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That’s a pretty neat show! I’ve always been a big fan of Dragnet and other vintage television shows, and from what I can determine, this particular show was actually started with Jack Webb, who turned it down to work on his own big upcoming project. According to the site, Highway Patrol:

“…So Guy approached Jack Webb who accepted the idea and was set to do a pilot. However, at about the same time Jack, who was passionate about jazz, got his pilot for Pete Kelly’s Blues picked up by the network so he reneged doing a show based on the CHP. In the end, Ziv productions who needed a couple more shows to fill out it’s 1955 season decided to do the pilot using Broderick Crawford as the lead….”

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Whatever the case may be, this is a great show, both entertainment-wise as well as having some fabulous shots of life in the mid-Fifties!  Take a look and watch!

I’ve arranged some links below to the Highway Patrol site as well as Hulu and a few others.  Enjoy!

Have a great day!

Links:

Wikipedia:  Broderick Crawford

Highway Patrol website

Sources:

(1)  Hulu–Highway Patrol Episodes

(2) Highway Patrol website

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I was doing some research early this morning and found the above copy of the Field Artillery Journal online.  Since I’m always fascinated by things from the World War II era, I decided to download the PDF and take a look.

It was great, especially when I found this article:

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Dunkirk!

It brings back images of Stukas and a vast retreating BEF against the onslaught of the German Blitzkrieg.  It was a bad time for the Allies, but good for the German Army in those early days of World War II.  Reading the article, we get a first hand view of what it was like—beyond the traditional storybooks and faded newsreels.  Here’s a quote:

I am totally unprepared for the sight that greets us as we reach Highway 65. It recalls the famous painting of Napoleon’s retreat from Russia: brand new trucks, tractors, guns of every caliber line the ditches and fields. Millions of dollars’ worth of British equipment, some of it scarcely used, lies in the mud, abandoned by troops that are already on their way to embarkation.

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One of the more interesting stories, however, is that of the author of the article I mentioned above:  Henri de la Falaise.  From every source I have found he has started to slip away into the mists of time.  It is a shame however, because he seemingly was a true war hero as well as being well known in pre-war Hollywood.  Awarded the Croix de Guerre for actions in the First World War as well as in the Second, he became known in Hollywood for his marriages to both Gloria Swanson as well as Constance Bennett as we see in the picture below:

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I’ve assembled a good list of links below—as many as I could find online.  There are links to both his history of service as well as to his accurate description of the action at Dunkirk.  Take a look and learn more about this hero before he slips away…..

Have a great day!

Links:

Wikipedia: Dunkirk

Dunkirk Museum

BBC—Dunkirk Links and Stories

Silent Movie Blog—Post on Charlie Chaplin and Henri de la Falaise

Internet Movie Database:  Henri de la Falaise

Wikipedia: Henri de la Falaise

Field Artillery Journal:  Henri’s Dunkirk Story

Sources:

(1-3) Field Artillery Journal, August 1942 (Conclusion of article)

(4) The Evening Independent, Sept. 3, 1927, pg. 5                 (Google News Archive)

Hi everyone!

Well another cold, wet fall day.  Kids are sick, so thought I would post up to the blog this am.  In particular, I wanted to talk about PEOPLE.  You know, the magazine? 

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While many historians might dismiss the value of the magazine, from a everyday historical perspective we can gain insight into our daily lives as well as the popular culture.  That is, what was popular through the shows, the ads and just general stories. 

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With this in mind, I wanted to profile the incredible resource that PEOPLE magazine has made available to everyone online.  Basically, they’ve digitized the whole magazine and even made it where you can download individual issues in PDF format.  Maybe it’s the librarian part of me, but this is huge!

Take a look, for example, at this:

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The archive is searchable via a variety of ways, ranging from covers, to topics to articles.  If you are any student of history or even just interested in how we used to view popular culture, this site is worth a shot!

Hit the link below for more details!

Have a great weekend!

PEOPLE Archive Link:  Here!

Sources: 

PEOPLE Archive

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Go Navy! (Even though I’m an Army guy, it’s still good to wish a happy birthday!)

In honor of this special day, I thought it would be a good thing to go back and talk for a while about the S-49 and S-50.  Part of the S-series class boats (submarines) developed during and just after the World War One era, they have a great but uneventful history of service with the Navy during these years.

S-49 and S-50 (also numbered SS-160 and SS-161) were both launched in 1921 and assumed duties with the fleet on various exercises and assignments.  With internal diesel engines and a sustained surface speed of 20+ knots these were an advantage to the older class of submarines used during the previous war.  Additional armament of 4” deck guns and a combat range of 2,000+ miles proved to be added benefits.

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By the late 1920’s, after suffering battery explosions during service with the fleet, both boats had been retrofitted and overhauled to stay current.  The bell was tolling however for these designs as newer and more technologically capable boats began to be built.  By 1927 both of the S-class submarines had been removed from service and were stricken from the rolls by the early Thirties.

Even though not having the claim to fame that many other ships and submarines did, these two vessels nevertheless helped the navy achieve its goals in the post World War I era.  One of these goals was the firming up of just what role the submarine was to play in future conflict.  From the technology side, these construction of these submarines benefited well from the examination of the best boats from Germany and Britain left over from World War One.

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From the historical perspective and the sources listed below, we can see the turmoil that the Navy was in during these years.  A depression, lack of funding and a unclear analysis of just what future wars with this technology would be like, can help us remember that the old days were not necessarily better than today.  Like us, they had no crystal ball.

What follows are some links to the individual boats as well as some great sites and information on submarines from this era.  It was a fascinating time from the perspective of military science as the lessons from the Great War began to be applied and the rise of air power and carriers could not be stopped.

Have a great day!

Links:

Naval History & Heritage Command

Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (S-49)

Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (S-50)

Naval Institute Proceedings, Vol. 48 Issues 7-12 (Discussion on ship designs, etc.)

U.S. Submarines Through 1945: An Illustrated Design History

S-Class Submarine Design (Wikipedia)

Conway’s All The World’s Fighting Ships, 1906-1921 (S-Class Sub)

Building American Submarines, 1914-1940

Through The Looking Glass, Photo Essay (S-Boats) (Nice Site!)

Navsource.org (Nice Site!)

Sources:

(1) NARA

(2) Popular Mechanics, Sept. 1922

(3) S-49 courtesy navsource.org (link to site here)

With that in mind, I noticed just the other day that Google Books now has LIFE magazine full-text available.  This is the cover, ads, everything!

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If you’ve never had a chance to visit the Google Books site much, then you are in for a treat!  There are a ton of viewing options, from single to double-page spreads and even snapshots of the whole magazine!

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Besides LIFE, I’ve also noticed a nice assortment of other titles showing up full-text on Google Books.  These include:

• Popular Science
• Popular Mechanics
• Billboard
• Kiplingers

and a host of others, including, dare I say it, The Weekly World News!

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Beyond just the magazine, however, you get tag clouds, maps of places mentioned and even a chance to view other issues from differing years.

The upshot here?  Say what you want, but Google Books is changing our perceptions of information and maybe even the thought of libraries as well?  I know I’ve written about this before to a large extent, but for history writers, this is a great advancement forward!

Take a look at some of the sources for more titles and neat stuff on Google Books!

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Have a great weekend!

Sources:

(1-4) Google Books.  Various Resources, including LIFE, Popular Mechanics, etc.