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Here is a look back at Hollywood Stars and the Greatest Generation. That is the World War II generation.
1- Don Adams was a U.S. Marine on Guadalcanal.
2- John Agar was a U. S. Army Air Corps Sergeant.
3- Gene Autry was a Flight Officer with the Air Transport Command, (1942 through 1946) .
4- James Arness was in the U.S. Army and was wounded at Anzio. He got a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star.
5- Desi Arnaz tried to join the military but was not qualified because he was not a U.S. citizen.
6- Eddie Albert got a Bronze Star for his heroic action as a U.S. Naval officer aiding wounded Marines at the horrific battle on the island of Tarawa in the Pacific in 1943 where he was wounded and lost most of his hearing.
7- Earnest Borgnine was a U.S. Navy Gunners Mate from 1935 through 1945.
8- Neville Brand was in the U.S. Army.
9- Art Carney was in the U.S. Army. He was in Normandy in 1944 and was part of a 30 caliber machine gun squad positioned around St. Lô. He was hit in the right leg by mortar shrapnel.
10- Johnny Carson enlisted in the Navy on June 8, 1943, as an apprentice seaman enrolled in the V-5 program, which trained Navy and Marine pilots. Commissioned as an Ensign late in the war. He was en route to the combat zone aboard a troopship when the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki brought the war to a close.
11- Julia Child served during World War II with the O.S.S. (Office of Strategic Services) in Ceylon and China.
12- Robert Clary survived as a prisoner in a Nazi concentration camp.
13- Charles Durning was a U.S. Army Ranger. He was at Normandy.
14- James Doohan ( before "Scotty" on Star Trek ) landed at Normandy with the U.S. Army on D-Day.
15- Clark Gable flew missions on a B-17 plane over Europe as a gunner.
16- Alec Guinness operated a British Royal Navy landing craft on D-Day.
17- Charlton Heston was a U. S. Army Air Corps Sergeant.
18- Brian Keith was a U. S. Marine rear gunner in several actions on Rabal in the Pacific.
19- Lee Marvin was a U. S. Marine on Saipan when he was wounded ...in the rear end.
20- Audie Murphy was the most decorated combat serviceman of World War II.
21- David Niven was a Lt. Colonel with the British Commandos at Normandy.
22- Donald Pleasance was an R.A.F. pilot who was shot down. He was a prisoner and was tortured by the Germans.
23- Tyrone Power joined the U.S. Marines and was a pilot flying supplies into Iwo Jima and Okinawa and then taking wounded Marines out of Iwo Jima and Okinawa.
24- John Russell was a U.S. Marine on Guadalcanal.
25- Robert Ryan was a U.S. Marine. He served with the O.S.S. (Office of Strategic Services) in Yugoslavia.
26- George C. Scott was a U.S. Marine.
27- James Stewart entered as a private. In his World War II years, Stewart flew 20 combat missions. Among them some tough ones like Bremen and Berlin. He got many decorations including the Distinguished Flying Cross with Oak Leaf Cluster and four Air Medals. He served as Air Force Reserve Commander of Dobbins Reserve Base in the early 1950s and after 27 years of service, Stewart retired from the Air Force on May 31, 1968.
I am sure there are many, many other brave and patriotic people who worked in Hollywood but are not listed here. Also, don't forget the U S O plus many directors and producers made patriotic and training films to keep up the public and military morale.
Yes, that was a great generation. The World War II generation!
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