jtrain1I thought that it should have been called the "Eisenhower". But "Big Boy" is fine.
Well, when the first Big Boys rolled out of the erecting shops Dwight Eisenhower was an obscure brigadier general on George Marshall's staff in Washington DC.
Ike's fame would only come after the Big Boy's name was permanent. But Ike didn't do too badly, he did get a neat-looking military jacket and an aircraft carrier named after him, to say nothing of that gig in the White House.
Penny Trains Or a Kelvinator refrigerator!
Or a Kelvinator refrigerator!
Absolutely right! Which is why a lot of people kept their iceboxes through the 1930's and through World War 2. The Thirties because few could afford them, WW2 because they just weren't to be had.
Firelock76 Ike's fame would only come after the Big Boy's name was permanent. But Ike didn't do too badly, he did get a neat-looking military jacket and an aircraft carrier named after him, to say nothing of that gig in the White House.
The "Eisenhower" jacket, which was non-standard, was actually a standard blouse that was cut off at the waist. Dad recalled that an officer would take his blouse to a tailor to have the appropriate alterations made. Since the jacket was non-standard, some would have fancy inside linings depending on what the officer could afford.
Interesting story about the Eisenhower jacket. In a nutshell, when Ike went to Europe and saw the British Army's battledress jacket (check pictures of Field Marshall Montgomery for a good example) he said, in so many worlds, "That's cool! I've gotta get me one too!" And as a US Army general officer he had the priveledge of designing his own uniform so he could indulge himself. It wasn't too long before all the US general officers had to have one too, and eventually it trickled down the chain of command to other officers and enlisted men as well. I'll tell you, in my humble opinion it's one of the best looking military jackets ever.
And oddly enough on the other side of the world the same thing happened, although not quite the same way. When the Marines were relieved from the Guadalcanal campaign they were sent to Australia for rest and refit. Their uniforms were in rags so they were clothed out of Australian stocks. The Aussies had their own version of British Army battledress, same cut, but in a shade of green that suited the Marines just fine. The Marine "Ike jacket" remained as a uniform item until around 1960.
The Marines actually called theirs either the "Vandegrift Jacket" after First Marine Division commander General Alexander Vandegrift, or just the "Battle Jacket."
But he DID get a locomotive named after him:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LNER_Class_A4_4496_Dwight_D_Eisenhower
And wasn't there a class of U.S. Army switchers (0-8-0's or 0-6-0's) sent to southeast asia that was known as "Eisenhowers"?
Trains, trains, wonderful trains. The more you get, the more you toot!
If the Big Boy was called the Eisenhower, how long before everyone called it the Ike? Five minutes?
But on the subject of uniforms, there are three that I think look pretty fine, U.S. Naval aviator dress greens (we had a CPO on my ship who looked like a million bucks in that suit,) The R.C.M.P. scarlet jacket with jodhpurs, pistol with lanyard and the Stetson hat. The London bobby uniform with that cool looking helmet is pretty spiffy too. These days, London cops have to wear high-vis vests and various pieces of equipment so the classic look is pretty rare these days. Also the U.S.M.C. dress blues.
And remember, in WW1, Eddie Rickenbacker designed his own duds.
We were talking about Eisenhower jackets? Well, check this out!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s90og73p2fo
Isn't THAT something! I saw a clip of this several years back when I was watching a WW2 documentary with Lady Firestorm's mom. "You know, it's a shame" I said. Mom said "What's a shame?"
"Well," I said, "I was just thinking, most of those guys would never look that good again."
"Yes, I know!" she muttered in a low voice.
Lady F was watching too. "Wow! They all look like General Patton!"
She wasn't wrong.
And Eddie Rickenbacker designing his own uniform? In a way, that was a matter of survival. That high collar on American WW1 uniforms was absolute torture for a fighter pilot who had to keep his head turning constantly. So, what Cap'n Eddie and quite a few others did was copy the British officers open-collared blouse, it was a LOT more comfortable.
And the reason for the aviators traditional silk scarf? It kept the pilot's neck from chafing on his uniform collar or flight suit.
Speaking of Cap'n Eddie, want to meet him?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3LRNQfwDyE
Thansk for those films, Firelock! Didn't the Brits call the Ike jacket a "bum freezer?"
You're welcome! You know, I've watched that 82d Airborne parade newsreel at least half a dozen times already, it's just fascinating.
A "bum freezer?" I don't know, this is the first I've heard of that. Of course, since the British Army's battle dress jacket was short and belted at the waist it seems to me they would have called it a "bum freezer" as well, at least well before they apllied that term to the "Ike jacket."
Here's a bit of WW2 trivia I have heard. When the Germans overran France in 1940 they captured large stocks of British battle dress uniforms, all new and perfectly serviceable. The problem was, what to do with them?
The answer? They issued them to U-Boat crews as on-board working uniforms. The concept worked so well they had to make new ones of their own as the British uniforms wore out.
Firelock-- So then many British battle dress uniforms are laying at the bottom of the Atlantic all over the place. Or at least they were until they became fish food. Truth is stranger than fiction.
The 82nd Airborne parade is remarkable. That depicts a high water mark...terrific stuff!! I know your President has expressed an interest in holding a military parade but has met fierce resistance.
At the end of WWII we up here in Canada had the 3rd largest Navy in the world and now we have essentially bupkis. Dumb. It was a high water mark for us as well. I don't think we have had such widespread decency and common sense since.
When did laying around in mommys basement playing video games at 33 collecting welfare become the norm? Or expressing pride in being illiterate on the Forum?
Also I put forth that at the time of that parade was a high water mark for our Railroads. They did it all and were the ultimate framework of the land, providing services of every kind to everywhere. This was their best ever. Some say it was the roaring 20's but those immediate post war years were magnificent and golden. Never again would the Rock Island, Milwaukee, Pennsy, New York Central and all the others shine as bright as those years.
Firelock-- sent you an email, also Happy Canada Day 151 years and safe travels for the 4th to all in the USA.
Maybe you're right, Firelock but I know some garment or another from Big 2 was called a bum freezer.
Fascinating about U-boat crews wearing British battledress. I thought the crews wore mostly coveralls, I guess I need to see "Das Boot" again to be sure.
One thing Arthur Godfey had in common with Captain Eddie, he was quailfied to fly multi-engined commercial aircraft. So was Danny Kaye. John Travolta we know about, I wonder who else?
Thanks Miningman, and happy Canada Day to you and yours!
And also, today is the 102d anniversary of the Battle Of The Somme.
Respectful remenberances to all those brave British, Canadian, Newfoundland, Australian, and New Zealand soldiers who went "over the top" into the teeth of those German guns, and who never wavered.
And oh yeah, that parade is certainly representative of an American "high-water mark," not just militarily but the society as well. The United States was Number One, and everyone knew it, from the post-war era after everything settled down (took almost a year) right into the 1960's.
And then Vietnam happened and wrecked everything. We've never really been the same country since.
54', I know Jimmy Stewart was certainly multi-engine qualified having flown Air Force bombers starting with the B-24 and up to and including the B-52 and B-58.
Tyrone Power flew R4D's, known more famously as C-47's, for the Marines during WW2.
Tom Cruise took up flying after filming "Top Gun" back in the 80's, and is capable of flying high-performance single engine aircraft, including the P-51, but I don't know about his multi-engine skills.
And then there's Ronald Reagan who once said...
"All I ever flew was a desk, but at least I never crashed one!"
It's been a while since I've seen "Das Boot," but I think one or two (or more) of the crew are seen wearing the British battledress jacket with Kriegsmarine rank insignia. Pretty darn authentic film!
Miningman The 82nd Airborne parade is remarkable. That depicts a high water mark...terrific stuff!! I know your President has expressed an interest in holding a military parade but has met fierce resistance.
Except for a handful of victory parades, military parades in the style of May Day in Krasnaya Square are not to American tastes or culture.
Firelock76 "...54', I know Jimmy Stewart was certainly multi-engine qualified having flown Air Force bombers starting with the B-24 and up to and including the B-52 and B-58.>>" Tyrone Power flew R4D's, known more famously as C-47's, for the Marines during WW2. Tom Cruise took up flying after filming "Top Gun" back in the 80's, and is capable of flying high-performance single engine aircraft, including the P-51, but I don't know about his multi-engine skills. And then there's Ronald Reagan who once said... "All I ever flew was a desk, but at least I never crashed one!" It's been a while since I've seen "Das Boot," but I think one or two (or more) of the crew are seen wearing the British battledress jacket with Kriegsmarine rank insignia. Pretty darn authentic film!
"...54', I know Jimmy Stewart was certainly multi-engine qualified having flown Air Force bombers starting with the B-24 and up to and including the B-52 and B-58.>>"
Linked photo @ https://www.jetphotos.com/photo/8911823
Jimmy Stewart didn't retire from the USAF in 1959. That was the year he was promoted to brigadier general. He stayed in the Air Force through most of the 1960's in the reserve, and quietly even flew on one B-52 raid over North Vietnam to better understand what B-52 crews needed to best be able to do their job.
daveklepperI should point out that Eisenhower considered his Presidency of Columbia University as important to him as his Presidency. And Columbia is the oldest North American University, started around 1690 as Kings College.
Oh my. I hate to correct David on this, my admiration for his knowledge, wisdom, and life experiences knows no bounds, but unfortunately he's wrong on this one.
Columbia University's not the oldest here in the US, Harvard is, founded and chartered in 1650. Next in line is The College of William and Mary in Williamsburg VA, chartered in 1693, and rumor has it partially funded with pirate money, and a not quite voluntary contribution either!
"Here, Cap'n, tell us where the treasure is so we can fund this fine institute of learning, or it's up the long ladder and down the short rope with ye!"
It's called the "College of..." for tradition's sake, it's actually a university now.
Third? Yale. 1701.
Columbia didn't come along until 1754, when it was founded as King's College. The name was changed to Columbia after the Revolution, for obvious reasons.
But there's one thing Columbia has that the other's don't, probably the most distinguished college drop-out in American history, Alexander Hamilton. He decided fighting a war was more important than hitting the books. He did pretty well for himself anyway, at least until his run-in with a certain surly Princetonian.
And Sam, I didn't forget the B-36. Remember, I said "...up to and including..." simply because I'm sure General Stewart flew anything with wings on it the Air Force would let him, and I couldn't list 'em all!
samfp1943 the B-36 Pacemaker, by Convair. It was the frontline heavy SAC bomber between, 1949 and '59.
the B-36 Pacemaker, by Convair. It was the frontline heavy SAC bomber between, 1949 and '59.
TEN ENGINES! Six turning, Four burning. What a plane!
Except it became (all too often) more like "two turning, two burning, two smoking, two choking, and two more unaccounted for".
Greetings from Alberta
-an Articulate Malcontent
Agreed, several of them crashed, including in the BC Rockies in 1950. Just finished reading about the 1950 crash of 075 in the book The Lost Nuke by Dirk Septer. Almost all of the crew bailed out near Vancouver Island, but the aircraft contacted Mother Earth about three hours later, well east, with at least the pilot still aboard, and it was thought with the nuclear fissible material. Later Geiger surveys showed no 'interesting' radiation near the crash site.
The problem in this case was ice. The aircraft's systems couldn't manage it.
I worked with a guy who was a retired USAF sergeant who said he was inspected by General Stewart in Viet Nam.
I was at Westover AFB in 1963 during an open house. I recall the B-47s taking off and a B-36 there as an exhibit- it wasn't an active aircraft but it was there. My Uncle Fran (Lt. Col. and a former P-47 driver in the ETO) had an F-86 to buzz around in. Also a 1962 Lincoln Continental that I fell in love with but that's another story.
Here's a good B-36 "might have been."
I remember back in the early 70's there was a B-36 on display at Dallas-Fort Worth Airport. A local group got the idea "Hey! Let's restore it to flying status!"
The D-FW airport folks were all for it, and the group was well on their way, even to the point the got those big recip engines started, and then one day the Air Force showed up.
"Nothing doing!" they said. "That's still OUR airplane! The airport's got it just as a loaner, so don't even think about making it fly again!"
That was the end of that. Now in 2018, I believe the B-36 at the Pima Air And Space Museum in Tuscon AZ is the same airplane, but I'm not sure on that. I've been through D-FW several times, and didn't see any B-36 on display anywhere. That's something that would be hard to miss.
www.pimaair.org/
Good movie! And don't miss that "unknown" whose name was not on the posters!
Here's an aircraft restoration that ended tragically for both plane and crew:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kee_Bird
selector Agreed, several of them crashed, including in the BC Rockies in 1950. Just finished reading about the 1950 crash of 075 in the book The Lost Nuke by Dirk Septer. Almost all of the crew bailed out near Vancouver Island, but the aircraft contacted Mother Earth about three hours later, well east, with at least the pilot still aboard, and it was thought with the nuclear fissible material. Later Geiger surveys showed no 'interesting' radiation near the crash site.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/1950_British_Columbia_B-36_crash
The Air Force claimed that the bomb was incomplete, and not capable of a nuclear detonation. And they would NEVER lie, right?
selector The problem in this case was ice. The aircraft's systems couldn't manage it.
The B-36's engines faced backward, which meant that the air intake was leading and constantly exposed to cold air, with little heating from the engine. This made them prone to blockages from ice buildup, with the effect being that the engine ran richer and richer until there was enough unburned fuel in the exhaust to catch fire.
Anyone know what the original B-36 mission design was ? Don't answer by checking Wiki . And the second design mission. Hint When the original concept was put forward by the US government is a give away .
I don't know if it's correct, but as far as I always heard, it was to maintain the capabililty to attack continental Europe with bombers if Great Britain were to fall.
Of course by the time it entered service, it had taken on the mission as America's primary nuclear deterrent against the Soviet Union.
I remember watching a TV documentary about Darryl Greenamyer's failed attempt at recovering "Kee Bird."
I'm not one for anthropomorphising inanimate objects, but somehow I think old "Kee Bird" was very happy where it was, and just didn't want to leave.
Military parade? I don't know, DC doesn't have a big enough space to do a "Red Square" style shindig, and besides, our armed forces have other things to do.
The Russian military, on the other hand, doesn't have any better things to do, at least not that I know of.
I found the Russian's 70th Anniversary of V-E Day Red Square parade on You Tube, and I will say this much, it WAS impressive as hell! I really admired the re-created Red Army WW2 infantry regiment complete with original equipment AND those five restored T-34 tanks! The only thing missing was a Sturmovik fly-over, but I guess those airplanes are a little scarce right now, except for museum pieces. One of the few pieces of gear the Russians ever threw out, I suppose.
I won't bother to link it, it's over two hours long, and anyone can find it on You Tube if they're curious.
Firelock76I remember watching a TV documentary about Darryl Greenamyer's failed attempt at recovering "Kee Bird."
"B-29: Frozen In Time". It was an episode of Nova, which I taped and watch once in a while.
blue streak 1 Anyone know what the original B-36 mission design was ? Don't answer by checking Wiki . And the second design mission. Hint When the original concept was put forward by the US government is a give away .
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