolt Pilot’s War Across the Pacific – Jim Curran

At Close Quarters – Robert J. Bulkey

And one can not forget, Smitty’s Scrapbook, compiled by his mother, Anna Smith.

Ed Ramsey’s War – Stephen J. Rivele

In For A Penny In For A Pound – Howard Hewer

Too Young To Die – Bryan Cox

C-47/R4D Skytrain Units of the Pacific & CBI – David Isby

US Navy PBY Catalina Units of the Atlantic War – Ragnar J. Ragnarsson

Those Devils In Baggy Pants –

Not Going Home Alone – James J. Kirsckle

Japanese Destroyer Captain – Capt. Tameichi Hara

Pacific War Diary – James J. Fahey

Soldiers First – Joe Drape

The Home Front Hearth – Museum of the American Military Family

No Hero – Mark Owen

Wild Bill Donovan – Douglas Waller

Rescue At Los Baños – Bruce Henderson

Asia’s Cauldron – Robert D. Kaplan

When You Hear The Bugle Call – Peter S. Griffin

Graveyards of the Pacific – Robert D. Ballard

Surviving the Death Railway – Hilary Custance Green Polio To Paratrooper – Anne Archer Hogshead Tullidge Here Is Your War – Ernie Pyle Brave Men – Ernie Pyle

Lost In Shangri-La – Mitchell Zuckoff

Escape From The Deep – Alex Krenshaw

Duty – Bob Greene

Overlord – Max Hastings

Armageddon – Max Hastings

Retribution – Max Hastings

My Father’s Son – Farley Mowat

Women Aviators – Karen Bush Gibson

War In The Pacific – Jerome T. Hagen, BGeneral, USMC, (Ret.)

Pack Up Your Troubles – James Taylor

Letters To The Lost – Iona Grey

Whom Shall I Fear? – Anne Clare

Across The Dark Islands – Floyd W. Radike, BGeneral, US Army (Ret.)

War In The Pacific, Vol. III – Jerome T. Hagen

War In The Pacific, America At War – Jerome T. Hagen

Humor Through Hell – Robert Ehrhart

Clear The Decks – RAdm. Daniel V. Gallery

The Brink – RAdm. Daniel V. Gallery

U-505 – RAdm. Daniel V. Gallery

Voice of the Angels newspaper since 2012

War in the Pacific, Vol. II – Jerome T. Hagen

Leora’s Letters – Joy Neal Kidney

C/O Postmaster – Cpl. Thomas R. St.George

Winged Victory – Geoffrey Perret

War Poems – Brian Busby

Humor in Uniform – Reader’s Digest

Pacific War Stories: In the words of those who survived – Rex Alan Smith & Gerald A. Meehl

Warriors – Max Hastings

Death and Honor – W.E.B. Griffth

In My Hands – Irene Gut Opdyke

We Band of Angels – Elizabeth M. Norman

Deliverance at Los Baños – Anthony Arthur

Death March: The Survivors of Bataan – Donald Knox

Invisible Heroes of World War II  –  Jerry Borrowman

Lucky 666: The Impossible Mission  –  Bob Drury & Tom Clavin

Fire In The Sky  –  Eric M. Bergerud

War Without Mercy  –  John W. Dower

Hell In The Pacific  –  Jonathan Lewis & Ben Steele

Ken’s Men: Against the Empire, Volume I  –  Lawrence J. Hickey

WWII  –  James Jones

Eagle Against the Sun, by: Ronald H. Spector Blossoming Silk Against the Rising Sun, by: Gene Eric Salecker

The Ship That Wouldn’t Die – Don Keith

The Battle For Hell’s Island – Stephen L. Moore

Soldiers’ Stories: A Collection of WWII Memoirs – The Miller Family

IN THE MOUTH OF THE LION – J. Guenther

WHERE SHALL I FLEE – Anne Clare

Military Wives Cookbook – Carolyn Quick Tillery

DEAR MISS EM – Gen. Robert Eichelberger

NIGHT OVER WATER – Ken Follet (not pictured)

11th Airborne – 11th Airborne Division Association

Soldiers Stories –  compiled by: Reader’s Digest

G.I. The American Soldier in World War II  –  Lee Kennett

The Day The World Went Nuclear  –  Bill O’Reilly

the Trail of ’42: A Pictorial History of the Alaskan Highway  –  Stan Cohen

This post was last updated on 19 September 2023

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Military Historian Humor – 

The NEW Ones.

The OLD Ones….

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Farewell Salutes –  

Kathryn Bailey – Hope Mills, NC; US Army, Hawaii, 25th Infantry Division, 1st Lt., KIA

Stephen Cantrell – Wichita Falls, TX; US Army, Hawaii, 25th Infantry Division, Chief Warrant Officer, KIA

Reynold Darnell – NE; US Navy, WWII, USS Sante Fe

Charles Fritz – Indianapolis, IN; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO

Richard Giannotti – New Haven, CT; US Army, FBI

Alfred Harmon – W.Palm Beach, FL; US Army, Korea

William Lane Jr. – Sioux City, IA; US Army, WWII, engineer

Michael Nelson – Antioch, TN; US Army, Hawaii, 25th Infantry Division, Sgt., KIA

M.David Rosenberg – NY; US Army, WWII & Korea, Chemical Corps

Ben Villarreal Jr. – Cotulla, TX; US Army, Vietnam, Ranger, Sgt. Major (Ret. 35 years)

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From the USS John McCain

Jacob Drake – No.Lewisburg, OH; US Navy, Electronics Technician 2nd Class, MIA

Dustin Doyon – Suffield, CT; US Navy, Petty Officer 3rd Class, MIA

John “CJ” Hoagland – TX, US Navy, MIA

Logan Palmer – Decatur,IL; US Navy, 3rd Class Petty Officer. MIA

Kenneth Smith – Novi, MI; US Navy, 3rd Class Petty Officer, radarman, MIA

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Intermission Story (13) – Will Eisner & his Sgt. Half-Mast

During World War II, the Army had a problem: Many troops weren’t reading the preventative maintenance manuals — long, boring instructions on keeping guns, tanks and other equipment clean and battle-ready.

Army officials turned to newly drafted Pvt. Will Eisner, who arrived at Aberdeen Proving Ground in 1942 as something of a celebrity because of his success as the comic artist who created “The Spirit,” a popular strip that ran in dozens of newspapers, including The Baltimore Sun.

Eisner transformed the manuals into comics, in which Sgt. Half-Mast and Connie Rodd would remind the hapless Joe Dope of the dangers of improperly oiling artillery, recklessly driving tanks and otherwise acting foolishly with equipment.

The comics, which were printed and distributed to all troops, remain the most widely circulated of all time, said Benjamin Herzberg, a former assistant to Eisner.   “He had a monthly distribution of hundreds of thousands,” Herzberg said.

Under Eisner, the maintenance manuals were made into a monthly comic magazine that became known as The Preventative Maintenance Monthly, or PS Magazine, which is still published today. The Army dictates the subject matter by interviewing troops stationed around the world about their most frequent equipment hiccups and what tips they need.

In the early years, the comics were heavy with sexual innuendo to hold the troops’ attention. A 32-page booklet on M-16 maintenance distributed to every soldier in Vietnam was entitled “Treat Your Rifle Like a Lady.” Connie Rodd, a buxom blonde pin-up girl, was regularly depicted in various states of undress.

Many soldiers at the time barely had a high school education; some couldn’t read at a fifth-grade level, said 1st Sgt. Richard Bernard, a panel member.

“So what’s the best way for you to reach somebody who can’t read the technical manual itself or understand some of the words, but to make a comic strip that grabs their attention?” Bernard said.

The magazine’s supervisory editor, Jonathan Pierce, said the comics have become more politically correct, but no less necessary.

“It’s an interesting confluence of time right now, because with all the deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, so many of the maintenance soldiers were taken out of their maintenance responsibilities and put into infantry support roles so they could expand the number of combat patrols, and then maintenance was left to contractors,” Pierce said. “So now we have soldiers coming back to their maintenance duties that they haven’t done for the past 10 years. We’re in the same position we were in at the beginning of the Korean War.”

“Now we’re back with a group of soldiers who don’t know maintenance, and we’re having to reintroduce not only the idea of maintenance but the idea of the magazine itself,” he said.

The February 2017 edition of the magazine, its 771st issue, was the last in print. The Army has developed a PS Magazine app, which displays the cartoons on soldiers’ smartphones.

Command Sgt. Maj. Toese Tia Jr.,  said he remembered having to read the magazines when he was going through mechanics training.  “As a mechanic coming up, I am a product of Mr. Will Eisner’s PS Magazine,” he said. “It has a legacy that will go well beyond my time.”

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Information is from Military.com

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Farewell Salutes – 

Aaron Butler – Monticello, UT; US Army, Afghanistan, SSgt., KIA

Willie Combs – Detroit, MI; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO, 11th Airborne Division

Bruce Forsyth – Edmonton, ENG; RAF, (TV personality)

James Harmon – W.Palm Beach, FL; US Navy, Vietnam

Abigail Milam – Lexington, KY; US Army, Hawaii, 2/25th Aviation, SSgt., KIA

George Murray – Oceano, CA; USMC, WWII, PTO, Pfc, KIA (Tarawa)

Ronald St.Mary – Massena, NY; US Navy, Korea, USS Albany

William Turner – Nashville, TN; US Army, WWII, ETO, SSgt., B-26 “Hell’s Fury” engineer, KIA (Amsterdam)

George Uhazie – Uniontown, PA; US Army, WWII, 1st Sgt.

Brian Woeber – Decatur, AL; US Army, 25th Combat Aviation Brigade, pilot, KIA

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LeClare Allerthorn Walker’s biography

75 years later – WE REMEMBER!

RCAF No. 403 Squadron

Biography and pictures courtesy of Richard Walker

 LeCLARE ALLERTHORN WALKER (1918)

“Clare” Walker (1918)
(picture taken 1942)

LeClare Allerthorn Walker, known as Clare, was born in Norwich, Ontario, Canada on 22 June, 1918, the 2nd child of Spence Allerthorn and Mildred Loral (born Bushell) Walker.

When Clare was just two years of age, in 1920, he moved with his parents to Troy, New York, U.S.A. He attended No.18 Elementary School there from 1924 to 1932. During the last 2 years of this period he was very active in the Boy Scouts of America. In the summer of 1932 the family, now consisting of 6 children, returned to Norwich where Clare attended High School and graduated in 1938. During his High School years he was a member of the High School Cadet Corp in which he served as Commanding Officer for 3 of those years. He was also active in sports…

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National Airborne Day – 16 August

“Airborne All the Way”

Author unknown

These men with silver wings

Troopers from the sky above

In whom devotion springs

What spirit so unites them?

In brotherhood they say

Their answer loud and clear.

“Airborne All the Way.”

 

 

 

These are the men of danger

As in open door they stand

With static line above them

And ripcord in their hand.

While earthbound they are falling

A silent prayer they say

“Lord be with us forever,

Airborne All the Way.”

One day they’ll make their final jump

Saint Mike will tap them out

The good Lord will be waiting

He knows what they’re about

And answering in unison

He’ll hear the troopers say

“We’re glad to be aboard, Sir,

Airborne All the Way!”

 

 

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For another outstanding poem in honor of the U.S. Army Airborne – Please visit, Lee at ……

https://mypoetrythatrhymes.wordpress.com/2010/08/16/happy-birthday-us-army-airborne/

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Personal Note – 

Please check out the honor365 site– they have honored Smitty  !!!!

I was very proud that they requested dad’s information.

 

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Military Humor –

 

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Farewell Salutes –

Melvin Alsager – Mount Home, ID; US Air Force, 28th Recon Squadron

Harold Davis – Zanesville, OH; US Army, WWII, PTO, Silver Star, Bronze Star, KIA

John Freitag – Ashland, IL; US Army, WWII, ETO, POW

Victor Greenblatt – Brooklyn, NY; US Army Air Corps, WWII & Korea, navigator

Christopher M. Harris – Jackson Springs, NC; US Army, Afghanistan, Spc, 2/504/1 BCT/82nd Airborne, KIA

Jonathan M. Hunter – Columbus, IN; US Army, Afghanistan, Sgt., 2/504/1 BCT/82nd Airborne, KIA

Dr. Janet Kemp – Carthage, NY; Civilian, VA’s National Mental Health Program Dir.; VA Crisis Hotline, Ret. 30 years, Service To America Medal

James Miles – Dallas, TX; US Army Air Corps, WWII & Korea, Lt.Col. (Ret.)

Henry Soderholm – Malden, MA; US Air Force, Vietnam, MSgt. (Ret.)

Thomas Vogt – St. Louis, MO; US Army, WWII & Korea

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Intermission Story (12) – CBI – Eye Witness Account

Richard Sherman

Richard Sherman trained as a bombardier and navigator for B-25 bombers. He served in the 11^th bomb squadron. He served 13 months in China, during which he flew 52 missions and was shot down once. During that time, only seven men from his squad were lost.

He was shot down on February 13th, 1944. What they thought was a Chinese fishing vessel was a Japanese warship in disguise.

Sherman used his “pointy-talky,” a Chinese-English dictionary, to communicate with the Chinese to get help getting to a place where they could get picked up.

WWII pointie-talkie

One of the Chinese told him that the dictionary wasn’t necessary – he spoke perfect English. The Chinese took the Americans by charcoal-powered bus, occasionally stopping to stir the charcoal. At every village they came to, the people held a celebration. Sherman has a piece of cloth, signed by the Chinese, as a memento of this time. Only later did he learn that the Japanese would have killed him and the Chinese who signed the cloth if they had found it.

Sherman claims he didn’t have enough sense to be scared. That, along with his training, kept him from panicking – but there would be tense times while in China.

Raids into China were typically scheduled in the morning. The flight to pick up Sherman and his crew was later in the day. The Japanese were bombing the American airfield, so the flight kept getting pushed back.

11th Bomb Squadron

The flight crew was told to contact the Chinese for instructions on where to land. As the day turned to night, the crew was unable to see a runway when someone on the radio told them to “put your wheels down and get ready to land.” Suddenly, kerosene lamps outlined the strip.

Sherman’s parents had received telegrams stating that he was MIA. Now they received one from the Red Cross stating that they should disregard any previous message. At that point, they knew that he was OK.

Flight crew of the B-24 Liberator airplane, named ‘Betty J’ 11th Bomb Squadron

As a bombardier, Sherman sat towards the front of the plane. Once, his plane was hit by Japanese fire, sending Plexiglass into his arms and face. Seventy-one years later, an x-ray technician noticed that he had a foreign object between his eyes. Since it had been there so long without causing issues, it was decided to keep it there. Sherman received the Purple Heart for that mission.

Gen. Claire Chennault always knew where his men were, according to Sherman. Chennault was not one to kid around, but if you did your job, you would have no trouble from him.

General C. Chennault

After WWII, Sherman worked at Olin Mathieson. One day he received a phone call asking how quick he could get his clothes together and get to Cincinnati. Five days later, he called his wife Pat to tell her he was in Germany. The Russians and Germans had moved tanks to the Berlin Wall, making the U.S. nervous. Sherman was put in charge of the automotive division, which was required to be able to pack up and move overnight, if necessary.

Chennault continued to be connected throughout Sherman’s lives. Their son became friends with Chennault’s grandson when they attended Neville High School together. Also, the Shermans, along with Nita Brinson and others, helped start the Aviation Historical Museum that is now known as the Chennault Aviation and Military Museum. Sherman has some memorabilia on display in the museum.

They also have several paintings that Chennault painted after retiring from the military.

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Personal Note –

Please check out the honor365 site– they are honoring Smitty today !!!!

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Military Humor –

 

 

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Farewell Salutes –

Ben Angel – Native Tewa American; Las Vegas, NV; US Army, Military police

Colin Bower – Queensland, AUS; RA Air Force, WWII

Michael ‘Red’ Cerio Sr. – Emira, NY; US Navy, WWII, PTO, USS Antietam

A soldier from the Army’s 3rd Infantry Regiment, waits amid the gravestones during funeral services for Army Spc. Sean R. Cutsforth, of Radford, Va., a member of the 101st Airborne who was killed in Afghanistan in December, Feb. 24, 2011, (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Anthony Formosa – San Francisco, CA; US Navy, WWII

Edward Gray – Newark, NJ; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO, 11th Airborne Division, Bronze Star

Ty Hardin – Austin, TX; US Army, Korea, 1st Lt., pilot; (beloved actor)

Richard Klenoski Sr. – Saginaw, MI; US Army Air Corps, WWII, Lt.Colonel (Ret. 26 years)

James Lancaster – Denver, CO; US Army Air Corps, WWII, ETO

Hugh McCormick Jr. – Baltimore, MD; US Navy, WWII, ETO, Cmdr. (Ret.) subchaser SC-525

Harry Patrie – Celina, OH; US Navy, WWII

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Japanese 私たちは日本人

I am always saying that we need to look at all sides to every story and to do that we need to meet them. Here is Nasuko from Japan who also feels that way. Please give our new Blogger a warm welcome!!

Merian C. Cooper, extraordinary life of a hero of 2 nations and King Kong

Merian C. Cooper was born in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. He was the youngest of his siblings and at the age of six, he started to dream about exploration and adventures, a common dream among future aviators. Then he studied at the United States Naval Academy, but didn’t finish it and became a journalist.

It was not enough to satisfy his taste for adventure. In 1916, Cooper joined the US National Guard and was to help catch Pancho Villa in Mexico. The year after, he was appointed lieutenant, yet he refused the promotion because he wanted to participate in direct combat. To fulfill his desires, he went to the Military Aeronautics School in Atlanta to learn how to fly and graduated with the top grades in his class.

In autumn 1917, Cooper went to France as a rookie, then learned the skills of a bomber pilot in Issoudun, France, and served with the 1st Day Bombardment Group. On one of his missions in 1918, he was shot down over Germany and suffered burns and injured his hands. His general signed a death certificate for him, but that’s not the end of the story. Cooper survived somehow and was taken prisoner.

Merian C. Cooper

After World War I came to an end, he returned to France, but not for long. On February 1919, Captain Cooper went to Poland with a mission from the American Relief Administration to provide aid to the destroyed countries of Europe. In the meantime, Russia transformed into the Soviet Union after the October Revolution in 1917. This would prove fateful for the future life of M

In Poland, he often discussed the importance of the air force in modern warfare. Cooper also had a second motive to help Poland – as he often mentioned, his great-grandfather John Cooper served under Casimir Pulaski in the Siege of Savannah and considered him as a friend. Merian wanted to repay this debt and the possibility was soon on the horizon.

With the outbreak of the Polish-Soviet War, Cooper got permission to form a squadron, so he went back to France, recruited eight more pilots and returned to Poland with Cedric Fauntleroy. All of them were assigned to the Polish 7th Air Escadrille, better known as the Kościuszko Squadron. Faunterloy was a commander, Cooper led the second group “Pulaski”.

In 1920, Cooper and his Escadrille fought on the front. They supported many actions, including the Advance on Kiev, mostly on reconnaissance missions and fights against Budyonny’s Cavalry Army. On one of these missions, Cooper and his crewmate Crawford were shot down, yet they managed to escape on foot. Two months later Cooper became a commander of the squadron assigned to the city of Lviv.

On 13th of July 1920, Merian C. Cooper was shot down for a third time. This time, it happened behind enemy lines. The Soviets captured him. He tried to escape and because of that Russians sent him to a labor camp near Moscow. Free spirits like his were impossible to tame, and he tried to escape again with two others Polish POWs. This time, he was successful and after 700 kilometers they reached Latvia and from that point they headed back to Poland.

Thanks to the supplies and volunteers from many countries, Poland managed to win that war. In Polish historiography, it’s often called the “Miracle over Vistula”. Merian C. Cooper repaid the debt of his family and gave back even more. For valor, he was decorated by Józef Piłsudski with the highest Polish military decoration, the Virtuti Militari.

Merian C. Cooper

Cooper wrote “Things Men Die For”  during his time as a prisoner-of-war. It was a hapless autobiography published in 1927. Why was it hapless? In 1928, Merian started to regret releasing some details about “Nina” (Małgorzata Słomczyńska) as it was proof of his relationship outside the wedlock, so he bought back over 5,000 copies of the manuscript, almost all the amount which had been printed. His life in Poland was also an inspiration for the movie “The Starry Squadron,” a romantic story about Polish girl and an American volunteer pilot. Unfortunately, all copies of this movie were destroyed by Soviets after the WW II.

His most famous work is “King Kong” from 1933, a movie that everyone knows. He wrote the screenplay and was co-director of it and even flew in the scene where an aircraft was shooting at the giant gorilla. He was the one who finished off the King Kong. The movie was a huge success that brought over 1,8 million $ (and a single ticket cost .15¢).

World War II for the United States started in 1941. Cooper was 47 years old, yet he re-enlisted and was commissioned a colonel in the U.S. Army Air Forces. He served with Col. Robert Scott in India and also worked as logistics liaison for the Doolittle Raid. He later served in China as chief of staff for General Claire Chennault of the China Air Task Force, which was the precursor of the 14th Air Force and served then from 1943 to 1945 in the Southwest Pacific as chief of staff for the 5th Air Force’s Bomber Command.

At the end of the war, he was promoted to brigadier general. For his contributions, he was also aboard the USS Missouri to witness Japan’s surrender.

It’s worth mentioning that the famous 303 Squadron inherited all traditions from the Polish 7th Air Escadrille, including the honor badge design. It was one of the most successful squadrons during the Battle of Britain

He was awarded the Order of Virtutti Military, Poland’s highest military decoration for heroism and courage and also the Polish Cross of Valour.

Merian C. Cooper

Additionally, he was awarded the Mexican Border Service Medal, the World War I Victory Medal, the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, and the World War II Victory Medal. Also awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, but he declined to accept the medal.

Cooper was awarded an honorary Oscar for lifetime achievement in 1952 and have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, though his first name is misspelled “Meriam”.

Merian C. Cooper died in 1973 at the age of 79 in San Diego, California.

Information was received from War History on Line.  Pictures were mainly from the Cooper Museum and Wikipedia.

Click on images to enlarge.

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Military Humor – 

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Farewell Salutes –

Norris Bird – Hampton, IA; US Navy, WWII & Korea

Wayne Carver – Logan, KS; US Army, WWII, ETO

Robert Flucker – Rochester, MI; US Army, WWII

Standing Guard

Charles Hankins – Sulligent, AL; US Navy, WWII, Korea & Vietnam, Master Chief (Ret. 32 yrs.)

Ardis Hudak – Toledo, OH; US Navy WAVE, WWII

Paul McCullough – Hialeah, FL; USMC, Korea, Purple Heart

Edward O’Neill – Papakura, NZ; RNZ Army # U42660, Vietnam, Infantry regiment, Victor 5 Co.

Robert Perkins – Sebastopol, AUS; RA Air Force # 12569

Hans Schlichting – Houston, TX; US Army, 11th Airborne Division

James Walsh – Johnston, PA; US Army Air Corps, WWII, ETO

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Current News – WWII Chapel in Australia + Purple Heart Day

St. Christopher’s

ROCKHAMPTON, Australia — As 33,000 troops take part in Talisman Saber war games near Rockhampton along the central Queensland coast, a small chapel overlooking a pasture serves as a reminder of when about 70,000 U.S. soldiers called the city home.

The nondenominational Saint Christophers Chapel, built in 1943 by the Army’s 542nd Engineer Battalion, is the only structure remaining from when Rockhampton served as a springboard and training location for Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s World War II island-hopping campaign. The city hosted the 1st Cavalry Division and the 24th, 32nd and 41st infantry divisions on a half-dozen camps between 1942-44.

Along with the open-air, pavilion-style chapel, the grounds include a band rotunda dedicated to a servicemember who helped maintain the chapel decades ago. A concrete pillar from an artillery declination station used by 41st Infantry Division howitzers stands at the chapel’s foot, a

Cliff Hudson, 79, of Sawtell, New South Wales, first visited the chapel about 30 years ago because it shares its name with his son.  “My wife always wanted our daughter to get married here because of the Christopher name,” he said.

Hudson said he is drawn by the chapel’s interior boards listing names, sporting events and results of competitions from the 1940s. The boards were taken from a nearby war-era sports field and placed inside and U.S. and Australian flags and seals adorn the gates and interior.

Saint Christopher’s nearly deteriorated in the years after WWII. Vandals destroyed parts of the chapel in 1959, prompting locals and the 41st Infantry Division Association to start caring for the site. Today, the chapel and its grounds are immaculately maintained, and church services are held each year on the Sunday closest to the Fourth of July.

Julie Henderson, 77, of Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, said she’s glad the chapel still stands.  “It’s nice to come and remember the soldiers who served in the war because we weren’t there,” she said.

 

 

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For further information about the chapel please click HERE!

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Military Humor – from the Prisoners themselves – 

Air Activity in Java

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Farewell Salutes –

William Andrews Jr. – Palm Springs, FL; US Air Force, Korea, Bronze Star

Lowell Bailey – Thomaston, GA; US Army, Korea, POW

Bruce D’Agostino – Natick, MA; US Air Force, photographer (Founder of Humanitaian International)

John Ekenbarger – Nashua, NH; US Army, Korea, POW

Richard Ford – Broad Channel, NY; US Army, WWII

George Franklin – Pensacola, FL; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO, 127th Engineers/11th Airborne Division, demolition

Quentin Gifford – Mankato, MN; US Navy, WWII, USS Oklahoma, KIA (Pearl Harbor)

Thomas Madison – Austin, TX; US Air Force, Vietnam, Col. (Ret. 20 yrs.), pilot, POW

Warren Glenn Ranscht – Racine, WI; US Army, WWII, ETO, WIA

Albert Zuidema – Falls Church, VA; US Army Air Corps, WWII, ETO, pilot, WIA

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Personal Note – for Purple Heart Day posts click HERE!

Please remember that today 7 August is the U.S. observation of Purple Heart Day.  Shake the hand of a veteran!

And say a prayer for our 3 Marines missing in the waters off Australia.  Thank You.

Lt. Benjamin R. Cross of Bethel, Maine; Cpl. Nathan Ordway of Wichita, Kansas; and Pfc Reuben Velasco of California.

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