“With confidence in our armed forces…”

* For Lyle: survivor of NAS Kaneohe Bay. And Wade: survivor of USS Tennessee:

I miss you both. *

And to the 2, 404 sailors, soldiers, Marines and civilians killed on that day: you are still remembered, and we honor your sacrifice.

A journey of 3,400 miles. A task force of six aircraft carriers, loaded with 350 planes. Strict radio silence, broken only with “Tora! Tora! Tora!” as a message sent back to the task force to announce that total surprise had been achieved.

A terrible day, but one that needs to be remembered.

~ FDR’s December 8, 1941 Declaration of War – FDR Presidential Library & Museum

~ USS Arizona Web page – National Park Service

~ Pearl Harbor Memorial Museum & Visitor Center – Home of the Pearl Harbor Memorial Fund. From the site: “Engineers estimate as few as 2 years of useful life remaining before the world’s most complete Pearl Harbor museum must be abandoned.” Donations to assist in preserving this site are gratefully accepted (a secure page).

~ Pearl Harbor Attack: Naval Historical Center

~ Other Links of Interest:

• Pearl Harbor Survivors Association — A wonderful organization. I met some good men (and their wives!) through this. Sadly, many have since left us.
• At Dawn We Slept, by Gordon W. Prange — the finest narrative yet written about the attack and the planning leading up to it. If you desire to learn more about December 7th, begin here. Professor Prange devoted his life – the forty years after Pearl Harbor – to researching both the American and Japanese histories behind the attack that drew the U.S. into war, interviewing what Japanese combatants remained by its end. The manuscript was not yet finished upon his death in 1980, and was posthumously published by his assistants. It remains, IMHO, the definitive account available on the subject. And Michael Bay – “director” – should be ashamed of himself.
• Audio recording in the House of Representatives of FDR’s Address to a Joint Session of Congress; December 8, 1941 — includes a full introduction by the reporter on-hand (person unknown) just prior to the beginning of the speech, as members are still filing in. Really, an amazing recording to listen to in its entirety.
• Pearl Harbor Remembered

 

As Time Goes By

This posting is respectfully dedicated to the memory of my friend, Lyle “Smokey” Jackson.

The banner photo I will use this week is one that I received from Lyle, of sailors dedicating leis during the memorial service for the men killed at NAS Kaneohe Bay on 7 December 1941 (this ceremony to have possibly taken place on Memorial Day, 1942). Lyle was a survivor of the attack on Kaneohe – the first installation targeted on Oahu during that fateful Sunday morning.

During this, the premiere week of Ken Burns’ and Lynn Novick’s “The War“ (click to watch an extended preview on YouTube), I thought I would offer up my 2 cents toward WWII history education; that is, insofar as the music, radio broadcasts and speeches of that era can be educational in and of themselves. Refer to my Memorial Day, 2007 or D-Day postings for more links; included are titles of books, as well as Web sites. As those who know me might imagine, I have enough WWII sites bookmarked to sink a battleship (har-har), but I will spare everyone those, and will instead concentrate on a sampling of the words and music from the era.

Here is PBS’ broadcast schedule of “The War.”

Have a good week, everyone.

RADIO BROADCASTS -and- SPEECHES:

• Edward R. Murrow: Reports during an air raid in London
• KGU in Honolulu to NBC Radio in New York: Reporting the attack on Pearl Harbor; 07 December 1941
• FDR: ‘Day of Infamy’ speech; 08 December 1941 (score music from ‘The Thin Red Line’ plays in the background. Kinda nice, actually.)
• FDR: D-Day Prayer (complete)
• Audio clip from the first Jewish service for the Dead; Belsen concentration camp for women, April 1945. Recorded by BBC personnel, this is one of the most stirring, albeit brief, moments I’ve ever heard.
• Edward R. Murrow: On the liberation of Buchenwald; April 1945
• Sir Winston Churchill:
  • Fight on the beaches… ; 04 June 1940
  • Their Finest Hour; 18 June 1940
  • So Much, to So Few; 20 August 1940
  • Give Us the Tools; 09 February 1941
  • This is Your Victory; 08 May 1945

MUSIC:

• I’ll Be Seeing You — Jo Stafford (my all-time favorite WWII song)
• Sing, Sing, Sing — Benny Goodman – Live at Carnegie Hall, 1938
  • And here’s Louis Prima performing Sing, Sing, Sing – fantastic!
• As Time Goes By — Dooley Wilson (from ‘Casablanca’)
• Medley: Die Wacht Am Rhein & La Marseillaise — A scene from ‘Casablanca’ (this was Mom’s and my favorite: Vive la France!)
• Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy — The Andrews Sisters
• In the Mood — Glenn Miller and His Orchestra
• Moonlight Serenade — Glenn Miller and His Orchestra
• Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive — Johnny Mercer
• Begin The Beguine — Artie Shaw
• Sentimental Journey — Les Brown Orchestra, featuring Doris Day
• (There’ll Be Bluebirds Over) The White Cliffs of Dover — Vera Lynn
• You Made Me Love You (I Didn’t Want To Do It) — Harry James (one of mine and Dad’s favorites!)
• G.I. Jive — Woody Herman and His Orchestra
• A Slip of the Lip (Might Sink a Ship) — Duke Ellington and His Orchestra
• Praise The Lord (and Pass the Ammunition) — Kay Kyser and His Orchestra
• Der Fuehrer’s Face — Spike Jones
• Bei Mir Bist Du Schon — Janis Siegel (from ‘Swing Kids’, a 1993 movie, yet a fun version of this song, nonetheless!)

 

Remember when…

I guess the Fall movie season is officially underway, when some depth will hopefully take over from little more than whizbangs.

I can’t wait to see this one. It’s supposed to arrive in Seattle, for at least a brief visit, at the end of next week.

I’ll never understand why we just stopped. Hopefully, one day, we’ll go back.

 

Queens

This is a film I’ll not miss in the theater; indeed, I have been looking forward to it for months. I adore Cate Blanchett as an actress, and the reign of Elizabeth I is a period in which I have always held a curious interest. The story of the intimate struggle between she and her cousin, Mary (Marie) Stuart, Queen of Scots, has always fascinated me.

An immensely strong woman, against all odds, creates an era’s identity as well as its enduring legacy; not the stuff for lightweights, would you not agree?

“And some spread their wings like eagles… and soar.”

Premieres October 12th.

View the full trailer, here: “Elizabeth: The Golden Age”

 

11 weeks, and counting…

They’ve made the schedule for the upcoming Ken Burns series on World War II official:

Ken Burns: The War on KCTS-TV, Seattle

Ken Burns: The War — Official PBS.org Web site

Thanks to my brother, Mark, I was fortunate enough to go hear Ken Burns speak here in Seattle last Fall (yeah, I know – “par-TAY!” But it really was my kind of deal), and he premiered the first 15 or so minutes of the first episode from The War during his talk (and, yes, I’ll admit it – I went just about apoplectic when the screen went dark). I even got up and asked him a couple of questions, which was a nice opportunity for me. For those who may wonder about such things, yes, the dude actually does look just as young in person as he does on TV, which is just insane.

Anyway… you’ve been forewarned about this series’ broadcast schedule. Anyone who knows me knows that I’ll have my bum plastered on my couch engrossed in watching this series, so please postpone any and all emergencies until after it’s over, ‘k? My sincere ‘thanks’ ahead of time for your cooperation.

Boy, do I ever know how to live, or what?! Ah, well… c’est la vie, and each to her or his own. One thing I do love about it is that it will premiere on what would have been my 10th anniversary. “The War”… hmmm. Nope, not gonna go there, LOL.

I’m glad to say that both of these sites are also informing people of the Library of Congress’ Veterans History Project, of which I am, naturally, a great supporter. I plan on submitting the couple of transcribed interviews I did with my Pearl Harbor Survivor friends, both of whom are gone now, sadly. But through intitiatives like these, their personal stories will live on.

If you have anyone in your family or personal circle who is a veteran, particularly a vet of WWII and/or Korea, please consider collecting their stories and submitting them to this project. You do not need to be some fantastic writer in order to do that, and neither do they; their stories simply need to be told. So many of our veterans from those wars are already gone. We need to collect just as many that remain as is possible, in order to place them in the greater narrative, before The War vanishes from living memory altogether. And that time is rapidly approaching – to the tune of 1,000 veterans a day.

 

‘Up’ the Rebels!

America! America! God mend thine ev’ry flaw;
Confirm thy soul in self control, thy liberty in law.

Oh beautiful, for heroes proved
In liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved
And mercy more than life …

Lyrics to “America the Beautiful” by Katharine Lee Bates

This particular posting will be a hodge-podge of unabashed red-white-and-blue waving; rationality can follow throughout the other 364 days. And below, you’ll find links to more flag-waving, nostalgia-inducing tunes than you’ll probably be able to stomach for another year; just scroll down now if you’d prefer to ignore my blatherings and get down to the good stuff! (trust me, no offense taken).

So, you’ve been warned. On the Fourth of July I am my mother’s daughter, through-and-through. But then, I’m also my former Marine Corps dad’s daughter! For a treat, check out Dad’s Homemade Ice Cream recipe. Growing up, the 4th of July was never complete without Dad’s yummy ice cream (add other flavors or chocolate chips as your heart desires, but trust me – the vanilla is pretty dang good, too!).

Let me just say this once and for all: While I am by no means a fan of the current administration, I remain a huge fan of the American system in general, and the principles upon which this country was founded in particular. We have at times lost our way (see: the above-mentioned administration’s arrogance. Assorted wars and coups which we’ve started and supported around the globe are yet other examples), but we have also lead the way – in fighting and defeating fascism; supporting a free press (more critical than most seem to realize today) which has, at times, played a pivotal role in exposing corruption at the highest levels of government (remember Watergate?); the balance of governmental power; the separation of church and state; civil rights; women’s rights; human rights.

The engine driving this Grand Experiment has always been, and remains to this day, the American people, in all its multicultural glory. Ours is not a perfect system by any stretch; in fact, it was designed to be a work in progress, and hopefully we’ll never become so powerful as to not be able to learn from our own mistakes. That is always a danger. Still, I consider myself blessed to have been born a citizen of the United States.

We have many notable people throughout our history of whom we can be proud. A few of these personalities have taken a bashing in recent years — Thomas Jefferson, John F. Kennedy, FDR, even Abraham Lincoln — and their particular weaknesses and even transgressions should necessarily have seen the light of day. But for me, that does not necessarily detract from their overall greatness. They were human. We are all human. And yet, each of these flawed and complicated people, and so many more, put into motion something which was inconceivably greater than themselves.

Call me an unabashed patriot on the 4th; I’ll take it as a compliment. I am a descendant of John Adams, and I hold his moniker, “The Agitator”, in the highest esteem.

*******

I always consider the settlement of America with reverence and wonder, as the opening of a grand scene and design in providence, for the illumination of the ignorant and the emancipation of the slavish part of mankind all over the earth.
~ John Adams

*******

What follows is an assortment of Fun Fourth Stuff:

Facts:

• Independence Day commemorates the formal adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. However, it was not declared a legal holiday until 1941.
• Not all members of the Continental Congress supported a formal Declaration of Independence, but those who did were passionate about it. One representative rode 80 miles by horseback to reach Philadelphia and break a tie in support of independence.
• The first two versions of the Liberty Bell were defective and had to be melted down and recast. The third version rang every Fourth of July from 1778 to 1835, when, according to tradition, it cracked as it was being tolled for the death of Chief Justice John Marshall.
• The American national anthem, the “Star-Spangled Banner,” is set to the tune of an English drinking song (“To Anacreon in Heaven”).
• Father of the country and architect of independence George Washington held his first public office at the tender age of 17. He continued in public service until his death in 1799.

Did you know…?

• In a recent Constitution Poll commissioned by the National Constitution Center, fewer than 50 percent of the respondents knew how many U.S. Senators there are; only 6 percent could name the four rights guaranteed by the First Amendment, and; 84 percent thought the Constitution states that “all men are equal.”
• An American History quiz among 1,000 adults in the United States revealed that two-thirds of respondents didn’t know that the Declaration of Independence was signed in Philadelphia; one-third didn’t know that the Fourth of July is celebrated to mark the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.

– From History.com: The Declaration of Independence Quiz. Test your knowledge of the Declaration and the Revolutionary War!

– From the National Archives: The Declaration of Independence page

– Lest we forget: Coming to America (courtesy of the U.S. Census Bureau):

• 32.5 million: The number of foreign-born residents in the United States in 2002; they accounted for 11.5 percent of the nation’s total population.
• More than 1-in-3 foreign-born residents were naturalized U.S. citizens.
• Six states had estimated foreign-born populations of 1 million or more: California (8.8 million), New York (3.6 million), Florida (2.8 million), Texas (2.4 million), New Jersey (1.2 million) and Illinois (1.2 million).
• Among the foreign-born population, 52 percent were born in Latin America, 26 percent in Asia, 14 percent in Europe and the remaining 8 percent in other regions of the world, such as Africa and Oceania.

VIDEO:

• Admittedly, this is a repeat from my Memorial Day, 2007 posting, but there’s a reason for that, and that is that it bears repeating for those who may not have seen it: ‘Taking Chance’ – from PBS’ America at a Crossroads ~ “Operation Homecoming”
  
  • This is an amazing piece of film, only five minutes in length, shown at the very end of “Operation Homecoming”. It is the recollection of U.S. Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel Michael Strobl, on accompanying the body of PFC Chance Phelps, USMC, back home to Wyoming from Iraq. Narrated by Robert Duvall.

MUSIC:

– From “1776″ ~ Original Motion Picture Score:

• Sit Down, John
• Piddle, Twiddle and Resolve
• Yours, Yours, Yours
• Momma, Look Sharp
• Molasses to Rum
• Is Anybody There? — (my mom’s favorite)
  

– From “Glory” ~ Original Motion Picture Score:

• A Call to Arms
• Charging Fort Wagner
• Closing Credits

– From Ken Burns’ “The Civil War” ~ Original Score:

• Oliver Wendell Holmes quote
• Ashokan Farewell
• For those serving overseas on this Independence Day: Battle Cry of Freedom — This is a beautiful version from Jacqueline Schwab, for solo piano.

– 4th of July-ish & Americana:

• Aaron Copland:
  • Appalachian Spring: Variation on the Shaker tune, ‘Simple Gifts’
  • Fanfare for the Common Man
  • Rodeo: Hoe-Down
• George Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue (Leonard Bernstein, piano)
• John Philip Sousa: The Stars and Stripes Forever (Arthur Fiedler / Boston Pops)
• Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: 1812 Overture (Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra and Temple University Choirs) This is my favorite version of the 1812 because the opening sequence is sung, in its entirety, in the original Russian. Betcha didn’t even know that that was the way ol’ Pyotr had intended it, huh (and the singing is absolutely gorgeous). So go ahead and crank this baby up and listen for the cannons – fantastic!

– And finally, In Honor of my mother, Barbara Early, a great lover of independence and the Fourth of July:

• This is my favorite version of my all-time favorite patriotic hymn, Battle Hymn of the Republic, offered up by The Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

Happy 4th, everybody. And remember:

“No taxation without representation!”

 

63 years ago today

On the evening of June 5, 1944, over five thousand ships carrying 150,000 soldiers, the greatest armada ever assembled, left southern England for the invasion of Normandy.

In the morning, across the English Channel, a great battle would begin for the liberation of Europe.

- Excerpted from American Experience: D-Day

*******

Believe me, gentlemen — the first twenty-four hours of the invasion will be decisive. The fate of Germany depends on the outcome. For the Allies, as well as for Germany, it will be the longest day.
- German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel

I have the feeling that friends are approaching.
- Anne Frank ~ 06 June 1944

*******

As this pivotal event in WWII history — some might argue, in human history — recedes further from our collective consciousness, moving out of living memory, it becomes perhaps easier to forget just how critical to the cause of human freedom it was that this operation succeed. As most of you must know, it is important to me that its significance be remembered, forever.

Most WWII veterans I have known want only that what they did during those years be remembered, and more importantly, that their buddies who gave their lives likewise not be forgotten. Moving on and making forward progress, becoming allied with Germany and Japan, has been our ultimate victory. Perhaps, we are making some measure of progress to the cause of human evolution. Still, there is Darfur…

Why do we keep doing this? Why is war so often suggested as our one and only “last resort”?! As a species, we seem to find it remarkably easy to forget.

It was a strange feeling… you know, I’d seen so much death and destruction, and fear, and terror. And when I got back to the United States, I couldn’t believe it. We don’t appreciate what we got here.
- Bill Breuer, D-Day Veteran

*******

To help further the cause of remembering our history lest we risk repeating it, and appreciating better “what we got here”, I offer these modest reminders:

– Estimated Allied Casualties ~ 06 June 1944: 10,000

– Number of Americans buried at the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in Colleville-sur-Mer, France: 9,387 (Note: My banner photo, of the massive and profoundly moving bronze statue, Spirit of American Youth Rising from the Waves, is the centerpiece to this cemetery’s entrance).

– Total number of remains from both sides, buried in twenty-seven cemeteries in the Normandy area: 110,000

– Estimated number of Normandy area civilians killed, June 1944: 15,000 – 20,000

*******

Dig deeper:

• The National World War II Museum (formerly The National D-Day Museum)
• Encyclopaedia Britannica’s Guide to Normandy 1944
• Portsmouth, UK ~ D-Day Museum
• Book: The Longest Day: The Classic Epic of D-Day, by Cornelius Ryan
• Book: D-Day: The Greatest Invasion – A People’s History, by Dan van der Vat
• Book: Bodyguard of Lies: The Extraordinary True Story Behind D-Day, by Anthony Cave Brown
• Book: Enigma: The Battle for the Code, by Hugh Sebag-Montefior
• DVD: Band of Brothers - (Episode on D-Day – Disc 1, Episode 2: “Day of Days”) ~ Without question, this is the most extraordinary dramatization I have ever seen presented on World War II.

 

Memorial Day, 2007

To the Fallen

By U.S. Army Sergeant John McCary

Dear all,

We are dying. Not in some philosophical, chronological, ‘the end comes for all of us sooner or later’ sense. Just dying. Sure, it’s an occupational hazard, and yeah, you can get killed walking down the street in Anytown, USA. But not like this. Not car bombs that leave craters in the road, not jeering crowds that celebrate your destruction.

It’s never been a fair fight, and we haven’t always played nice. But not like this. No one leaves the gate looking to kill, or looking to die. No one wakes up in the morning and says, “I sure hope blowing up a whole group of Iraqis goes well today.” That’s for suckers and cowards, people afraid to delve into the melee and fight it out, to sort it out like soldiers.

They’ve killed my friends. And not in some heroic fight to defend sovereign territory, not on some suicide mission to extract a prisoner or save a family in distress. Just driving downtown to a meeting. Just going to work.

When you’ve held a conversation with a man, briefed him on his mission, his objective and reminded him of the potential consequences during the actioning of it, only to hear he never returned, and did not die gracefully, though blessedly quickly, prayerfully painlessly… you do not breathe the same ever after. Breath is sweet. Sleep is sweeter. Friends are priceless.

It is also now undeniable, irrevocable, that you will see your mission through. You will strive every day, you will live, though you are not ever again sure why. I, we, must see it through to the end. They have seen every instant, every mission, every chore, every day through, not to its end but to theirs. They died standing with their friends, doing their jobs, fulfilling some far-flung nearly non-existent notion called duty. They died because their friends could’ve died just as easily, and knowing that… they would never shirk their duties, never call in sick, never give in to fear, never let down. Their lives are lost, whether as a gift, laid down at the feet of their friends, or a pointless discard of precious life… I doubt I’ll ever know.

I’m ok, Mom. I’m just a little… shaken, a little sad. I know this isn’t any Divine mission. No God, Allah, Jesus, Buddha or other divinity ever decreed “Go get your body ripped to shreds, it’s for the better.” This is Man’s doing. This is Man’s War. And War it is. It is not fair, nor right, nor simple… nor is it over. I don’t care about bloodlust, justice or revenge. But we will not give up. We cannot. Our lives are forever tied to those lost, and we cannot leave them now, as we might have were they still living.

We have… so little time… to mourn, to breathe, to laugh, to remember. To forget. Every day awaits us, impatient, impending. So now we rise, shunning tears, biting back trembling lips and stifling sobs of grief… and we walk, shoulder to shoulder… to the Call of Duty, in tribute to the Fallen.

© Copyright John McCary. All Rights Reserved.
This excerpt of “To the Fallen” from Operation Homecoming, edited by Andrew Carroll.

*******

On this Memorial Day, with so many of our men and women in uniform finding themselves in harm’s way, I encourage all of us to take just one moment from our BBQs and picnics in order to give a thought to them and, more importantly, to all those who have given everything that was in their power to give — to the efforts of freedom, to the call of duty, to their friends and comrades, and ultimately to us all.

This day is about far more than just this war. For just one day, we should be able to put aside our vast differences and give a thought of respect, and profound thanks, to the Fallen and their families.

*******

U.S. Forces Wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan: 25,378

Coalition Forces Killed in Action in Iraq, Memorial Day 2006 – May 27, 2007: 969

Coalition Forces Killed in Action in Afghanistan, Memorial Day 2006 – May 27, 2007: 195

*******

Links of Interest:

• ‘Taking Chance’ – from PBS’ America at a Crossroads ~ “Operation Homecoming” - This is an amazing piece of film, only five minutes in length, shown at the very end of “Operation Homecoming”. It is the recollection of U.S. Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel Michael Strobl, on accompanying the body of PFC Chance Phelps, USMC, back home to Wyoming from Iraq. Narrated by Robert Duvall.
• Michael Yon Online: From Iraq ~ A Memorial Day Message
• Arlington National Cemetery: ‘The Old Guard’ – The Sentinels of the Tomb of the Unknowns
• Arlington National Cemetery: The Origin of ‘Taps’