The myriad of uniform variations and service branches in the following images is a reminder of the chaotic nature of the late war in Germany. A member of the 9th Armored Division snapped a series of two dozen images of captured German soldiers. I’ve chosen a small selection to share here. These medium format negatives scan with great quality.
I recently had the esteemed pleasure of acquiring two nose art photos of PB4Y-2 airplanes. Using the power of the internet, I was able to look up the two 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. He charged $50 per painting and eventually used the money to enter formal art school and travel with his wife. 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. They go out in the mail tomorrow! For now, check out the shots and the nice card he sent me.
Thanks Hal!
Lady Luck II
Green Cherries
Hal's Autograph
Portraits of War 
