Actors who served...

[billc]

Breitbart.com has a series of articles on Actors who served in the military during various conflicts, this month it's Christopher Lee, and they also did Jimmy Stewart and a couple of others. These guys were real men...

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Hollywood/2012/09/07/actors-who-served-christopherlee

Before he was the villain, he was a real-life hero with the Royal Air Force during World War II.
Sir Christopher Frank Caradini Lee, CBE, CStJ was born on May 27, 1922. His mother was a well-known Edwardian beauty and his father, Geoffrey Trollope Lee, was a Lieutenant-Colonel in the 60th King’s Royal Rifle Corps.
Lee volunteered in 1939 to fight for the Finnish forces during the Winter War against the Soviet Union. He was, however, issued winter gear and was posted on guard duty but was kept at a safe distance from the Russians.
According to Lee’s autobiography, he and his fellow Brits were only in Finland for two weeks and never saw the Russian forces. In 1941, Lee enlisted with the Royal Air Force to serve in World War II. After eye problems forced Lee to drop out of training in South Africa, he ended up in North Africa as a Cipher Officer. He spent the remainder of the war working in intelligence, including his work as an Intelligence Officer with the Long Range Desert Group.
The LRDG was a reconaissance and raiding unit of the British Army and, according to German Afrika Corps Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, “caused us more damage than any other British unit of equal strength.”
Lee ended up in the Special Operations Executive (SOE), a special forces unit whose missions dealt with espionage and sabotage behind enemy lines. Being a member of the, also known as The Baker Street Irregulars, Churchill’s Secret Army, and The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, suggests pretty strongly that Lee worked as a spy.
When World War II drew to a close, Lee retired from the military, having achieved the rank of Flight Lieutenant. He then joined the Rank Organization where he trained as an actor. Film roles followed, and the rest, as they say, is mustache-twirling history.

And the Jimmy Stewart profile...

Jimmy Stewart is perhaps the best known of the celebrities who served, partially because he chose to serve while already a successful movie star.

However, having come from a military family (both of his grandfathers had fought in the Civil War, and his father served in both the Spanish-American War and World War I), he saw it as his duty and was more than happy to serve.
Stewart already held his private pilots’ license when he was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1940, but was rejected for being below the required weight of 148 pounds. Rather than going back to making movies, Stewart asked the studio’s trainer to help him put on weight. He still missed the weight requirement on his first attempt to enlist in the Army Air Corps.
Finally, he made weight and enlisted in March 1941.
Pvt. James Stewart began pilot training and earned a commission as a second lieutenant in January 1942, after the attack on Pearl Harbor brought the United States into World War II. He became an instructor pilot and performed limited engagements for the Army Air Forces. For example, he performed with Orson Welles, Lionel Barrymore and others in the radio program "We Hold These Truths," to commemoratethe 150th anniversary of the Bill of Rights.
He also appeared in a propaganda film "Winning Your Wings" to help recruit 100,000 much-needed airmen. This film, the first of the USAAC’S First Motion Picture Unit, resulted in 150,000 new recruits.
Although Stewart was proud to serve his country, he was concerned that, as a celebrity, he would always be stationed away from harm. At first, this was true, but Stewart spoke with his commander, who understood and reassigned him to an overseas unit.
He began combat operations beginning in December 1943 and, by 1944, was flying missions deep into Nazi-occupied Europe. A truly humble warrior, Stewart requested that these missions remain uncounted, leaving his official count at 20 missions.
He was highly decorated, earning two Distinguished Flying Crosses, the Croix de Guerre and the Air Medal with three oakleaf clusters. When Stewart was made Chief of Staff later in 1944, he was no longer required or expected to fly missions, but he did not slow down. He became one of the few Americans to rise from Private to Colonel in four years, by the end of the war.
Again, Stewart exceeded expectations when he continued to serve in the U.S. Air Force Reserves after the war and became Brigadier General in 1959. He continued to shun the spotlight for his service, choosing to serve quietly. In 1966, Brigadier General James Stewart went on a bombing mission to Vietnam as an observer. Again,he refused publicity for the event, as it was part of his job as an officer.
Stewart retired in 1968 after 27 years of service. President Ronald Reagan later promoted him to Major General.

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Hollywood/2012/08/10/actors-served-jimmy-stewart

And the profile on David Niven...

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Hollywood/2012/08/03/actors-who-served-david-niven

[h=2]Pop culture watchers may recall David Niven as an Oscar-winning actor famous for such movies as “Around the World in 80 Days” and “The Pink Panther.” History should also remember him for his service with the military in his native England.[/h]The son of a military man, James David Graham Niven’s military career began with his admittance to the Royal Military College at Sandhurst. Niven later was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Highland Light Infantry. He was discharged in 1935 and, with little for a military man to do after World War I, went to Hollywood to work as an extra where he caught the attention of producer Samuel Goldwyn.
Goldwyn signed him to a contract with MGM and his career began to take off. It wasn’t long before Niven was being cast in leading roles. However, he left show business temporarily to rejoin the army when Britain declared war on Germany in 1939. The British Embassy advised British actors to stay in Hollywood, and he was the only one to ignore that advice and return home.
Niven was re-commissioned with a motor training battalion as a lieutenant in the Rifle Brigade, then transferred to the Commandos. As with many actors who served, Niven worked with the Army Film Unit during the war. He acted in two movies to encourage support for the British war effort, "The First of the Few" (also known as "Spitfire") and "The Way Ahead."
Although he was sent to France several days after D-Day, Niven served in the “Phantom Signals Unit” in the Invasion of Normandy. His unit located enemies and kept commanders informed of their locations.
Despite his heroics, Niven did not like to speak about his time in the war. In his book "The Moon’s a Balloon, he did share a few tidbits, such as when Churchill told him, “young man, you did a fine thing to give up your film career to fight for your country. Mark you, had you not done so, it would have been despicable.”
Niven was with the British Army for more than six years, but was still considered a very popular actor upon his return to civilian life.

 

[Carol]

My upstairs neighbor is a musician with a band that is doing very well. They have opened up for major country acts, been featured in national media, they've even had some record deals come their way although they haven't signed with a large label yet.

I saw him the other day putting up a sign for the UPS driver asking the driver to leave the package if no one answered. He described that his fiancee was expecting something very important, but he was running out of time. They had a show tonight. He had to take a shower, iron his shirt, and change his guitar strings before his ride arrived....usual show prep stuff. I was on staycation from work so I told him I was planning on be around all evening and would be happy to sign for the package when it arrived. He was grateful. I wished him luck in getting everything done before zero hour...he just grinned and said "I was in the military, I'm used to it!" :lol2:

Good people.

 

[elder999]

Jimi Hendrix was with the 101st Airborne, though he hardly served with distinction. He was honorably discharged, though....

Elvis served in the Army-it's probably where he first took dexedrine and barbituates.....

Charles Bronson was a gunner in the Army Air Force in WWII...

My good friend Pete Seeger was supposed to be a mechanic in WWII, but wound up entertaining troops in the Pacific, before becoming a true pink socialist-imagine that.

Rhodes scholar Kris Kristofferson, though, was a Captain in the Army, Ranger trained, and a helicopter pilot.....he was going to teach English at West Point, but chose to leave the Army for music, and can ya blame him?

 

[Tgace]

Jimmy Stewart has always been a role model of sorts to me:

http://tgace.com/2010/12/12/what-a-man/

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk

 

[billc]

Another lesser known attempt by a famous actress to help during World War 2 Hedy Lamar...(that's Hedley!)...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedy_Lamarr...

Mathematically talented, Lamarr also co-invented—with composer George Antheil—an early technique for spread spectrum communications and frequency hopping, necessary for wireless communication from the pre-computer age to the present day.[SUP][5][/SUP][SUP][6][/SUP]

Lamarr took her idea to Antheil and together, Antheil and Lamarr submitted the idea of a secret communication system in June 1941. On August 11, 1942, US Patent 2,292,387 was granted to Antheil and "Hedy Kiesler Markey", Lamarr's married name at the time. This early version of frequency hopping used a piano roll to change between 88 frequencies and was intended to make radio-guided torpedoes harder for enemies to detect or jam. Although a presentation of the technique was soon made to the U.S. Navy, it met with opposition and was not adopted.[SUP][22][/SUP]

The idea was not implemented in the USA until 1962, when it was used by U.S. military ships during a blockade of Cuba after the patent had expired. Perhaps owing to this lag in development, the patent was little-known until 1997, when the Electronic Frontier Foundation gave Lamarr an award for this contribution.[SUP][6][/SUP] It is reported that, in 1998, Ottawa wireless technology developer Wi-LAN, Inc. "acquired a 49 percent claim to the patent from Lamarr for an undisclosed amount of stock" (Eliza Schmidkunz, Inside GNSS),[SUP][23][/SUP] although expired patents have no economic value. Antheil had died in 1959.

 

[billc]

My favorite story told by Jimmy Stewart on Johnny Carson involved his duty in the Air Force Reserves. His unit went to Spain for their annual training and he went to check in at one of the Spanish Hotels. When he went up to the front desk, the manager saw who he was and animatedly described how much he enjoyed his work and what a big fan he was of Stewart. When Stewart then tried to check into a room, the same manager apologized and said that wouldn't be possible because Actors were not allowed to stay at that particular hotel. Stewart said he looked at the guy and said, "Well that's fine because for the next two weeks "General" Stewart will be staying in that room." He checked in and that was that.

 

[Big Don]

Another lesser known attempt by a famous actress to help during World War 2 Hedy Lamar...(that's Hedley!)...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedy_Lamarr...

That's Hedly!

 

[Big Don]

This guy used to be an actor...

 

[Sukerkin]

It is nice to see that people are at least a little aware of Hedy Lamarr's contributions to modern technology.

Ever since I found out about it whilst researching radar and radar guidance in my teenage years, it has been a source of nagging irritation to me that such brilliance went unacknowledged and unrewarded - she never got a penny from her devising of spread spectrum long range communications, which, considering that all modern communications rely upon it, is a crime.

http://www.aegis-systems.co.uk/history/lamarr.html

 

[Sukerkin]

Jimmy Stewart has always been a role model of sorts to me:

Me too, aye :thumbs up:

 

[Big Don]

Julia Child was in the OSS

 

[elder999]

This crazy became a bestselling author and actor, even portraying himself in a movie:

The official U.S. Army citation for Murphy's Medal of Honor reads:
Rank and organization: Second Lieutenant, U.S. Army, Company B 15th Infantry, 3rd Infantry Division.Place and date: Near Holtzwihr France, January 26, 1945.Entered service at: Dallas, Texas. Birth: Hunt County, near Kingston, Texas, G.O. No. 65, August 9, 1944.Citation: Second Lt. Murphy commanded Company B, which was attacked by six tanks and waves of infantry. 2d Lt. Murphy ordered his men to withdraw to a prepared position in a woods, while he remained forward at his command post and continued to give fire directions to the artillery by telephone. Behind him, to his right, one of our tank destroyers received a direct hit and began to burn. Its crew withdrew to the woods. 2d Lt. Murphy continued to direct artillery fire, which killed large numbers of the advancing enemy infantry. With the enemy tanks abreast of his position, 2d Lt. Murphy climbed on the burning tank destroyer, which was in danger of blowing up at any moment, and employed its .50 caliber machine gun against the enemy. He was alone and exposed to German fire from three sides, but his deadly fire killed dozens of Germans and caused their infantry attack to waver. The enemy tanks, losing infantry support, began to fall back. For an hour the Germans tried every available weapon to eliminate 2d Lt. Murphy, but he continued to hold his position and wiped out a squad that was trying to creep up unnoticed on his right flank. Germans reached as close as 10 yards, only to be mowed down by his fire. He received a leg wound, but ignored it and continued his single-handed fight until his ammunition was exhausted. He then made his way back to his company, refused medical attention, and organized the company in a counterattack, which forced the Germans to withdraw. His directing of artillery fire wiped out many of the enemy; he killed or wounded about 50. 2d Lt. Murphy's indomitable courage and his refusal to give an inch of ground saved his company from possible encirclement and destruction, and enabled it to hold the woods which had been the enemy's objective

Talk about nuckin' futz.....:lfao:
(actually, read his book, and read between the lines, and this was a very, very good man-who happened to be just that kind of nuckin' futz)

 

[Tames D]

Lee marvin was a mans man. He was a US Marine and earned the Navy Cross at Iwo Jima. A total badass. And then there was Captain Kangaroo, laugh if you will, but he was a military leader and hero. Google him.

 

[elder999]

Lee marvin was a mans man. He was a US Marine and earned the Navy Cross at Iwo Jima. A total badass. And then there was Captain Kangaroo, laugh if you will, but he was a military leader and hero. Google him.

Lee Marvin-a little-he was wounded at Saipan, and discharged, a full year before the battle of Iwo Jima, and subsequently discharged. Purple Heart, no Navy Cross.

Bob Keeshan-Captain Kangaroo-was a Marine, but the war ended before he was deployed, and he never left the states....

 

[Sukerkin]

Here's an interesting site on this topic:

http://www.winkmartindale.com/thoughts-n-things/page146.html

As it contains little in the way of detail, I just thought it could well serve as a platform to spring off to research more into one or more of these men by bringing their names back into the light they deserve. I came across it whilst trying to delve a little deeper into the career of David Niven, as I recall reading long ago that his military service was a bit out of the ordinary and that the man himself would say next to nothing about it.

I did find this from Charlton Heston (a chap I have ever thought was carved from a block of solid charisma (wish I had a tenth as much )) :

“I knew David had an outstanding war record. Though his career was well established in Hollywood when Britain went to war in 1939, he’d squirmed, bullied, and connived his way back to England to take up the reserve commission he still held in one of the Guards regiments. He ended up with probably the best combat record of any actor in the war on either side. I also knew he wouldn’t talk about it.
He did tell me a marvelous story about his meeting with Winston Churchill. As a Churchill fan, I relished it. It seems his public face (as David put it) and his combat service (as I suspect) had, toward the end of the war, earned him an invitation for a weekend at Chequers, the Prime Ministerial country manor. There were or course a dozen or so other guests, far grander than David, but he had his moment with the great man. Pacing the graveled paths with him Sunday morning, Churchill said, ‘Well, Niven, I’ve been told of the difficulties you surmounted to come back from Hollywood and take up arms again in the service of your country. That’s admirable, Niven. Admirable.’
‘Thank you, Prime Minister,’ David murmured modestly. ‘Mind you,’ Churchill said sharply, ‘anything less would have been despicable.’ I do like that story. I liked David too.

 

[ballen0351]

Gene Hackman and Drew Carey were both Marines as were the Everly Brother's

 

[Tames D]

Lee Marvin-a little-he was wounded at Saipan, and discharged, a full year before the battle of Iwo Jima, and subsequently discharged. Purple Heart, no Navy Cross.

Bob Keeshan-Captain Kangaroo-was a Marine, but the war ended before he was deployed, and he never left the states....

Thanks for setting the record straight. I don't remember where I got my information, but apparently I was wrong.

 

[elder999]

Thanks for setting the record straight. I don't remember where I got my information, but apparently I was wrong.

Some people actually have Marvin and Keeshan serving together-the only part they ever seem to get right is Lee Marvin being shot in the ***!

 

[billc]

Charleton Heston served as well...

[h=3]World War II service[/h]In 1944, Heston enlisted in the United States Army Air Forces. He served for two years as a radio operator and aerial gunner aboard a B-25 Mitchellstationed in the Alaskan Aleutian Islands with the Eleventh Air Force. He reached the rank of Staff Sergeant. Heston married Northwestern Universitystudent Lydia Marie Clarke in the same year he joined the military. After his service and rise to fame, Heston was chosen as a narrator for highlyclassified Military and Department of Energy instructional films, particularly relating to nuclear weapons, and "for six years Heston [held] the nation's highest security clearance" or Q clearance."[SUP][16][/SUP]

[h=3][edit][/h]

 

[billc]

There was a funny moment on Johnny Carson with Lee Marvin when they started talking about Marvin's war service. He tended to be a bit blunt and unreserved in some of his comments and Johnny Carson asked him what he did in the war. Lee Marvin, being unconcerned about sensitivity issues said something to the effect " I killed Japs." Johnny Carson was visibly flustered by this reply and tried to move the conversation forward by saying, "So, you served in the Pacific," to which Marvin replied, " Yeah, that weren't a lot of Japs. in Germany."