I’ve been lucky enough to acquire another 1944 color slide to add to my growing collection of slides from Walter Huff, a WWII Marine pilot. This one is especially interesting as it shows his name on his yellow inflatable life vest. Slick hair too!
Author: portraitsofwar
April 25th, 1945 – The 69th Division Links with the Russians in Torgau – WWII Anniversary Post
PortraitsofWar Book Review #1: Panzerwrecks’ Duel in the Mist 2: Leibstandarte During the Ardennes Offensive
One of my favorite current WWII publishers has to be the tag team duo of Lee Archer and Bill Auerbach of Panzerwrecks. This international dreamnteam has been meticulously researching and compiling books on knocked-out German armor since 2005; focusing on amateur photographs of (often) never-before-seen scenes of German armor moments after destruction by US forces during WWII.
In a world filled with overused and reprinted images, it’s a refreshing relief to open a new copy of Panzerwrecks and see new images of late war German armor with wonderful descriptions. A balance of tongue-in-cheek humor mixed with meticulous research offers the reader with a book worthy of a well-stocked research library or office coffee table.
I recently finished my review copy of Duel in the Mist 2 published by Panzerwrecks and written by Timm Haasler, Roddy MacDougall, Simon Vosters and Hans Weber. With nearly 700 footnotes (really!), this book is well reseached, cited, and backed up with primary source documentation that includes first hand accounts, after-action reports, photographs and veteran interviews. A well balanced piece; Duel in the Mist 2 views the initial battles of the Ardennes Offensive through a non-biased lens. Interviews with US veterans easily mesh with similar accounts from SS veterans.
The superlative collection of wartime images compiled for the book is, by far, the most amazing part of the book. Images from the deep collections of David Thompson and Stefan De Meyer of AMC, Bill Auerbach, Jeff Tomkinson, Freddy Lemaire, Gerard Gregoire, Eddy Monfort, Tom Fischer and many others supplement the written component.
Artistic representations of German armor were intricically detailed by Simon Vosters, with a special attention to detail regarding camo patterns. This, combined with actual portraits of the men involved in the battles, provides the reader with an intimate view of WWII not often seen in other publications.
A series of intensive maps follows the progression of the battles using modern day color and figures. An easy-to-follow chart accompanies each map, allowing the reader to follow the battle with relative ease. Flipping back and forth between maps is made easier by the 8.5 in by 10.25 in format of the book. The pages want to be turned!
A special thanks to the guys at Panzerwrecks for providing me with a review copy of Duel in the Mist 2, and a special thanks to Timm Haasler, Roddy MacDougall, Simon Vosters and Hans Weber for their fantastic work. Keep up the good work, and I hope to review Duel in the Mist 3 by 2014!
Interested in picking up a copy of Duel in the Mist 2? Check out Panzerwrecks website for a compendium of top notch WWII material!
WWII Photo Collection – 226th Signal Corps Invade Southern France 1944
All in all, a pretty well rounded collection. The unnamed photographer made sure to captured shots of German equipment, a few Panther tanks, U.S. aircraft, lots of vehicles and trucks, destroyed buildings, local people and some great painted signs. Essentially this collection contains everything that makes a good wartime ETO photographic grouping.
226th Signal Corps – From what I can tell they were in charge of transmitting info from the front back to London. They operated specially fitted trailers with radio and signal equipment. I found the address of the 226th historian and will write him a letter.
D-Day Southern France
German Panther Tank
WWII Nose Art – Hal Olsen, the Last Living WWII Nose Artist
I recently had the esteemed pleasure of acquiring five nose art photos of PB4Y-2 airplanes. Using the power of the internet, I was able to look up four of the planes, the Green Cherries, and the Lady Luck II. With a bit of luck I tracked down the name of the original artist. Hal Olsen painted over 100 nose art pin-up ladies on various planes in the PTO during his stint with the US Navy during WWII. He charged $50 per painting and eventually used the money to enter formal art school and travel with his wife. He is considered the last living nose art painter of WWII. Having tracked him down, I wrote him a nice letter asking for his autograph and promising that I would send along some copies of my photos. He graciously signed all of my photos and added an inspiring letter with the group. Thanks Hal! You’re one for the story books.
Thanks Hal!
- Lady Luck II
- Green Cherries
- Hal’s Autograph
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“Gear Down and Locked ” – an image shot by Lt. Theodore Rowcliffe, USNR before the plane was shot down in August of 1945
Special thanks to Dave Rowcliffe for providing this image watermark free!
WWII Photo Post: New York City Skyline on a Moonlit Night – Soldier Returns Home
WWII USMC Marine Night Fighter Air Squadron VMF-542 Photo Album
My most recent album purchase comes in the form of a grouping of photos from a member of the ground crew of the VMF-542 Night Fighter Squadron. Comprised of USMC (Marine) pilots flying the F6F Hellcat, the 542nd flew missions in the PTO during WWII. The album is a great little glimpse into the mysterious world of the night fighter squadron during WWII.
Marine Attack Squadron 542 was initially commissioned as Marine Night Fighter Squadron 542 (VMF(N)-542) on March 6, 1944, at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina. Upon commissioning, the squadron was assigned the F6F Hellcat. They were relocated to San Diego, California in mid-summer, 1944 in preparation for a move to the combat zone. Late in October, the squadron arrived at Ulithi, in the Caroline Islands and immediately began flying combat air patrols.
Later in 1944, VMF(N)-542 deployed to the Pacific theater. By early April 1945, most of the squadron had deployed to take part in the Battle of Okinawa. Night operations against the enemy began on April 15 with missions being flown from Yontan Airfield, Okinawa. Second Lieutenant Arcenaux was the first squadron pilot to down an enemy warplane with a night fighter on April 16, 1945. While stationed at Yontan, the Tigers were credited with destroying eighteen Japanese airplanes and carrying out rocket attacks on the Ryukyu Islands chain of Amami, Amami Ōshima, Tokunoshima, Kikai Shima, Miyako Jima, and Amami Gunto. For these actions the Tigers were awarded the Presidential Unit Citation. Between April and August 1945, Major Robert B. Porter and Captain Wallace E. Sigler became the first night fighter aces on Okinawa.
Following a short tour of occupation duty at Yokosuka, Japan, VMF(N)-542 was transferred to Marine Corps Air Station El Toro, California. Training during this period was oriented towards night and all-weather fighter tactics and resulted in the squadron being re-designated Marine Night All-Weather Fighter Squadron 542 (VMF(AW)-542) in 1948.
Unit Mascot
WWI RPPC Photo – 32nd Division, 127th Infantry Wounded Litter Bearers – Identified DSC Recipients!
It’s been months since I’ve picked up a really juicy WWI RPPC photo for my collection. Last week I was able to win a small group of shots that looked promising. I knew there was one shot of doughboys wearing helmets bending down on the ground. When the photo arrived I was surprised to find that the card identified five litter bearers of Co. F of the 127th Infantry Regiment, 32nd Division. I quickly found that two of the identified doughboys received the Distinguished Service Cross in October of 1918 for saving wounded soldiers from the trenches during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. Another (second from right) is William Methier – he received the Silver Star. I also identified two other men in the photo as being Edward Krawezyk and Albert Guernsey who both received Division Citations for their heroics.
A truly special photo with a lot of history!
Buckendahl, Emil
Private, U.S. Army
Company F, 127th Infantry Reg., 32d Div., A.E.F.
Date of Action: October 5, 1918
Citation:
The Distinguished Service Cross is presented to Emil Buckendahl, Private, U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in action near Gesnes, France, October 5, 1918. Private Buckendahl, a litter bearer, on his own initiative, went out from a position of shelter to an exposed flank, under intense machine-gun fire, and carried back to safety a wounded soldier, who had been left in the field.
General Orders 66, W.D., 1919
Born: at Pierce, Nebraska
Home Town: Pierce, Nebraska
Curti, Mike
Private, U.S. Army
Company F, 127th Infantry Reg., 32d Div., A.E.F.
Date of Action: October 4, 1918
Citation:
The Distinguished Service Cross is presented to Mike Curti, Private, U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in action near Gesnes, France, October 4, 1918. Private Curti, a litter bearer, went out alone in front of the lines several times under the severest of fire, and carried back wounded men from an exposed area, from which his company had been forced to withdraw.
General Orders 66, W.D., 1919
Born: at Italy
Home Town: Reno, Nebraska
William H. Methier
Silver Star Citation
Awarded for actions during the World War I
By direction of the President, under the provisions of the act of Congress approved July 9, 1918 (Bul. No. 43, W.D., 1918), Private William H. Methier (ASN: 3102759), United States Army, is cited by the Commanding General, American Expeditionary Forces, for gallantry in action and a silver star may be placed upon the ribbon of the Victory Medals awarded him. Private Methier distinguished himself by gallantry in action while serving with Company F, 127th Infantry Regiment, 32d Division, American Expeditionary Forces, in action near Tronsot Farm, France, 16 October 1918, while on duty as a litter bearer.
General Orders: GHQ, American Expeditionary Forces, Citation Orders No. 3 (June 3, 1919)
Action Date: October 16, 1918
Service: Army
Rank: Private
Company: Company F
Regiment: 127th Infantry Regiment
Division: 32d Division Expeditionary Forces
From FindaGrave.com:
Mike Curti
Emil Buckendahl's Grave
WWII Marine Nightfighter Unit – VMA-542 – Identified Photo! – Henry H. Thellman of Beaver Falls, PA
A recent eBay purchase turned out to be from an obscure Marine Nightfighter (airplanes) unit stationed in the PTO during the tail end of WWII. Included in the album are many shots of planes, tropical scenes, buildings, trucks and veteran “buddies”. I always try to do research on name in the hopes of tracking down a living veteran. I’ve succeeded on a number of occasions, but the search usually ends unfulfilled. In this case, I was able to successfully track down the veteran. Sadly, he passed way a few months back, but I’m hoping to contact one of the living relatives.
Here’s a copy of the obituary which I found on a public website:
Posted: Tuesday, January 31, 2012 4:00 am
Henry H. ‘Heinie’ Thellman, 85, of Tampa, Florida, peacefully passed away on Thursday, January 26, 2012 in the University Hospital of Tampa. Born February 21, 1926 in West Mayfield, he was the son of Daniel and Regina (Untch) Thellman.
He served in the United States Marine Corps during World War II. He had been employed by the Kohlmann Bottling Co. and Babcock & Wilcox Co. He was a member of the Beaver Falls Owls Club where he was steward for many years.
Preceding him in death were his parents; his beloved wife, Pauline (Frier) Thellman; a daughter, Tammy; his son, Mark, and three brothers, Steve, Daniel and Richard.
He will be dearly missed by a daughter, Paula (Jeff) Jones, and three grandchildren, Megan Jones, Lauren and Alex Thellman, all of Tampa, Florida. Also surviving are his sister, Regina (Jennie) Karczewski, Chippewa Twp.; a brother, Michael Thellman, West Mayfield; sisters-in-law, Loretta Thellman, West Mayfield, and Margaret Thellman of East Palestine, OH; a brother-in-law, Walter (Dutch) Frier and his wife Betty, and numerous nieces and nephews.
A memorial will be held at a later date.
Without a doubt the same veteran. Maybe the family would like to see photos from the album?
Henry H. Thellman of Beaver Falls, PA
Further research shows that Henry was one of four brothers who all served in the Marines during WWII. What a family!
WWII in Color: Marine SBD Pilot on Leave in Milwaukee, WI 1944 – Pabst Blue Ribbon Sign!
For those of you who missed my first posting. please check out my posting from two weeks ago displaying photos from the same WWII Marine pilot. Walter A. Huff flew Dauntless SBD dive bombers during WWII with the VMSB-332. In this series of slides Walter is on leave in Milwaukee, WI. Note the PBR plant!
Portraits of War 