FREE ESSAY ON WWII

WWII

INVOLVMENT OF ARTS IN WORLD WAR II
OUTLINE:
Thesis: During W.W.II, there was a great effort on the home front 
to help keep up morale of the troops and to provide 
support in any way possible. One very effective way 
to support the troops was by use of arts including 
movie stars, singers, actors, and actresses.
Introduction: W.W.II, in all of its destruction, was an effort 
to destroy the Axis powers, and totally involved 
was our country, giving support in any way it 
could. 
I. Home front participation
A. Sports programs
B. Broadway
1. June 6, 1944
C. Movies derived from war
1. Casablanca
2. Thirty Seconds over Tokyo
3. Guadalcanal Diary
II. Stars and performers helping war effort
A. Bob Hope
1. U.S.O. involvement
B. The Andrews Sisters
III. A personal perspective on the War
A. Doyle Petty
Conclusion: Movie stars, singers, actors, and actresses all 
played an important role in the war effort, in 
that they kept up the morale of the troops.
The Involvement of the Arts in World War II
B.J.
U.S. History II
Mrs. Faulkner
Wednesday, March 31, 1999
WORK CITED
Ambrose, Stephen E. The War on the Home front Timeline. 
Nov./ Dec. 1993; p. 2-21
Ambrose, Stephen E. The Home front Us News and World Report . V 116 #21. H-I p. 54-60.
Ledgerwood, Tom. Attack that ended an era WWII Remembered 
Dec. 91- Jan. 92. p. 48-65.
The New Groiler Multimedia Encyclopedia. Groiler Electronic 
Publishing Inc. 1993. IBM - PC - DOS.
Petty, Doyle. Personal Interview. Saturday, March 27, 1999. 
The Involvement of the Arts in World War II
World War II, was an effort to destroy the Axis Powers. The Axis powers is the name
coined to the enemies of the U.S. during World War II. These nations included mainly
Germany, Italy, and Japan. The United States was involved in giving support to our
troops. With the first few sporadic shots of the war, started the great effort to help
our nation's soldiers. For some the only way to help was by their talents and popularity.
So started the home front participation and began the involvement of the Arts in World
War II. Such artists included: actors, actresses, singers, stage performers, comedians,
and instrumentalists. During World War II, there was a great effort on the home front to
keep up the morale of the troops and to provide support in any way possible. One very
effective way to support our troops was the use of the most popular Arts of that era.
When the first bombs dropped on Pearl Harbor, the War effort took a front seat to all
other programs on television, radio, stage, and even in the work place. Most factories
either stopped work all together or stopped immediate production on civilian goods and
began producing such goods as would help the war. In the late 1930's and early 1940's,
most people did not own televisions; so essentially radio, word of mouth, newspapers, and
the weekly picture shows at the local theater were the only forms of communication from
U.S. combatants to the public on the home front. People would listen to the radio, go to
dances, attend concerts and private parties, all to benefit the war effort. Many people
went to the movies (some 85,000,000 each week in 1945). They would go, not only to see a
movie, but also to see the news reel. It was a short newscast played before the feature,
giving up-to-date information on occurrences and events of troops overseas. Some popular
movies during that era were: Casablanca, Thirty Seconds over Tokyo, Bambi, and The
Guadacanal Diary (Ambrose). Three of the four most popular movies in 1945 were derived
from the war. One of the most popular of these was Casablanca. Starring Humphry Bogart,
Casablanca is a movie about the war effort in Casablanca.
In some places, baseball games and racing programs were canceled. The question was raised
about whether all sports events should be canceled until the war was won. With the
outbreak of World War II, many of the players in America's new favorite pastime,
baseball, were shipped overseas to fight for their country. This left a multitude of fans
without anything to do. This was just one of the many areas where women stepped up to
fill in for their men. During World War II there was officially started a professional
women's baseball league. They played for two consecutive seasons in 1944 and 1945. They
had immense popularity for a time, but when the male players returned after the war's
end, women's baseball lost its fame. By 1948 women's baseball was virtually unheard of
(Ledgerman). New York City, the home of the bustling prosperous Broadway, became the home
of hourly news reports broadcast from center stage. On June 6, 1944, Broadway shut down.
The more talented and popular actors and actresses went to local boot camps and performed
scenes from plays such as Hamlet, written by Shakespeare at the canteens (Ambrose). Local
radio newscasts were extended, and several newscasters became famous during this era.
Some of these reporters that will be remembered most, are Gabriel Hearern and Edward R.
Murrow (Petty). Gabriel Hearern was a reporter for The New York Daily News, a very
popular newspaper in New York City. He was well known for his editorial columns. Hearern
was a bold reporter. He went out among the troops and interviewed them. He also gave
detailed reports of what was going on in Europe. He first was stationed in Europe to
cover the war effort there. He stayed for several months in the trenches with the
soldiers. When the European phase of the conflict had settled, he moved to the south
Pacific to cover stories there. It was while he was working with a group of soldiers
there that he was shot and killed by a sniper (Petty). Newspapers all over the country,
including the New York Daily News, threw out their lead articles for three consecutive
months in 1943 and replaced it with the 
Lord's Prayer. (U.S. News) The U.S. Army even began printing its own paper specifically
for the military. It would include home front news, news on the World Series, reports on
football games and other sporting events, jokes, riddles, and anything else that the
U.S.O. thought would be of interest or help keep the troops minds off of the war. That
newspaper is still in print today (Petty). 
The U.S.O., or the United Service Organization, was another group that commenced during
World War II. It directed its efforts to the entertainment of U.S. troops, both on the
home front and abroad. In the States, they were in charge of getting troops at
installations such as Fort Benning, Fort Hood, and Fort Sill, involved with the public
around them. They would bring in civilians, women, and dancers as entertainment for the
troops. Civilian families would often invite troops that were far away from their own
homes into their homes to get them off of the base, into a more comfortable environment
for a weekend or so (Petty).
Overseas, the U.S.O. worked concurrently with the United States at Arms Special Services
to provide the troops with as many activities and as much entertainment as possible. They
got such big names as Bob Hope, The Andrews' Sisters, Frank Sinatra, 
Marilyn Monroe, and Ginger Davis to come perform at nearby cities around bases where
troops were stationed (Petty). 
Bob Hope annually traveled with the U.S.O., entertaining U.S. troops stationed abroad.
Hope is well known for his U.S.O. entertainment tours to U.S. military bases around the
world. (Groiler). The Andrews' sisters performed several times for troops in World 
War II. They toured almost fifty weeks a year, doing five to six shows a day. The special
services would also originate such activities as deep sea diving and off shore fishing. 
Many activities were planned, not only to keep troops busy, but also to help keep their
minds off the brutal task of war (Ledgerman).
The great effort in the war to help keep up morale of the troops was an almost unbearable
task. My grandfather, Doyle Petty, fought in the U.S. Airforce, stationed in Panama.
Perhaps it is that he is lucky to be alive. The Arts played a major role in helping keep
us from being depressed. Without those shows and activities, I do not know how we would
have made it. He also says that there were many other things involved (Petty). 
One was KilRoy. No one knows for sure who or what Kilroy was. There is quite a bit of
speculation though about it. One of the most popular and widely accepted theorys,
however, is that Kilroy was the key name of an arms inspection agent for the allies. He
would stop at various military bases and check their weaponry. The popularity of the name
came about because people began seeing the phrase Kilroy was here., written in various
places throughout Europe and the south Pacific. Rev. Petty recalls the words were
everywhere. In bathroom stalls, on the sides of busses, spray painted on bilboards,
written on menus in resturants, even sometimes when a soldier would go to a woman's house
to court he would find Kilroy was here written somewhere in her home; soldiers became
fascinated with Kilroy. It seemed no matter where we went, Kilroy had already been there.
My grandfather said. Kilroy was just one of the fads of World War II, but it was of
significance because it helped ease the soldiers' minds and gave them a little bit of joy
and happiness (Petty). 
World War II was the first war effort that was influenced by the use of Arts, including
actors, actresses, singers, and performers. It will always remain in the hearts of
servicemen as a source of slight joy and happiness in their bleak and bizarre
surroundings during World War II.