D-Day Through the Decades: 1974 Commemoration

With the snowfall earlier this week, it is hard to think that summer and the 70^th Anniversary of D-Day is just 3 months away!  We are busy, busy with the preparations and everyone is getting more excited every day.  Don’t forget to check out the 70thAnniversary Events tab on our website and we look forward to seeing you in just a few short months!

In honor of the three month mark, I bring you a news article out of the Gettysburg Times' evening edition from 6 June 1974 for the 30th Anniversary.  By the 30th Anniversary, General Omar Bradley was the only commander living of the seven SHAEF commanders.  Once again, he attended the ceremonies instead of President Nixon.  I hope you enjoy this article and we will see you soon! 

"This is the 30th Anniversary of D-Day"

By: Elias Antar

St. Laurent, France

War veterans and officials from seven countries mark the 30 anniversary of D-Day today with a ceremony at the vast U.S. military cemetery near this Normandy village.  Almost 10,000 servicemen are buried in the cemetery on a cliff overlooking Omaha Beach, the bloodiest of five beaches the Allies stormed on June 6, 1944.  General Omar Bradley, who commanded the American at Omaha and adjoining Utah Beach, heads the American delegation to the two-day celebration.  About 1,500 Allied veterans of the landing are attending the observance, the biggest ever, of the invasion.

General Bradley, Normandy, 30th Anniversary

ONLY BRADLEY LEFT

Bradley, at 81 the only living five-star general in the U.S. Army, attended a dinner Wednesday night at the dedication of a museum at Ranville but missed other events.  Aides said he found the pace tiring and had to rest.  Ceremonies were held Wednesday at the eastern end of the 40-mile invasion front, where the British, Canadians and French until landed at 7:30 a.m. on D-Day.  Two other events were scheduled today to commemorate American feats of arms on D-Day.

 RE-ENACTMENT

A unit of U.S. Rangers stationed in Germany was to reenact the climb 225 Rangers made under withering fire up a 100-foot cliff to capture a German strong point at Pointe du Hoc.  The men of the 2^nd ranger Battalion used ropes and wooden ladders borrowed from the London Fire Brigade to scale the crags. Some surviving Rangers were on hand to watch the re-enactment.  Some 120 civilian and military parachutists were to jump into the village of Ste. Mere l’Eglise, where the first American paratroopers, from the 82^nd and 101^st Airborne Division, landed in France.  They met with devastating fire in the square at St. Mere l’Eglise but regrouped and pushed on.  Astronaut Alan Shepard was to be a guest for the jump and later was to show a film of his moon landing.

Until next time, 

Felicia 

Happy 110th Birthday, Dr. Seuss!

The Memorial is closed yet again because of snow.  However, that doesn’t mean that we are taking the day off!  After not getting to post last week (it was crazy busy), I will double the efforts for this week.  We are marching ever closer to the 70^th Anniversary of D-Day; however, before we look toward June, I want to take a moment and mark the 110^th birthday of Theodor Seuss Geisel – whom you probably know as Dr. Seuss.  Born in Springfield, Massachusetts on March 2, 1904, Geisel was a lifelong writer, poet, and cartoonist.  Over the course of his life, he published 46 children’s books which are what he is most known.  Today, however, I want to talk about some of the political cartoons he produced during World War II. 

From 1941-1943, Geisel served as chief editorial cartoonist for the New York newspaper PM.  During that time he drew over 400 editorial cartoons!  Overall Geisel was supportive of President Roosevelt’s handling of the war, highly critical of isolationists (most notably Charles Lindbergh), and encouraged the public to do their part through rationing and purchasing war bonds.  There is no way I can talk about 400 cartoons – for that I would need to write a book.  However, I do want to talk about war bonds – one of many themes of his cartoons.  Ten cartoons are included in this set of war bonds and honestly these are some of my favorites from his collection.  

December 26, 1941

May 24, 1942

In the cartoon on top, you see the caricature of a moose.  Those of us who grew up with his children's books expect this kid of drawing.  Both of these cartoons is attempting to encourage people to buy more Defense Bonds and Stamps.  Produced just after Christmas, the cartoon on top is drawing a connection to the materialistic nature of the holiday with the idea that we on the homefront need to be doing everything we can to make sure the war is successful.  During the war, every little bit helped ensure Allied victory. 

July 28, 1942

October 13, 1942

 These next two cartoons were produced just a few months shy of each other to look at the two main Axis leaders.  Unlike Walt Disney, Geisel took an early (and often) look at the Pacific Theater.  We could spend all day discussing the racism in these cartoons--comparing his racist treatment of all Japanese-American versus his condemnation of the the treatment of the Jewish population in the United States.  You will notice that three of the four cartoons here were produced in 1942 - this is the year that Geisel started working for the Treasury Department directly creating propaganda posters for public distribution. 

In 1943, Geisel joined the Army as a Captain and was commander of the Animation Department of the First Motion Picture Union of the US Army Air Forces.  During this time he wrote propaganda films including ,a 1945 film about peace in Europe after the war and the Private Snafu training films.  In 1947, his film Our Job in Japan, was adapted for commercial use and entitled Design for Death.  This film, a study of Japanese culture, won in the Academy Award for Documentary Feature.  

Geisel died on September 24, 1991.  Today, his birthday marks National Read Across America Day.  If you would like to view more of Geisel's political cartoons visit this wonderful site dedicated to these cartoons hosted by the library at UC San Diego.

Until next time, 

Felicia