October 20, 2006

"It was their duty..."

Last night Husband and I watched "Celebrities in Uniform." I knew Jimmy Stewart had served, but not that he had enlisted before Pearl Harbor. And that he had enlisted in the Army Air Forces. Stewart flew missions, was part of the mission that bombed Berlin, and served in the Air Force Reserves after the war. He even flew a mission in Vietnam and retired as a General.

Henry Fonda was in the Navy. Yep. Which makes one wonder what he thought of his daughter's antics.

Charles Durning served in WW II and was wounded three times! He received, I believe, three Purple Hearts and fought in the Battle of the Bulge. (Hmm...actually wounded, John F-ing Kerry...)

What really resonated throughout this program was the word "patriotic." These men felt it was their duty to serve this country, and they never tried to capitalize on their military service. The country banded together.

Novel idea, no?

And when discussing Elvis Presley's two year Army stint, one person said that the in time from the end of WW II up to Vietnam, it was considered "macho" to serve in the military. A cool thing to do!

Damn, I was born too late.

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