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Max Jaffa OBE
Although not a film star, well known as a violinist and band leader, he was a pilot in Bomber Command
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Did not Lord Olivier serve in the FAA during WW2 ?
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Yes, Laurence Olivier was a Lieutenant RNVR and trained as a pilot in the FAA, though never saw action.
Trevor Howard was a 2nd Lieutenant in the Royal Corps of Signals, airborne division, before being invalided out on medical grounds in 1943. Ralph Richardson was a Lieutenant-Commander RNVR in the FAA as a flight controller, 1939-1944. |
James Garner served in Korea awarded two Purple Hearts one from Enemy shooting and one from Friendly fire!
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James Garner wounds
If you notice in the films that James Garner has a slight limp when he walks, this due to his wounds.
Again shows that no matter what disabilities you have you can make the best of it. Good Man! |
Just a couple of stories which I seem to remember from long ago.
Jimmy Edwards said that he was towing a glider on D-day and was one of the first across the channel. Unfortunately he got lost and had to turn back. This apparently caused chaos because he was now flying head on into the following aircraft. True? Who knows with Jimmy. Also John Pertwee (an early Doctor Who) was injured, presumed dead, and woke up in a mortuary. Don't know if this was in action but I hope somebody can enlighten me. If these memories are confused I apologise since my mind does seem to play tricks lately as witness some of my earlier posts. |
Denholme Elliot. Wasn't he a Second World War RAF bomber pilot....? |
I always thought that Jimmy Edwards was an AFC rather than a DFC ..... not sure why but I'll try and find a source which is likely to be right!
Respect anyway! |
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Recall reading an article by Jimmy Edwards when he claimed to have spent some time flying the immortal Fairey Battle (after it had been ignominiously retired from frontline service) as a target tower.
Allegedly, one day while droning across the south of England with mind in neutral he looked up and was horrified to see an echelon of Messerschmidts perfectly positioned above him. Before he had time to react, they peeled off - and shot hell out of the target! They then formed up, flew past while the leader saluted him. It was a crack squadron - and they considered it beneath their dignity to shoot down a Fairey Battle. I do hope it might be true. |
I have a picture in a book on B52s of Jimmy Stewart, stepping out after a sortie over North Vietnam as a Brigader General in the USAF reserve .
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Just searched out my copy of "Huston we Have a Problem", the fascinating autobiography of Ossie Morris, the very distinguished Director of Photography - he won a DFC for bomber ops with 44 (Rhodesia) Squadron, and an AFC for transort ops later in the war. I had the great privilege and pleasure of knowing him in my teens, and when last I heard a few years ago, he was still teaching film studies students at Bournemouth University - in his 80s
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I read in a local flyer today that the Man in Black once wore Blue.
Johnny Cash - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Cash enlisted in the United States Air Force on July 7, 1950.[42] After basic training at Lackland Air Force Base and technical training at Brooks Air Force Base, both in San Antonio, Texas, Cash was assigned to a U.S. Air Force Security Service unit, assigned as a Morse Code Intercept Operator for Soviet Army transmissions at Landsberg, Germany "where he created his first band named The Landsberg Barbarians."[43] He was the first radio operator to pick up the news of the death of Joseph Stalin.[44] |
Jon Pertwee served in the RN on HMS Troutbridge.
Will Hay served with the RNVR in WW2, teaching navigation and astronomy - he was a noted astronomer. |
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Jon Pertwee served in the RN on HMS Troutbridge. |
The whole crew of Troutbridge sail tomorrow (Friday) at 1200 hrs and 1900 hrs on BBC Radio 4 extra.
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Christopher Lee was an RAF Intelligence Officer in Tunisia in WWII. :) Christopher Lee Sings! - YouTube |
My apologies to "Professor" Jimmy Edwards - it was a DFC (sorry, don't trust Wikipaedia!) for which I found the details .....
"Professor" Jimmy Edwards managed to avoid the flak in KG444 and cleared the Arnhem area on his way back to base. He told his wireless operator, Bill Randall, to get the sandwiches and coffee flask then suddenly there was a tremendous noise and the aircraft shook violently. Jim thought that they had been hit by flak but looking out of his window he saw the ugly snout and yellow spinners of an FW190, who proceeded to rake them again. The engines suddenly went into fine pitch - Jim gave the order to bail out, which second pilot Alan Clarke and navigator Harry Sorensen promptly obeyed. Then Jim collected his parachute, put the automatic pilot in and raced down the aircraft to bale out through the open door. But lying near the door were the four air despatchers and Jim yelled "Why haven't you jumped." "Can't, sir" came the reply, "all wounded in the legs". So throwing his chute down, Jim went back to the cockpit but he couldn't see through the windscreen which was now covered in black soot and oil. So he knocked out the escape exit in the roof and by standing in the seat with his head in the slip stream he brought the aircraft down into a small wood where the small saplings broke his speed without breaking the aircraft up. As he landed the nose dug in and catapulted Jim out of the top hatch and on to the ground where he was joined by Bill Randall who had also stayed on board. Jim said that they felt very vulnerable lying there in the yellow Mae Wests but as the Fokker came in for the kill, he ran out of ammunition for only three rounds were fired. Jim had many burns to his face and ears, his ears shrivelled like cockleshells (the reason he wore his hair long to hide them) and for his brave action Jim received the DFC. The greatest disappointment of this gallant sacrifice by our aircrews who flew these suicidal missions for four days on the trot, was that less than 20% were received by the paras on the ground for there was no radio communication to tell our pilots that the DZs had been captured. |
Its a matter of historical fact that John Wayne actually went to a great deal of trouble to avoid military service.
John Pertwee was very fortunate in that as a crew member on HMS Hood he was transferred shortly before Hood left Scapa Flow to intercept Bismark in May 1941 |
Christopher Lee
He was in SOE and did his fair share of knife work. He advised Peter Jackson exhaustively about the exact sounds of being stabbed in the back. there is even a short doco on it. Sir Christopher read Lord of the Rings once every year. Beats my paltry 65 times, as he died aged 93.
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Patrick Troughton (later-Dr Who) served with distiction on MTB's known to the RN as "the Death or Glory Boys!"
His skipper, on MTB 603 (Where my cousin Roy Cherry DSM was radar) was Lt Lightoller DSC the son of the surviving senior officer on the Titanic. |
Lt Lightoller DSC the son of the surviving senior officer on the Titanic. Titanic and Dunkirk! Respect Sir. |
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