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Episode: 1355 Major General George Squire, Muzak, and struggling to be generous. Today, a story about altruism and Muzak.
In the spring of 1954, the blustering anticommunist crusader, Senator Joseph McCarthy, set his sights on a new target: the United States Army, alleging Communist infiltration of the Army Signal Corps lab at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey - the same lab where Julius Rosenberg had once worked. In turn, the Army accused McCarthy of using his position to pressure them into giving preferential treatment to his former aide, G. David Schine. The hearings, which were televised live on ABC and the DuMont network, and watched by an estimated 80 million people, unveiled to the nation the true cost of McCarthy's crusade. Narrated by Rebecca Naomi Jones and featuring Larry Tye, author of Demagogue: The Life and Long Shadow of Senator Joseph McCarthy. Image: Joseph McCarthy and Roy Cohn, Library of Congress. The Wreckage is made possible by funding from the Ford Foundation. Additional funding is provided through the American Jewish Education Program, generously supported by Sid and Ruth Lapidus.
In this episode of Veteran On the Move, Joe is joined by Army Veteran, entrepreneur, and CEO Chuck Leblo. Chuck served in the Army Signal Corps and transitioned to a position in the telecom industry at the end of his contract. Chuck started his job while on terminal leave and worked his way up in the telecom industry from technician to company leadership. A natural problem solver and entrepreneur; Chuck founded Interact One. He shares with Joe the various challenges he faced over his 17 years leading Interact One and the shifts he made to serve his customers in the always-changing business world. Episode Resources: Welcome to Interact One, your destination for solutions About Our Guest Chuck has served as the CEO and Chief Strategist at Interact One for over 17 years. His journey in business and as an entrepreneur began during his time in the US Army Signal Corps. After the army he eventually worked his way up the corporate ladder to Vice President at various Telecom companies, and then decided to take his experience and start his own company. Interact One has become a trusted source for expert insights and resources in the realm of strategy and problem solving. In a world where the business landscape can be challenging, Chuck and his team dive deep into the intricacies of each challenge, turning them from roadblocks into pathways. They specialize in enhancing digital presence, refining operational procedures, and delivering strategic insights that produce tangible, positive outcomes. Beyond his professional pursuits, Chuck is a devoted husband, a loving father (and grandfather), a veteran, and a horse lover. He is not your typical polished strategist; rather, he brings a unique blend of authenticity and expertise to the table. When faced with challenges, Chuck is not one to back down; he's a natural problem solver, always committed to finding effective solutions. Join the conversation on Facebook! Check out Veteran on the Move on Facebook to connect with our guests and other listeners. A place where you can network with other like-minded veterans who are transitioning to entrepreneurship and get updates on people, programs and resources to help you in YOUR transition to entrepreneurship. About Our Sponsors Navy Federal Credit Union Start off 2024 with a new Navy Federal credit card that has an APR 6% lower than the industry average. Service isn't just what Navy Federal Credit Union does – it's who they are. That's why Navy Federal created tools to help you earn and save more. Make your financial goals a reality with great rates and low fees. Learn more: www.navyfederal.org/offers At Navy Federal, our members are the mission. Gusto If you run a small business, you have to try Gusto for payroll and HR. Deposit paychecks and file payroll taxes automatically. Plus get employee health insurance, onboarding,and more. Try 3 months for free when you go to gusto.com/veteran. MD Hearing If you're getting tired of Having to say “What?” or “Huh?” over and over again. Or having to turn the TV up really loud. You need to check out MDHearing. MDHearing was founded by an ENT Surgeon who saw how many of his patients needed hearing aids but couldn't afford them. He made it his mission to develop a quality hearing aid that anyone could afford. So how do they make their hearing aids for a fraction of the cost of a clinic hearing aid? Since about 95% of the people who need a hearing aid only require a few settings, MDHearing simplified the need for certain components not needed by most people. Plus they cut out the price-hiking middleman! So if you want MDHearing's smallest hearing aid ever, go to MDHearing.com and use promo code VETERAN to get their NEW Buy 1/Get 1 $149.99 EACH offer when you buy a pair. Plus, they are adding a FREE Extra Charging Case, a $100 value, just for listeners of Veteran on the Move Podcast.
In this episode of From the Crows' Nest, host Ken Miller sits down with longtime friend and colleague retired Colonel Laurie Buckhout to discuss a range of current challenges and opportunities facing the EMSO community, including how the US Army has achieved greater focus on EW in recent years, what lessons Col. Buckhout has learned as the first to lead the US Army's EW Division more than a decade ago. They also discuss some opportunities on the horizon for EMSO, especially strengthening interoperability and compatibility with allies and partners around the world. Finally, Col. Buckhout shares some exciting news about the next step in her career. Laurie Buckhout is a retired US Army Colonel and decorated combat commander. She grew up on a farm in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley and attended James Madison University on an ROTC Scholarship. She was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the Army Signal Corps in 1984. She spent the next 26 years in assignments around the world, including commanding an 800-person battalion task force as part of the initial spearhead attack into Iraq in 2003. She was tasked to lead the new EW Division that the US Army stood up around 2010. After retirement, she went on to start a very successful consulting company, which she recently sold. Today, she works tirelessly to continue her strong support for warfighters. She holds a Bachelor of Science Degree from James Madison University, a Master's of Military Arts and Science in National Military Strategy, and a Master's of Science in Information Management from Webster University. To learn more about today's topics or to stay updated on EMSO and EW developments, visit our homepage.
Jean Shepherd was born on July 26th, 1921 on the South Side of Chicago to Jean and Anna Shepherd. He grew up in Hammond, Indiana, which according to Shep was a “tough and mean” industrial city. As an adolescent, Shepherd worked as a mail boy in a steel mill. He began his radio career at the age of sixteen, doing weekly sportscasts for WJOB in Hammond. That job led to juvenile roles on network radio in Chicago, including that of Billy Fairchild in the serial “Jack Armstrong, the All American Boy.” One of the programs that later came to symbolize Shepherd's childhood, thanks to his 1983 film A Christmas Story, was Red Ryder. During World War II, Shepherd served in the U.S. Army Signal Corps, installing radar equipment and furthering a lifelong dislike for authority figures. After the war, he studied acting in Chicago at the Goodman Theatre and briefly engineering and psychology at Indiana University. He left Indiana without a degree to take a radio gig in Cincinnati, which led him to a series of radio jobs, each better than the previous. After working at WTOD in Toledo, Ohio, Shepherd spent the early 1950s at WSAI and WLW in Cincinnati, and had a late-night broadcast on KYW in Philadelphia. He moved to New York for WOR and debuted on February 26th, 1955. WOR is a fifty-thousand watt clear-channel AM station and was the flagship affiliate of the Mutual Broadcasting System. Mutual Broadcasting had formed on September 28th, 1934 as a cooperative of stations WOR New York, WGN Chicago, WXYZ Detroit, and WLW Cincinnati. The members shared telephone-line transmission facilities and agreed to collectively enter into contracts with advertisers for their network shows. After a deal with Don Lee's chain of west coast networks, Mutual went coast-to-coast on December 29th, 1936. The other major networks, ABC, CBS, and NBC, were corporations. When World War II ended, domestic manufacturing restrictions were lifted. TV became a focal point as the other networks pumped their radio profits into the new medium. Mutual's cooperative status meant it never had the resources to move into TV, although affiliates like WOR did run a local TV station in New York. Mutual remained a cooperative until 1952 when General Tire became the parent company. By 1955 radio was changing. Drama, which had dominated the dial for more than two decades, was on its way out due to both its and TV production costs. More and more network programming was being turned over to local affiliates. These local affiliates employed a new generation of hosts that had grown up with Jack Benny, Fred Allen, and other observant humorists. Shepherd's peers were Johnny Carson, Jack Paar, Rod Serling, and Steve Allen. Shepherd was working an overnight slot for WOR in 1956. Facing a lack of sponsorship, he was about to be fired when he did an unauthorized commercial for Sweetheart Soap who didn't sponsor his program. WOR immediately canned him. But, listeners complained in droves and Sweetheart actually offered to sponsor him. WOR immediately brought him back. The overnight slot allowed him to riff with little need for the kind of corporate oversight that faced daytime and primetime hosts. That year, during a discussion on how easy it was to manipulate the best-seller lists, Shepherd suggested that his listeners visit bookstores and ask for a copy of a fictional novel called I, Libertine by a Frederick R. Ewing. Fans of the show planted references so widely that there were claims it made The New York Times Best Seller list. It led to an actual book deal with Ballantine. Theodore Sturgeon wrote most of it with Shepherd's outline guiding him. Betty Ballantine finished the novel when Sturgeon fell asleep during a marathon writing session to meet the deadline. Famed illustrator Frank Kelly Freas did the cover art. The book was published on September 13th, 1956 with all proceeds going to charity.
Although Fred Allen's death left an unfillable hole in mid-century comedy, it's not as though there weren't other humorists battling with networks and sponsors. Just ask Jean Shepherd. Jean Shepherd was born on July 26th, 1921 in Hammond, Indiana. He served in the Army Signal Corps in World War II, and briefly attended Indiana University. Shepherd began his broadcast radio career in early 1945 on WJOB, later working at WTOD in Toledo, Ohio, in 1946. He spent the early 1950s at WSAI and WLW in Cincinnati, and had a late-night broadcast on KYW in Philadelphia. He moved to New York for WOR and debuted on February 26th, 1955. The Jean Shepherd Show broadcast for almost twenty-one years to an audience all along the eastern seaboard, thanks to WOR's fifty-thousand watt clear channel signal. This is audio from his March 17th, 1967 broadcast.
Tony Randall was born Aryeh Leonard Rosenberg on February 16th, 1920 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He attended Northwestern University for a year before going to New York City to study under Sanford Meisner and choreographer Martha Graham. Randall worked as an announcer at WTAG in Worcester, Massachusetts. As Anthony Randall, he starred with Jane Cowl in George Bernard Shaw's Candida and with Ethel Barrymore in Emlyn Williams's The Corn Is Green. After serving with the U.S. Army Signal Corps in World War II, he came back to New York City. In 1946, Randall was cast in Katharine Cornell's revival of The Barretts of Wimpole Street. The following year in Antony and Cleopatra and in 1949 he appeared in Caesar and Cleopatra. Simultaneously, Randall found work in radio. Randall was twenty-nine and in New York when I Love a Mystery was revived. He originally auditioned for the part of Doc, but Carlton Morse felt he was better suited for Reggie York. As much as Randall loved I Love A Mystery, he wasn't a huge fan of many of the soap operas he appeared on.
In June 1917, General John Pershing arrived in France to establish American forces in Europe. He immediately found himself unable to communicate with troops in the field. Pershing needed operators who could swiftly and accurately connect multiple calls, speak fluent French and English, remain steady under fire, and be utterly discreet, since the calls often conveyed classified information. At the time, nearly all well-trained American telephone operators were women—but women were not permitted to enlist, or even to vote in most states. Nevertheless, the U.S. Army Signal Corps promptly began recruiting them. More than 7,600 women responded, to aid the war effort by being Over There and near the front lines. This historical fiction is written by Jennifer Chiaverini, a New York Times best-selling author. She talks to host Jim Fausone about these heroic women of the WWI U.S. Army Signal Corps, their trials, successes, and discrimination.
In this episode we hear from Phil Chamberlain who talks about his time as a morse code operator and Army clerk and his relationship across the Berlin Wall. Beyond Radio along with Morecambe FC Community Sports and The First Light Trust present The Veteran's Story Podcast.
In this episode we hear from Stuart Glover who speaks of his short time in the army, being classed as a veteran and work with veterans through Morecambe FC Community Sports. Beyond Radio along with Morecambe FC Community Sports and The First Light Trust present The Veteran's Story Podcast.
We talk with the author of a new novel about the women of the U.S. Army Signal Corps during WWI. The so-called “Hello Girls” broke down gender barriers in the military and helped lead the Allies to victory.
In this episode, US Army - Signal Corps Veteran Neil Hill (My Squad Leader in Basic Training) shares the methods he uses to remain calm in stressful situations and when dealing with difficult people. Neil also gives us a glimpse of what it was like to deal with racism while working his first job after completing his military service.
In January 1953, Joseph McCarthy began his second term as U.S. Senator from Wisconsin as the Republican Party regained control of the Senate. McCarthy was made chairman of the Committee on Government Operations. This included a permanent subcommittee that allowed McCarthy to continue Communist investigations within the government. He appointed Roy Cohn as chief counsel and Bobby Kennedy as assistant. McCarthy's committee investigated the U.S. Army. They believed the Army Signal Corps at Fort Monmouth had been infiltrated. At the time, the investigation was largely fruitless. Then the Army accused McCarthy of seeking special treatment for Private G. David Schine, a chief consultant and close friend of Cohn's. Schine had been drafted the previous year. The Senate decided that these conflicting charges should be investigated. South Dakota Republican Senator Karl Mundt chaired the subcommittee. John G. Adams was the Army's Counsel. Joseph Welch, Special Counsel. The hearings were telecast nationally on both ABC and the DuMont network. Eighty million people saw these hearings that lasted thirty-six days. They began on April 22nd. CBS Radio was there. Early in the hearings, a photo of Private Schine was produced, with Joseph Welch accusing Roy Cohn of doctoring the image to show Schine alone with Army Secretary Robert T. Stevens. Cohn and Schine both insisted the picture was unedited. Welch then produced a wider shot of Stevens and Schine with Colonel Jack Bradley and McCarthy aide Frank Carr. This lie hurt McCarthy's side. McCarthy was quickly losing steam and allies. His policies were turning up little evidence. His “list of two-hundred known Communists” never materialized and this turn of attention to the Army was a political gamble. It wouldn't work and later would cost McCarthy his position in the Senate.
As early as 1946, the idea of cameras in orbit high above the Earth to observe the weather was being developed. One advantage this would bring was in regions that had sparse data observation coverage. But the expense of using cameras on rockets was very high and the rockets unreliable. By 1958, the early prototypes for TIROS and Vanguard, developed by the Army Signal Corps, were created. The first weather strictly satellite, Vanguard 2, was launched on February 17, 1959. It was designed to measure cloud cover and resistance, but a poor axis of rotation and its elliptical orbit kept it from collecting much of any useful data. The first weather satellite to be considered a success launched by any nation in the world, was TIROS-1, or Television Infrared Observation Satellite, launched by NASA on April 1, 1960. TIROS operated for 78 days and proved to be much more successful than Vanguard 2. TIROS paved the way for the Nimbus program, whose technology and findings are the heritage of most of the Earth-observing satellites NASA and NOAA have launched since then. Beginning with the Nimbus 3 satellite in 1969, temperature information through the entire atmosphere began to be retrieved by satellites from the eastern Atlantic and most of the Pacific Ocean, which led to significant improvements in weather forecasting. Weather satellites collect data for climate, and environmental monitoring applications including precipitation, sea surface temperatures, atmospheric temperature and humidity, sea ice extent, forest fires, volcanic eruptions, global vegetation analysis, hurricane information and cloud cover. The United States was the only country the have a weather satellite in space until June 25, 1966 when the Soviet Union launched it's first. As of 2020 there are more than a dozen weather satellites in orbit around the Earth, operated by several different counties who all share the weather information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Historically Speaking-Uncommon History with an Unconventional Pair
Since its very inception, America has always had to be on the lookout for spies not just from foreign adversaries, but also from its own citizens. Alger Hiss, along with Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, all American citizens, were former members of the Communist Party (a party that still exists in America today.) They were all accused of passing American secrets to the U.S.S.R. in the 1940’s and were brought to trial in the early 1950’s. In this episode, we take a deep dive into what those three were accused of, what they were found guilty of, and what their ultimate sentence was. Episode Edits:While most federal crimes have a five-year statute of limitations, acts of espionage generally carry a 10-year statute of limitations.Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were married in 1939, the same year Julius graduated from City College of New York.Julius Rosenberg was fired from the Army Signal Corps in 1945 because they found out he was a Communist. Episode Resources: Alger Hiss (1904-1996) Witness by Whittaker ChambersSecrecy: The American Experience by Daniel Patrick MoynihanAlger Hiss: Why He Chose Treason by Christina SheltonInterview with Christina Shelton – video by Simon & Schuster Books (She spent twenty-two years working as a Soviet analyst and a Counterintelligence Branch Chief at the Defense Intelligence Agency.)Hiss and Chambers Face to Face in 1948 – actual video footageAlger Hiss Interview 1970 – video by British Pathé Episode Resources: Julius Rosenberg (1918-1953) and Ethel Rosenberg (1915-1953)The Rosenberg Trial by Jake Kobrick (Research Historian, Federal Judicial History Office, Federal Judicial Center) This is the motherload of reference material.Final Verdict by Walter and Miriam Schneir the rebuttal to their own 1965 book.Invitation to an Inquest by Walter and Miriam SchneirHeir to an Execution: A Granddaughter’s Story – Film DocumentaryExcerpt from David Greenglass obituary in NY Times by Robert D. McFadden Rebuttal to Greenglass obituary in the NY Times
June 25, 1966: As early as 1946, the idea of cameras in orbit high above the Earth to observe the weather was being developed. One advantage this would bring was due to sparse data observation coverage and the expense of using cloud cameras on rockets. By 1958, the early prototypes for TIROS and Vanguard, developed by the Army Signal Corps, were created. The first weather strictly satellite, Vanguard 2, was launched on February 17, 1959. It was designed to measure cloud cover and resistance, but a poor axis of rotation and its elliptical orbit kept it from collecting much of any useful data. The first weather satellite to be considered a success launched by any nation in the world, was TIROS-1, or Television Infrared Observation Satellite, launched by NASA on April 1, 1960. TIROS operated for 78 days and proved to be much more successful than Vanguard 2. TIROS paved the way for the Nimbus program, whose technology and findings are the heritage of most of the Earth-observing satellites NASA and NOAA have launched since then. Beginning with the Nimbus 3 satellite in 1969, temperature information through the entire atmosphere began to be retrieved by satellites from the eastern Atlantic and most of the Pacific Ocean, which led to significant improvements in weather forecasting. Weather satellites collect data for climate, and environmental monitoring applications including precipitation, sea surface temperatures, atmospheric temperature and humidity, sea ice extent, forest fires, volcanic eruptions, global vegetation analysis, hurricane information and cloud cover. The United States was the only country the have a weather satellite in space until June 25, 1966 when the Soviet Union launched its first. As of 2020 there are more than a dozen weather satellites in orbit around the Earth, operated by several different counties who all share the weather information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
August 23, 2019 - Dr. Elizabeth Cobbs The Hello Girls is the untold story of how America’s first female Soldiers helped win World War I, earned the vote, and fought the U.S. Army for recognition. In 1918, the U.S. Army Signal Corps sent 223 women to France. They were masters of the latest technology: the telephone switchboard. General John Pershing, commander of the American Expeditionary Forces, demanded female “wire experts,” when he discovered that inexperienced doughboys were unable to keep him connected with troops under fire. Without communications for even an hour, the Army would collapse. While suffragettes picketed the White House and President Woodrow Wilson struggled to persuade a segregationist Congress to give women of all races the vote, these competent and courageous young women swore the Army’s oath. For video of the USHAEC's podcasts, or to learn more about the USAHEC, find education support for teachers, researchers, and soldiers, or to find more programs at the USAHEC, please visit our website at www.usahec.org.
It’s been almost 75 years since the end of World War II. With Veterans Day around the corner on Monday, November 11, we uncover some of the photographs taken from 1945, the final year of the conflict. These images show the sheer destruction caused by a war that lasted six years and cost millions and millions of lives. What was it like to be a U.S. Army Signal Corps photographer? What did they see? How do you move on after war?
Dickinson College...students marched on the War College but instead of violence we had discussion. In a time when the nation sees increasing political divides and claims that the civil-military gap is ever widening, one program reaches out to try and reverse the trend. Colonels Ed Kaplan and Mike Baim join WAR ROOM Editor-in-Chief Jacqueline E. Whitt, to highlight the contributions of the U.S. Army War College's Eisenhower Series College Program. Ed and Mike explain how each academic year a joint cohort of military officers reach out to colleges and town halls across the nation to introduce War College students to audiences that some might expect to be hostile towards the military. Their goal is to have reasoned and thoughtful discussions with the society they serve and protect. And for the last 50 years the Eisenhower Program has succeeded in closing that gap in communities that have little or no tie to the military. COL Mike Baim is a graduate of the U.S. Army War College AY19 Resident Class. Colonel Ed Kaplan is the Director of Aerospace Studies at the U.S. Army War College. Jacqueline E. Whitt is Professor of Strategy at the U.S. Army War College and the Editor-in-Chief of WAR ROOM. The views expressed in this presentation are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Army War College, U.S. Army, or Department of Defense. Check out this video of a typical engagement for the Eisenhower Series College Program. Photo: On the eve of the operation, Dwight D. Eisenhower visited Greenham Common, an English airfield in Newbury, where he addressed the blackened face of 1st Lieutenant Wallace C. Strobel, Company E, 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, and other airborne troopers. Photo Credit: U.S. Army Signal Corps
FOCUS ON: The Non-Combatants of WWI Episode #139 Host - Theo Mayer Unprecedented logistics - Joe Johnson | @ 05:00 The US Army Signal Corps - Host | @ 09:15 The Hello Girls - Dr. Elizabeth Cobb | @ 11:30 Medical Support Services & the AFS - Nicole Milano | @ 15:50 The US Postal Service in WWI - Lynn Heidelbaugh | @ 22:15 The Stars & Stripes - Robert Rheid | @ 25:40 The Doughboy’s Sweetheart: Elsie Janis - Dr. Edward Lengel | @ 28:15 Bringing Soldiers to God and God to Soldiers - Dr. John Boyd | @ 32:05 Donuts and Coffee - Patri O’Gan | @ 34:25 ----more---- FOCUS ON: The Non-Combatants of WWI Sources Terrett, Dulany, “The Signal Corps: The Emergency (to 1941),” The Army Signal Corps, https://history.army.mil/html/books/010/10-16/CMH_Pub_10-16-1.pdf DARPA https://www.darpa.mil/about-us/about-darpa Gray, Andrew, “The American Field Service,” American Heritage, December 1974, https://www.americanheritage.com/american-field-service “World War I Rations: Full Belly, Fully Ready,” Army Heritage Educational Center, https://www.armyheritage.org/75-information/soldier-stories/359-worldwar1rations World War I Centennial Commission Podcast, Episode 27 https://www.worldwar1centennial.org/index.php/communicate/2015-12-28-18-26-00/weekly-sync-call/2747-ww1-centennial-news-episode-27-7-05-2017.html World War I Centennial Commission Podcast, Episode 62 https://www.worldwar1centennial.org/index.php/communicate/2015-12-28-18-26-00/weekly-sync-call/4179-ww1-centennial-news-episode-62-03-09-2018.html World War I Centennial Commission Podcast, Episode 82 https://www.worldwar1centennial.org/index.php/communicate/2015-12-28-18-26-00/weekly-sync-call/4838-ww1-centennial-news-episode-82-7-27-2018.html World War I Centennial Commission Podcast, Episode 34 https://www.worldwar1centennial.org/index.php/communicate/2015-12-28-18-26-00/weekly-sync-call/3043-ww1-centennial-news-episode-34-8-23-2017.html World War I Centennial Commission Podcast, Episode 68 https://www.worldwar1centennial.org/index.php/communicate/2015-12-28-18-26-00/weekly-sync-call/4369-ww1-centennial-news-episode-68-04-20-2018.html World War I Centennial Commission Podcast, Episode 69 https://www.worldwar1centennial.org/index.php/communicate/2015-12-28-18-26-00/weekly-sync-call/4385-ww1-centennial-news-episode-69-04-27-2018.html World War I Centennial Commission Podcast, Episode 54 https://www.worldwar1centennial.org/index.php/communicate/2015-12-28-18-26-00/weekly-sync-call/3949-ww1-centennial-news-episode-54-01-12-2018.html World War I Centennial Commission Podcast, Episode 115 https://www.worldwar1centennial.org/index.php/communicate/2015-12-28-18-26-00/weekly-sync-call/6077-ww1-centennial-news-episode-115-03-22-19.html Senate Hello Girl Bill https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/senate-bill/206/all-info House Hello Girl Bill https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/1953 Sponsors: The U.S. World War One Centennial Commission The Doughboy Foundation Production: Executive Producer: Dan Dayton Producer & Host: Theo Mayer Line Producer: Juliette Cowall Written by: Theo Mayer and David Kramer Editing: Mac Nelsen Tim Crowe Website support: JL Michaud Special guests: Joe Johnson of the Defense Acquisition University Professor Elizabeth Cobbs Nicole Milano from the American Field Services Lynn Heidelbaugh from the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum Robert Rheid from Stars & Stripes Historian Dr. Edward Lengel The US Army Chaplains Corps Dr. John Boyd Patri O’Gan from the Smithsonian Institution
Over the course of his seventy plus year career, Ed Asner has simultaneously established himself as one of the most legendary actors alive while championing social and charitable causes. Ed was born in Kansas City, Missouri, attended the University of Chicago, and served in the U.S. Army Signal Corps, appearing in plays put on for the troops as they toured around Europe. After the war, Asner joined the Playwrights Theatre Company in Chicago, but left for New York City before members of that company regrouped as the Compass Players in the mid-1950s, a company that included Mike Nichols, Elaine May and Del Close and eventually developed into The Second City. Asner came back to guest star frequently on Second City’s stage, but also developed his acting career by appearing in plays and later unforgettable characters in influential television shows that include The Untouchables, playing Lou Grant in both the long running Mary Tyler Moore show and Lou Grant, as slave-ship captain Thomas Davies in Roots, Santa Clause in Elf, Carl Fredrickson in the animated film Up and most recently he can be seen in Netflix new series Dead to Me. Among Asner’s numerous awards and nominations were five Golden Globe Awards, Seven Emmys and a SAG Life Achievement Award. His legacy of service includes two terms as president of the Screen Actors Guild, and The Ed Asner Family Center whose mission is to promote self-confidence in differently abled individuals and bring balance and wellness to those individuals and their families.
Women of the Army Signal Corps at First Army Headquarters Image credit: National Archives [/audio] “Every order for an infantry advance, a barrage preparatory to the taking of a new objective and, in fact, for every troop movement, came of these ‘fighting lines,’ as we called them. These wires connected to the front, up with … Continue reading “I was awakened … by the low roar of guns.” (Hello Girls: Mini Episode) →
April 17, 1897, at approximately 6:00AM residents, were startled from their beds by an "airship" crashing into Judge Proctor's windmill. From the crash, townspeople pulled the reamins of a small creature. The "creature" was discribed by an Army Signal Corps officer as, "not from this world." The townspeople felt compelled to bury the pilot in the local cemetery with, "Christian Rights." During the 1970s interest in the crash was renewed and the surviving townspeople, of that fateful day, gave eyewitness tesimony. The local cemetery contains the only known state Historical Marker of an actual "spaceman" having been buried there.UFOlogist Jim Marrs spent decades researching the event and was able to conduct the interviews during the height of the 1970s renewed interest. Since his passing, a young man has picked up where Jim left off. Daniel Alan Jones worked side-by-side with Mr. Marrs to discover the truth of the Aurora UFO Encounter.On this episode, Daniel joins us to discuss what Jim's work had meant to him and to shed some light on his own research into Aurora and his work in the field of Cryptozoology.
Highlights May 1918 Preview Roundtable - Ed Lengel, Katherine Akey, Theo Mayer | 02:50 General Rumblings - Mike Shuster | 18:00 War In The Sky - Eddie Rickenbacker | 21:45 Documentary: “Blackjack Pershing: Love and War” - Prof. Barney McCoy | 25:55 The big influenza pandemic - Kenneth C. Davis | 32:15 WW1 War Tech - Fed billions, killed millions: The tragic story of Fritz Haber | 39:25 100 Cities / 100 Memorials from Brownwood, Texas - Dr. Steve Kelly | 44:15 Speaking WW1: Binge | 50:00 Articles and Posts: Highlights from the Weekly Dispatch | 51:50 The Commemoration in Social Media - Katherine Akey | 54:15----more---- Opening Welcome to World War 1 centennial News - episode #70 - It’s about WW1 THEN - what was happening 100 years ago this week - and it’s about WW1 NOW - news and updates about the centennial and the commemoration. This week: Dr. Edward Lengel, Katherine Akey and I sit down for our May 1918 preview roundtable Mike Schuster, from the great war project blog with a story of conflict within the Allied forces. Author Kenneth C. Davis shares the story of influenza in 1918 Professor Barney McCoy gives us insight into the upcoming documentary, Blackjack Pershing: Love and War Dr. Steve Kelly with the 100 Cities / 100 Memorial project from Brownwood, Texas. Katherine Akey with the commemoration of world war one in social media And lots more... on WW1 Centennial News -- a weekly podcast brought to you by the U.S. World War I Centennial Commission, the Pritzker Military Museum and Library and the Starr foundation. I’m Theo Mayer - the Chief Technologist for the Commission and your host. Welcome to the show. [MUSIC] Preface Before we get going today, I wanted to tell you about some great new features for the WW1 Centennial News Podcast. First of all, you can now listen to the latest episodes of WW1 Centennial News on YouTube - if you happen to prefer listening that way! And something I think is really exciting and useful when you go to our podcast web site at ww1cc.org/CN (Charlie Nancy). When you click the “read more” of the episode, just below the highlights you will find the full and accurate transcript of the show - interactively linked to an audio player. With it, you can scan OR search --- the text of the transcript and wherever you double click - the audio will play. Or if you are listening and want to copy and paste a segment of the transcript for you newsletter, school report or blog, just pause and scan down the scranscript, The section you were hearing is highlighted in blue. This very cool, new interactive transcript technology has been provided by a great little startup called Jotengine… and we have added it to make our podcast even more useful for students, teachers and everyone who wants to share the story of the war the changed the world. World War One THEN 100 Year Ago This Week Roundtable with Katherine, Theo and Ed [SOUND EFFECT] Alright... The first week of every month, we invite you to our preview roundtable where Dr. Ed lengel, Katherine Akey and I had talk about the coming month and the key events that happened 100 years ago. The question on the table as we sat down was, “ what WERE the big stories and themes in May 1918… What follows is our conversation. [roundtable - see transcript for details] [SOUND EFFECT] Great War Project So that is an overview for the coming month - but now let’s join Mike Shuster - Former NPR corresponded and curator for the Great War Project blog as he explored another key battle that plays out on the Western Front… The battle between the Allied Generals and American General John J. Pershing. They did not see eye-to-eye at all… and Black-Jack Pershing was not going to waver from his belief about how the US army needed to engage. It sound like it was more than just a little contentious Mike! [MIKE POST] Mike Shuster from the Great War Project blog. The links to Mike Shuster’s Great War Project blog and the post -- are in the podcast notes. LINK: http://greatwarproject.org/2018/04/29/the-allies-quarrel/ [SOUND EFFECT] War in the Sky America's Top-Scoring Ace Scores his First Victory It is a changing of the guard, for the War in the Skies over Europe 100 years ago this April and May. In April 1918, Germany’s Manfred von Richthofen falls, and in May America’s Raoul Lufbery. One of the new names that rises among these ashes is that of a Columbus Ohio native every bit as much of a flamboyant character as the early fliers. Before joining the service, he was a famed race car driver who set a land speed record at Daytona of 134 miles per hour - a tough guy, technically too old to be accepted into flight school, and a guy who claimed he was afraid of heights - His name was Eddie Rickenbacker… Born the oldest son of 5 siblings 1890 -- young Eddie had to step up to become the major family breadwinner, quitting school at only 12 years old, when his father died in a construction accident. A tough beginning for what would turn out to be quite a guy! Having developed a passion for the new technology of the internal combustion engine - by 16 he had landed a job with a race car driver named Lee Frayer, who liked the scrawny, scrappy kid - and let him ride in major races as his mechanic. By 1912 - the young 22 year old was driving his own races and winning! and crashing! and surviving! When war broke out in 1917, Rickenbaker volunteered - but at 27 years old -- was already too old to get accepted to flight school - something the speed demon really wanted to do! Because he had a reputatioh as a race car driver - he was enlisted as a sergeant and sailed for Europe as a driver. There is a lot of lore that he drove John J. Pershing, but that is generally disputed. However, he DID get an assignment to drive Billy Mitchel's flashy twin -six -cylinder packard and talked himself into flight school through the boss! His WWI flying exploits are legendary and the kid from Ohio came home a national hero But that was just the beginning of a colorful life for a scrappy and scrawny kid, turned Ace of Aces, airline President, famed raft suvivor of a plane ditching in the Pacific, potential presidential candidate - who lived large in living color..,, and finally died in 1973 at the age 83 having launched his career as a WWI fighter pilot in the war in sky one hundred years ago this week. Link:http://www.firstworldwar.com/bio/rickenbacker.htm http://www.historynet.com/captain-eddie-rickenbacker-americas-world-war-i-ace-of-aces.htm http://acepilots.com/wwi/us_rickenbacker.html The Great War Channel For videos about WWI 100 years ago this week, and from a more european perspective --- check out our friends at the Great War Channel on Youtube. New episodes this week include: The first tank-on-tank battle in history -- Tank crew training and more German tank prototypes Plus…. The Finnish Jägers in World War 1 See their videos by searching for “the great war” on youtube or following the link in the podcast notes! Link:https://www.youtube.com/user/TheGreatWar World War One NOW Alright - It is time to fast forward into the present with WW1 Centennial News NOW - [MUSIC TRANSITION] This part of the podcast isn’t the past --- It focuses on NOW and how we are commemorating the centennial of WWI! [SOUND EFFECT] Commission News Belleau Wood Tree -- Missing but will return This week in Commission News -- We heard, with great distress that the lovely Oak sapling from Belleau Wood, that had been planted by President’s Macron and Trump on the white house lawn last week - had mysteriously GONE MISSING~!! One day it was there - the next - it wasn’t! Much to our relief, the mystery was resolved quickly. It turns out that the tree - which has made it’s journey from Europe with Macron had to be put into temporary quarantine - a typical procedure for living agricultural goods imported from overseas. It’ll be put back to its original spot as soon as it get out of detention! We put a link to the story in the podcast notes! Link: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/mystery-solved-why-trump-macron-friendship-tree-vanished/ar-AAwxbt3?OCID=ansmsnnews11 Spotlight on the Media Blackjack Pershing: Love and War We have a spotlight on the media for you! The spotlight is on US General of the Armies, the American Expeditionary Forces commander General John J. Pershing. [RUN AUDIO CLIP FROM TRAILER] That clip is from a new documentary “Black Jack Pershing: Love and War” - and today -- we’re joined by the film’s producer - Barney McCoy professor of journalism at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Welcome, Barney! [welcome/greetings] [Barney-- I understand your film looks is not just about Pershing the General but also Pershing the man, who also suffered and endured great personal tragedy and heartbreak in his life. Can you give us an overview of the story in the film?] [Now, you made this documentary by incorporating hundreds of U.S. Army Signal Corps photographs and films from the National Archives -- what was the research process like? And did you come across anything surprising as you were poking around the archives?] [How did you get involved in this film? How did it happen?] [A very important question… When and where can people see the film?] [thank you/goodbyes] Barney McCoy is professor of journalism at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the producer of “Black Jack Pershing: Love and War”. We’ve included links to the film’s trailer, website and upcoming screenings in the podcast notes! Links:https://www.archives.gov/calendar/event/black-jack-pershing-love-and-war https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ru3DzGSwdeE https://jjpershing.com/ Remembering Veterans The Influenza of 1918 This week For Remembering Veterans -- we’re turning our attention away from the battlefield and looking at a phenomenon that took more lives than the bullets or shells. With us to explore the story of the Flu pandemic 100 years ago, is Kenneth C. Davis, bestselling author of the “Don’t Know Much About” book series. In fact, during our editorial meeting, when we were discussing the interview our intern, John enthused that these books were on his shelf as he was growing up… Well, Kenneth’s new book is coming out on May 15th and it is called: More Deadly Than War: The Hidden History of the Spanish Flu and the First World War .. a fascinating subject by a wonderful writer! Kenneth! Welcome to the Podcast. [greetings] [Ken- Let’s start with the name of this flu pandemic - Patient Zero was not from Spain were they?] [How big and bad was it? I have heard a lot of varying numbers but whatever they are, the scale staggers the imagination!] [We have a global war - we have a global pandemic - how do the dots connect? ] [Ken - what made this particular flu so especially deadly?] [Well, a quick follow up on that - and Katherine our line producer asked about this - with so many advanced in medicine in this particular moment in history - why did medicine not get ahead of this one?] [Do you think this deadly global event still echoes today? ] [Thank you so much for coming in and speaking with us today!] [goodbyes/thanks] Kenneth C. Davis is the bestselling author of the Don’t Know Much About Book series. Don’t miss his upcoming - More Deadly Than War: The Hidden History of the Spanish Flu and the First World War available at your favorite bookseller May 15th! We have put links to his work and upcoming events in the podcast notes. Links: www.dontknowmuch.com http://dontknowmuch.com/books/more-deadly-than-war/ http://www.pritzkermilitary.org/whats_on/pritzker-military-presents/kenneth-davis-more-deadly-war/ https://www.amazon.com/More-Deadly-Than-War-History/dp/1250145120/ref=sr_1_6 WW1 War Tech Fritz Haber For WW1 War Tech -- we are going to tell you the amazing and tragic story of a WW1 era technologist, the German chemist Fritz Haber! Fritz Haber is one of the most underappreciated actors of World War I whose discoveries spanned from the life giving to the life taking. He was celebrated with Nobel Prize for developing chemical fertilizers -- and equally vilified for another invention, chlorine gas. Tragically one of his most vocal critics was his wife, Clara, who was not only an ardent pacifist but an accomplished chemist herself. The invention of what is known as the “Haber Process” was the result of wartime necessities. Even before World War I, German military strategists recognized the potential of a total British naval blockade on their country, which would do tremendous damage to their ability to import the materials required to manufacture weapons. One particularly vulnerable commodity were the nitrates imported from South America, used in the development of ammonia for explosives. Haber discovered a new method of creating ammonia by combining nitrogen and hydrogen gases. Since ammonia is also used as a fertilizer, the Haber Process allowed for the mass production of agricultural fertilizers, transforming agriculture both inside and outside Germany. Much of the reason behind why the world is able to support a population of more than seven billion is the use of these fertilizers, which all have their roots in the Haber Process. And for his method of creating artificial ammonia, Haber was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1918. But as we said, another of Haber’s invention would come to overshadow this incredible discovery. When World War I finally broke out in 1914, the quick victory expected by many military generals soon became a slow, bloody struggle to shift the frontlines only a few miles either way. The German High Command quickly realized they needed a new, fearsome weapon to break the stalemate. It was the strongly patriotic Haber who came up with the solution: by combining the ammonia he extracted from the air with chlorine, he could produce a gas that would asphyxiate all who encountered it-- Haber was on hand personally when his Chlorine Gas was first released by the German military at the Second Battle of Ypres. Over 5,000 men, not recognizing this new weapon’s true danger, were quickly overcome, and were found by their fellow soldiers with their faces turned black and shirts torn open in a desperate search for air. Germany’s use of poison gas at Ypres would set a precedent for an unprecedented tactic, one that would scar many men for a lifetime after the war ended. People around the world were horrified by Harber’s new, deadly invention, but among the most repelled was Haber’s own wife, Clara. At a party celebrating his promotion to Captain as a result of his work in poison gas nine days after the test at Ypres, Clara directly confronted her husband, calling him morally bankrupt and his efforts monstrous. Haber ignored her. Later that night, no longer able to stand her marriage, Clara shot herself in the garden with her husband’s pistol. Haber left the next day to supervise another gas attack on the Western Front, leaving his young son to grieve alone. After the war ended in Germany’s defeat, a brokenhearted Haber would try to single handedly pay back the burdensome war reparations by inventing a process to distill dissolved gold floating in the ocean, an ultimately unsuccessful endeavour. There is a final, tragic and ironic twist on Haber’s legacy… during WWII - When the Nazi regime was looking for ways to best murder their many classes of undesirables, they came upon one of Haber’s products, a pesticide called Zyklon. The Nazi authorities used this chemical to gas millions of innocent victims in the Holocaust, including the Jewish German Haber’s own friends and family. Fritz Haber, a brilliant man whose fertilizer invention have fed billions, who’s weaponized inventions killed million, whose wife shot herself in protest and whose family and friends were finally gassed in concentration camps with his own invention… an epic, tragic and another amazing story of the war that changed the world and this week’s WWI War Tech. We have links for you in the podcast notes. Links:https://www.popularmechanics.com/military/research/g1577/7-surprising-scientific-advances-that-came-out-of-world-war-i/ http://www.chm.bris.ac.uk/~paulmay/haber/haber.htm https://www.sciencehistory.org/historical-profile/fritz-haber https://www.britannica.com/topic/Gymnasium-German-school https://www.britannica.com/biography/Fritz-Haber https://medium.com/the-mission/the-tragedy-of-fritz-haber-the-monster-who-fed-the-world-ec19a9834f74 https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/immerwahr-clara 100 Cities 100 Memorials Brownwood Texas This week for our 100 Cities / 100 Memorials segment --- the $200,000 matching grant challenge to rescue and focus on our local WWI memorials --- We are updating one of the very first projects we profiled on the podcast - From even before the first round of submissions were closed. Joining us again for an update on the 100 Cities / 100 Memorials project from Brownwood Texas is Dr. Steve Kelly, the immediate past president of the Central Texas Veterans Memorial - Steve welcome back to the show. [Greetings and Welcome] [Steve - The last time we spoke your project was just a candidate, but it has since been designated an official WW1 Centennial Memorial - Congratulations…] [For your project you moved your WWI memorial from behind a bush at an old, closed high school to a new memorial site at your local American Legion post 196… Can you tell us a bit more about that?] [As I recall from the last time we spoke, you have both a commemoration and an educational component to you project - how did you do that?] [Steve - What stage is the whole project at now and do you have rededication plans?] [Thank you for coming on and giving us an update on your project from Brown County Texas!] [Thanks/goodbye] Dr. Steve Kelly is the immediate past president of the Central Texas Veterans Memorial in Brownwood, Texas. Learn more about the 100 Cities/100 Memorials program by following the links in the podcast notes or by going to ww1cc.org/100Memorials Link: www.ww1cc.org/100cities Speaking WW1 Binge Welcome to our weekly feature “Speaking World War 1” -- Where we explore the words & phrases that are rooted in the war --- Let’s start by thinking… Obsessive, Compulsive Consumption…. I heard a great analysis of our modern media times recently. It talked about the fact that in our new age, we no longer have “stop cues” for media consumption. You don’t read the paper, you take in an endless stream of news feeds and tweets. You don’t watch a TV show, you find yourself awake on the couch at 3am with just 2 episodes left to finish the fourth season of The Office -- and you’re not alone! Without “stop cues” the analysis went on, we are media binging all the time.. And that brings us to our Speaking WW1 word for this week…. BINGE. And who would you have thought that that phrase made its way to the 21st century by way of the trenches? Binge was originally a “Northern English” term meaning to over-indulge. The word first appeared in printed form in 1854, with a clearly alcohol-related connotation. And a connotation that may have carried forward for many of our listener to their college years with Binge Drinking! The term remained regional to Northern England until World War 1, when it spread through the english speaking forces and became standardized in the English lexicon. It also started being used to describe the obsessive compulsive, consumption of food. Which led to the description of an eating disorder called binge & purge… So now it’s meaning has expanded to include any number of new categories: food, drink, media, entertainment and… well many others! Binge-- obsessive, compulsive, consumption - and this week’s words for speaking WW1. There are links for you in the podcast notes. Links:https://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/binge-drinking.html http://www.dictionary.com/browse/binge http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/4tN7cVtY2VY2sbGtX6z9Df3/12-words-from-100-years-ago-we-love-to-use-today [SOUND EFFECT] Articles and Posts Weekly Dispatch Newsletter Highlights For Articles and posts -- here are some of the highlights from our weekly Dispatch newsletter which you can subscribe to at ww1cc.org/subscribe or through the podcast notes. [DING] Headline: Two WWI nurses led the way for women in today’s Wisconsin National Guard Read the story of two women serving as Army nurses in World War I pioneering the opportunity for women to serve in every duty position in the Wisconsin National Guard. [DING] Headline: NARA is getting WWI Army Division records online - with citizen help! The National Archives Records Administration also know as NARA Is getting Citizen Archivists to help make these records more accessible. If you’d like to help NARA transcribe these historic handwritten records - You CAN! There’s a link in the podcast notes for you to get started. [DING] The studio that brought you 'Wallace and Grommit' is creating an emotional World War I game Read more about the new videogame 11-11: Memories Retold, a narrative adventure about two World War I soldiers who meet under the "most unlikely of circumstances." [DING] Headline: Doughboy MIA for week of April 30 Read about Pvt. Charles H. Holland, a native of Mississippi and member of the 2nd Division-- 9th Infantry--Company L-- Charles was wounded in action during the battle of Soissons--- he was carried off to a field hospital and never seen nor heard from again. [DING] Finally, our selection from our Official online Centennial Merchandise store - this week, with Memorial Day coming up - it’s your last chance to order our small, 8" X 12" WWI Centennial flags for Memorial Day. This is the year to display the memorial ground flags honoring your local fallen doughboys! You’ll be doing "Double Honors", because a portion of the proceeds from the sale of this item goes to building America's National World War I Memorial at Pershing Park, in Washington DC. And those are some of the headlines this week from the Dispatch Newsletter Check the links in the podcast notes Link: http://www.worldwar1centennial.org/index.php/communicate/2015-12-28-18-26-00/subscribe.html http://www.ww1cc.org/dispatch https://www.archives.gov/citizen-archivist/missions The Buzz The Commemoration in Social Media And that brings us to the buzz - the centennial of WW1 this week in social media with Katherine Akey - Katherine, what did you pick? Motorcycles, Mail and the Military Times Hi Theo -- We shared a video this week on Facebook from one of the Commission’s Commemorative partners, the French Centenaire 14-18 -- it shows the project undertaken by two frenchmen to restore an American doughboy’s Harley-Davidson-- which they are now bringing to, and driving across America. The motorbike would have been used to carry messages behind the lines, and less than a thousand are thought to have made it to today. Watch the video and read an article about the project at the link in the podcast notes -- we’ve also included a link to the frenchmen’s facebook page so you can follow their journey as they ride the bike across the US! Also on facebook this week -- we shared a photograph of a humble receipt from the Harry S. Truman Library and Museum. This week 100 years ago, the future president was a Captain in the Army, commanding a battery of field artillery on the western front. And-- his birthday was coming up! So his loving wife Bess ordered him a fruit cake, having it shipped to his 129th field artillery in France. The receipt shows her purchase from the Jones Store Company in Kansas City, Missouri -- likely a fruit cake would survive the journey, and we hope he enjoyed it on his birthday on May 8th, 1918. And if you’re wondering -- it cost a whopping total of $1.40, equivalent to about $25 now, to buy and send the birthday treat. See the receipt yourself at the link in the notes. Finally this week, I wanted to point you towards a very thoughtful opinion piece from the Military Times website -- May is Mental Health Awareness Month, a subject that has been deeply important to the success and wellbeing of our armed service members throughout history. The article is entitled “A century after ‘shell shock,’ struggle to address post-combat trauma continues” -- and it opens up questions about our understanding of PTSD, and our relatively recent acceptance of trauma as a significant and common affliction. Read more about how WW1 changed our understanding and treatment of Shell Shock and PTSD at the link in the podcast notes -- we’ll have guests on later this month to continue to address the topic. That’s it for this week in the Buzz. Link:https://france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr/pays-de-la-loire/loire-atlantique/nantes/centenaire-14-18-harley-armee-americaine-repart-nantes-us-1467347.html www.facebook.com/operationtwinlinks https://www.facebook.com/TrumanPresidentialLibrary/posts/10155390413860770 https://www.militarytimes.com/military-honor/world-war-i/2017/04/19/a-century-after-shell-shock-struggle-to-address-post-combat-trauma-continues/ [SOUND EFFECT] Outro And that wraps up the first week of May for WW1 Centennial News. Thank you for listening. We also want to thank our guests... Dr. Edward Lengel, Military historian and author Mike Shuster, Curator for the great war project blog Kenneth C. Davis, author and historian Barney McCoy, professor of journalism at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Dr. Steve Kelly with the 100 Cities / 100 Memorial project from Brownwood, Texas. Katherine Akey, WWI Photography specialist and the line producer for the podcast Many thanks to Mac Nelsen our sound editor as well as John Morreale our intern and Eric Marr for their great research assistance... And I am Theo Mayer - your host. [MUSIC and under] The US World War One Centennial Commission was created by Congress to honor, commemorate and educate about WW1. Our programs are to-- inspire a national conversation and awareness about WW1; Including this podcast! We are bringing the lessons of the 100 years ago into today's classrooms; We are helping to restore WW1 memorials in communities of all sizes across our country; and of course we are building America’s National WW1 Memorial in Washington DC. We want to thank commission’s founding sponsor the Pritzker Military Museum and Library as well as the Starr foundation for their support. The podcast can be found on our website at ww1cc.org/cn - now with our new interactive transcript feature for students, teachers and sharing. Or search WW1 Centennial News on iTunes, Google Play, TuneIn, Podbean, Stitcher - Radio on Demand, Spotify or using your smart speaker.. Just say “Play W W One Centennial News Podcast” - and now also available on Youtube at WW1 Centennial. Our twitter and instagram handles are both @ww1cc and we are on facebook @ww1centennial. Thank you for joining us. And don’t forget to share the stories you are hearing here today about the war that changed the world! [music] Talk about binging - I just got a note from a listeners - who has decided to listening to all of 1917 from our WW1 Centennial news podcast, eating a pizza with every episode, washed down with a six pack.. that sounds awful and I’m just kidding! So long!
Highlights The US Army Signal Corps in WW1 The founding of the US Army Signal Corps @ |01:30 The Signal Corps in WW1 @ |04:25 War In The Sky - Signal Corps Connections @ |09:00 Alvin York’s crisis of conscience w/ Dr. Edward Lengel @ |13:30 Germany’s starts big push w/ Mike Shuster @ |20:25 Women in the AEF w/ Dr. Susan Zeiger @ |25:15 The Hello Girls w/ Dr. Elizabeth Cobbs @ |32:05 100C/100M in Worcester MA w/ Brian McCarthy @ |40:35 Speaking WW1 - Shody @ |46:15 Social Media Pick w/ Katherine Akey @ |48:15----more---- Opening Welcome to World War 1 centennial News - episode #62 - It’s about WW1 THEN - what was happening 100 years ago this week - and it’s about WW1 NOW - news and updates about the centennial and the commemoration. Today is March 9th, 2018 and our guests for this week include: Dr. Edward Lengel, exploring Alvin York’s crisis of conscience as he entered the military Mike Shuster, from the great war project blog with an update on German war activities in May Dr. Susan Zeiger telling us about the women workers of the American Expeditionary Forces Dr. Elizabeth Cobbs with the story of the Hello Girls Brian McCarthy, sharing the 100 Cities/100 Memorials project in Worcester Massachusetts Katherine Akey with the WW1 commemoration in social media WW1 Centennial News -- a weekly podcast brought to you by the U.S. World War I Centennial Commission, the Pritzker Military Museum and Library and the Starr foundation. I’m Theo Mayer - the Chief Technologist for the Commission and your host. Welcome to the show. [MUSIC] Preface This week several stories came up that pointed to US Army Signal Corps. You know.. they’re not just the guys who made the movies and took the pictures… Actually they have a heritage of being “New Tech” gurus - taking initial responsibility for classic ideas, later managed by other organizations including military intelligence, weather forecasting and especially aviation. That because it all started with a visionary guy named Albert James Myer. Myer started as a Medical Officer in Texas before the civil war and ended up a brigadier general with the title of First Chief Signal Officer and a legacy as “The father of the US Army Signal Corps” Early on - Myer came up with a flag waving scheme to send messages during combat - which the Army adopted it in 1860 - one year before the start of the Civil War. It’s high falutin’ name was Aerial Telegraphy but, everyone called it WIG WAG. During the Civil War, WigWag was used on the battlefield to direct artillery fire-- and Myer started to experiment with balloons, electric telegraph and other kinds of new tech. Because he fostered such an innovation culture in the signal corps - ten years late, In 1870 when the US government AKA the congress decided to mandate a National Weather Service - they tasked Myer and the Signal Corps to create it - which he did to great international acclaim. Myer died a decade later in 1880, and his lab “slash” school in Arlington Virginia was ultimately renamed Fort Myer to honor the father of the US Signal Corps. By the turn of the century the US Army Signal Corps had taken on a leadership role not just with visual signalling but also with the telegraph, telephone, cable communications, meteorology, combat photography and had even sprouted an aeronautical and aviation section. Nearly a decade before American Forces engaged the enemy, the wright brothers made test flights of the army’s first airplane built to Signal Corps’ specifications. Tests appropriately performed at Fort Myers. Army aviation stayed with the Signal Corps until May of 1918, when the Aviation Section of the Signal Corps is transformed by President Wilson’s Executive order, into the Army Air Service - the forerunner of the United States Air Force. With that as a setup, let’s jump into our Centennial Time Machine - which the Signal Corps DID NOT develop - and roll back 100 years to learn what the US Army Signal Corps was - during the War that Changed the World! World War One THEN 100 Year Ago This Week [MUSIC TRANSITION] We are back in 1918 and we are going to focus on two of the key things the Signal Corps does during WW1. Communication and Documentation --- and always with an eye on innovation. Because with battles and offensives no longer organize neatly into line-of-sight groups, innovations is required to communicate and coordinate. The field telephone is one of those basic elements… The challenge of wired electric connections between two telephone devices is that you need the wire… which tends to get blown up, trampled, cut, damaged and sometimes tapped into by the enemy in the field. And because, the telephone in 1918 is a point-to-point connection… that means that, in order to re-connect a field telephone from one place to another - you need to physically repatch the connection - a function performed by a telephone operator. The “Hello Girls” who go to France to do that job, are sworn into the US Army Signal Corps as soldiers… yup… but then at the end of the war, they are just let go -- and not given honorable discharges and so don’t qualify for veteran benefits! We have a whole section for you with Dr. Elizabeth Cobbs - the author of the book “The Hello Girls” later in the show...---- OK --- Then there is WIRELESS communication. The Signal corps teams up with private industry to advance radio transmission and reception and create new devices that are smaller, more practical and more capable. Of course the challenge with radio communications is that everyone can receive it… creating a serious security challenge and a great intelligence opportunity - both of which the Signal Corps addresses. So when the United States enters the war in early 1917, its own capacity for radio intelligence is significantly underdeveloped. But, with the help of their British and French allies, and the dedicated work of over 500 men, the Signal Corps’ Radio Section collects huge amounts of radio and other communications traffic to help the American Expeditionary Forces stay one step ahead of their enemy. This area of activity is known as Signt or Signal Intelligence. One battle in which victory is particularly credited to the work of the Radio Section is the Battle of Saint-Mihiel in September 1918, as American operators are able to discover the location of several German command posts, and warn the Army of a German counteroffensive several hours in advance. But not everything signal corps is tech! They also take 600 carrier pigeons to France including a pigeon named Cher Ami (dear friend) who is credited with a stallworth, heroic, wounded delivery of a message credited for saving 194 US Soldiers of the 77th Infantry Division - the famed Lost Battalion. Then there is the Documentation roll of the US Army Signal Corps! According to an article by Audrey Amidon: The Signal Corps pays relatively little attention to photography until July 1917 when they are assigned the responsibility for obtaining photographic coverage of American participation in World War I. That means both moving and still imagery. The purpose is for propaganda, scientific, identification, and military reconnaissance purposes but primarily for the production of a pictorial history of the war. The Photographic Section of the Signal Corps manages to build up quite a large and efficient organization. Beginning with 25 men in August 1917, the Photographic Section attached to the AEF reaches a strength of 92 officers and 498 men by November 1918 They defined a photographic unit as one motion-picture cameraman and one still-picture photographer, plus assistants. So they are capturing stills and motion pictures simultaneously at each location. Each Division (remember from last week is a force of around 40,000 American soldiers) gets a photographic unit. They also hace units that cover headquarters, sea transport, service and supply, red cross and so forth. Between the AEF footage, domestic training documentation and special projects including training films for soldier and pilots, the US Army Signal Corps shoots nearly 1 million feet of movie film to document the war that changed the world! Other links: https://unwritten-record.blogs.archives.gov/2017/03/16/shooting-world-war-i-the-history-of-the-army-signal-corps-cameramen-1917-1918/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Signal_Corps_(United_States_Army) For much deeper learning, if people are interested: https://history.army.mil/html/books/060/60-15-1/CMH_Pub_60-15-1.pdf War in the Sky This week, one hundred years ago, the war in the sky preparations were in full view in the Official Bulletin - The government’s daily war gazette published by George Creel, President Wilson’s propaganda chief. And as we have told you before, the Commission re-publishes each issue of the Official Bulletin on the Centennial of its original publication date - a great primary source of information about WWI you are invited to enjoy at ww1cc.org/bulletin. We selected two articles from this week’s issues that illustrate the Signal Corp’s roll in the War in the Sky - the first article is about seeing the foundation of a new US Aerospace industry forming. [sound effect] Dateline: March 5, 1918 The article headline reads: 10,000 SKILLED MEN NEEDED BY THE AVIATION SECTION The article goes on to read: The US Army Signal Corps has authorized the call for 10,000 machinists, mechanics, and other skilled workers needed by the Aviation Section of the Signal Corps. Even though the strength of that service is already 100 times what it was in April of last year, it is now understood that nearly 98 of every 100 men in the service need to be highly skilled. Airplane work has been wholly new and unfamiliar to American Mechanics. It has been necessary for both officers and men to learn very largely by experience. The article continues with with a comment by War secretary Baker about keeping those planes flying in the field: The great problem now remaining is to secure the thousands of skilled mechanics, engine men, motor repair men, wood and metal workers needed to keep the planes always in perfect condition. This great engineering and mechanical force at the airdomes, flying fields, and repair depots, both here and behind the lines in France, is a vital industrial link in the chain of air supremacy. The next day, an article illustrates the foundation of the modern cartography a technology we now all enjoy casually and daily with applications like Google Maps: [Sound Effect] Dateline: March 5, 1918 The article headline reads: 1,000 Trained Photographers Wanted at Once for Signal Corps Aeroplane -and Ground Duty And the article reads: One thousand men trained in photographic work are needed by the Signal Corps before March 10 As an aside - that is only 5 days after this article publishes - it goes on with: These men are to be instructed at the new school for aerial photography just opened at Rochester, N. Y., preparatory to going overseas. This ground force for America's aerial photography requires three types of men: Laboratory and dark room experts, especially fast news photographers, familiar with developing, printing, enlarging, retouching, and finishing panchromatic photography, men who can take a plate from the airmen and hand over, ten minutes later, a finished enlargement to the staff officers. These men will work in motor lorries as close to the front and staff as possible. Men able to keep the whole delicate equipment in good condition, such as camera and optical constructions plus repairmen, lens experts, cabinet makers, instrument makers, and so forth... Men to fit the finished prints into their proper places in the photographic reproduction of the German front --- to work out the information disclosed, and to keep the whole map a living hour-to-hour story of what the Germans are doing.s Many men not physically fit for line service are eligible for this so-called limited military service, as defective vision corrected by glasses and other minor physical disabilities' are waived. Owing to the shortness of time it is requested that only men fully qualified apply for this service. That is a great closing line, as this article was published on May 5th, and they want 1,000 men by May 10 as the army Signal Corps plays out its role in the War in the Sky one hundred years ago this week! America Emerges: Military Stories from WW1 For the war on the ground, here is this week’s segment of America Emerges: Military Stories from WWI with Dr. Edward Lengel. Ed: This week your story is about one of the best known soldier heroes of WWI - and his very profound crisis of conscience in entering his military service.. Who was he and what is his story? [ED LENGEL] [Thank you Ed. Before we close - I want to ask you something that struck me in hearing this account. When Alvin York asked his Captain and his battalion commander “I wish you would tell me what this war is about,” I know we have no record of that they actually said - but as a historian - how might these military commander have responded? What was the common wisdom and answer to that question at the time?] [Ed, what will you be telling us about next week?] Dr. Edward Lengel is an American military historian, author, and our segment host for America Emerges: Military Stories from WWI. There are links in the podcast notes to Ed’s post and his website as an author. Links:http://www.edwardlengel.com/one-hundred-years-ago-alvin-yorks-decision/ https://www.facebook.com/EdwardLengelAuthor/ http://www.edwardlengel.com/about/ Great War Project Now on to the Great War project with Mike Shuster - former NPR correspondent and curator for the Great War project Blog…. Mike, your post this week is about the pre “spring offensive” actions in Europe - On the front and reaching into Allied capitals - It really feels like there is an undercurrent of desperation - and to me - desperation on all side - is that a theme here? [MIKE POST] Mike Shuster from the Great War Project blog. LINK: http://greatwarproject.org/2018/03/04/germany-now-dominates-on-western-front/ [SOUND EFFECT] The Great War Channel We love that you listen to us - but If you’d like to watch some videos about WW1, go see our friends at the Great War Channel on Youtube. This week’s new videos include: Ludendorff's Window of Opportunity From Caporetto to Cambrai: A Summary Lenin and Trotsky - Their Rise to Power To see their videos by searching for “the great war” on youtube or following the link in the podcast notes! Link:https://www.youtube.com/user/TheGreatWar World War One NOW OK… time to fast forward -- back to the present with WW1 Centennial News NOW - [SOUND EFFECT] This is the part of the podcast where we explore what is happening NOW to commemorate the centennial of the War that changed the world! Remembering Veterans Women Workers of the AEF This week in remembering veterans and for Women’s History Month - We’re continuing our focus on Women in WW1. We’re joined by Dr. Susan Zeiger (tiger), an author and member of the Commission’s Historical Advisory Board. She is also the Program Director at Primary Source ---- non-profit, advancing global and cultural learning in schools---- She is a professor emeritus of History at Regis College in Weston, Massachusetts, and the author ofIn Uncle Sam’s Service: Women Workers with the American Expeditionary Forces, 1917-1919. Welcome, Dr. Zeiger! [greetings] [The phenomenon you describe in your book -- thousands of women taking on responsibilities usually reserved for men-- seems groundbreaking in many ways. What motivated thousands of American women to volunteer for overseas service during World War I? [What kinds of resistance did women encounter-- at home and on the job-- as they set off to work? ] [goodbyes] Thank you for joining us today. Dr. Susan Zeiger is a member of the Commission’s Historical Advisory Board, the Program Director at Primary Source, professor emeritus of History at Regis College and author. Learn more about her and her work by following the links in the podcast notes. Link: https://www.primarysource.org/about-us/our-staff/susan-zeiger http://eh.net/book_reviews/in-uncle-sams-service-women-workers-with-the-american-expeditionary-force-1917-1919/ https://www.amazon.com/Service-Workers-American-Expeditionary-1917-1919/dp/B001H8E6NQ Spotlight in the Media Hello Girls This week for our Spotlight in the Media -- We’re joined by Dr. Elizabeth Cobbs, whose book The Hello Girls: America’s First Women Soldiers. Is the basis for the documentary The Hello Girls, which just had a very successful world premiere in Washington DC at the Women’s Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery. Dr. Cobbs is also the Melbern Glasscock Chair at Texas A&M University, as well as a Senior Fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution. [greetings] Welcome Dr. Cobbs! [Dr. Cobbs, I heard great things about the films showing in DC last week including the attendance by two grand daughters of Hello Girls - Were you there? ] [We mentioned the Hello Girls at the top of the show in our segment on the US Army Signal Corps - Who were the Hello Girls? What kinds of women were they?] [So these women signed up as soldier and then got gypped out of their veteran benefits - what what’s that story?] [Did the Hello Girls continue to be telephone operators when they returned home and into the workforce?] [Dr. Cobbs - we’ve included a link to your book in the podcast notes, but where can people see the documentary? ] [What is the most important thing we should remember about the story of these women?] [goodbyes] Dr. Elizabeth Cobbs is the Melbern Glasscock Chair at Texas A&M University, a Senior Fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution and an acclaimed author. You can learn more about her and her book The Hello Girls: America’s First Women Soldiers by following the links in the podcast notes. link:https://www.amazon.com/Hello-Girls-Americas-First-Soldiers/dp/0674971477 http://elizabethcobbs.com/the-hello-girls/ https://www.npr.org/2017/04/06/522596006/the-hello-girls-chronicles-the-women-who-fought-for-america-and-for-recognition https://www.npr.org/2017/04/06/522596006/the-hello-girls-chronicles-the-women-who-fought-for-america-and-for-recognition https://the1a.org/shows/2017-07-12/americas-first-women-soldiers-had-to-fight-for-recognition-as-veterans 100 Cities 100 Memorials Moving on to our 100 Cities / 100 Memorials segment about the $200,000 matching grant challenge to rescue and focus on our local WWI memorials. This week we are profiling the Memorial Grove at Green Hill Park in Worchester MA. With us tell us about this ambitious restoration WWI is Brian McCarthy, President of the Green Hill Park Coalition Inc [Brian - Thank you for joining us on the podcast] [greetings] [Brian: the Memorial in Worcester was originally put in 1928 by Post 5 of The American Legion. What did they do and what is the history of the memorial?] [Brian - Your Green Hill Park Coalition took this on - not as a little spruce up (no tree pun intended) but a very ambitious multi-hundred thousand dollar memorial park renovation. How did this come about?] [When I saw your design study and planning documents - I was genuinely impressed by your thinking and your beautiful but practical vision. What is the status of the project now?] [Well - your project has deservedly been designated as a WWI Centennial Memorial - How can people help?] Brian McCarthy is President of the Green Hill Park Coalition. Their Go Fund me site and more information about the 100 Cities/100 Memorials program are both available through the links in the podcast notes. Link: www.ww1cc.org/100cities https://www.gofundme.com/28f8c5vq [SOUND EFFECT] Speaking WW1 And now for our feature “Speaking World War 1” - Where we explore the words & phrases that are rooted in the war --- The American armed forces ballooned in size during 1917 and 1918. Putting men in uniform was not just a conceptual statement but a literal one! Underwear, socks, shoes, belts, and uniforms for millions were needed NOW! This week 100 years ago on March 6th in the pages of the Official Bulletin - and apparently after accusations of problems, the government seeks to reassure the country, that Army Uniforms are made with the absolute best materials and did not overuse... QUOTE “shoddy” --- Our speaking WW1 word this week. Shoddy may have originally derived from a mining term “Shoad” meaning scraps, the article goes on to define what the government means by “shoddy” -- This indicates to us that it was not a term commonly used in 1918 - but it is today “shoddy” is simply reworked wool remnants and clippings worked into fiber of the virgin wool, you know - like stretching the ground sirloin with some bread crumbs! The use of shoddy, or reworked wool, was urged by the government’s wool experts as a helpful, partial solution for the huge wool shortage - but it had to be added sparingly. Shoddy was also used in military uniforms during the the Civil War but apparently overused. There are stories of soldiers’ clothes falling to pieces after just a few days’ wear, or even in a heavy rain giving those uniforms a really bad reputation and re-defining the word “Shoddy” not as wool clipping but a description of something poorly made. Luckily, the shoddy laden wool in WW1 uniforms were not as shoddy as the shoddy uniforms of the Civil War-- they did hold up in the rain and mud of the trenches. No shame in that Shoddy-- our word for this week’s Speaking WW1. Learn more at the links in the podcast notes. link: http://www.worldwar1centennial.org/index.php/educate/places/official-bulletin/3339-ww1-official-bulletin-volume-2-issue-250-march-06-1918.html https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1918/03/04/102676957.pdf https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/shoddy#Etymology https://www.historyextra.com/period/what-are-the-origins-of-the-word-shoddy/ [SOUND EFFECT] The Buzz And that brings us to the buzz - the centennial of WW1 this week in social media with Katherine Akey - Katherine, what do you have for us this week? Long Lost Diary This week, we shared an article on Facebook from Longmont, Colorado, where a local man named Paul Hansen discovered a long forgotten world war one era diary. The diary belonged to Hansen’s father, who left it, along with a few other mementos of his service in the war, in his army issued footlocker, left to collect dust in the family barn. Hansen inherited the box from his father, opening it and rediscovering the life his father had lived as a soldier in the war. In it he found his father’s diary, as well as his Victory Medal and love letters between his father and his girlfriend, who died from influenza before he returned home from the battlefield. Hansen has taken all of these items -- and the very detailed diary -- and brought them into a book, “Soldier of the Great War: My Father’s Diary”. The story of this man and his very personal discovery of his father’s service -- it’s a reminder that, though the war is a hundred years passed, so many stories of the war are yet to be discovered and told. You can read more about the incredible history pieced together by this veteran’s son by visiting the link in the podcast notes. link:http://www.timescall.com/longmont-local-news/ci_31707868/longmont-man-finds-long-forgotten-world-war-i Outro Thank you for listening to this week’s episode of WW1 Centennial News. We also want to thank our guests... Dr. Edward Lengel, Military historian and author Mike Shuster, Curator for the great war project blog Dr. Susan Zeiger, member of the Commission’s Historical Advisory Board, author and the Program Director at Primary Source Dr. Elizabeth Cobbs, historian and author Brian McCarthy from the 100 Cities/100 Memorials project in Worcester Massachusetts Katherine Akey, the commission’s social media director and line producer for the podcast Thanks also to Eric Maar as well as our intern John Morreale for their great research assistance. And I am Theo Mayer - your host. The US World War One Centennial Commission was created by Congress to honor, commemorate and educate about WW1. Our programs are to-- inspire a national conversation and awareness about WW1; this podcast is a part of that…. Thank you! We are bringing the lessons of the 100 years ago into today's classrooms; We are helping to restore WW1 memorials in communities of all sizes across our country; and of course we are building America’s National WW1 Memorial in Washington DC. We want to thank commission’s founding sponsor the Pritzker Military Museum and Library as well as the Starr foundation for their support. The podcast can be found on our website at ww1cc.org/cn on iTunes, Google Play, TuneIn, Podbean, new this week on Stitcher - Radio on Demand --- as well as the other places you get your podcast -- even on your smart speaker.. Just say “Play W W One Centennial News Podcast.” Our twitter and instagram handles are both @ww1cc and we are on facebook @ww1centennial. Thank you for joining us. And don’t forget to share the stories you are hearing here today about the war that changed the world! [music] Hello Girls - Could one of y’all please connect me with field Marshall Foshe silv vous play - Why thank you ma’am! So long! Next week: We speak with the team about the upcoming Sgt Stubby film release Promote reconciliation week events in Reims, June 2018 Speak with the curator of the Postal Museum: Women's WW1 Letters exhibit Interview with Commissioner Monique Seefried about commemoration events in Europe 100 Cities / 100 Memorials in Ogden Utah Hear a story about returning American dog tags to France
The U.S. developed an aircraft-mounted radiotelephone near the end of the war known as the SCR-68 (Set, Complete, Radio). This DH-4 has one, indicated by the generator on the wheel strut. That generator is a good example of linking a modification to a new capability: voice communication instead of telegraphy. The U.S. Army Signal Corps discovered many problems with it, primarily its inability to communicate beyond three miles. To communicate with the ground-mounted SCR- 67, the observer extended a 300-foot, long wire antenna out the rear of the aircraft. The SCR-68 was one of the first steps towards developing more effective messaging system between pilots and commanders and opened a whole new challenge for signals intelligence (SIGINT).
Born in Paris in 1928 to Russian parents, Elliott Erwitt spent his childhood in Milan, then emigrated to the US, via France, with his family in 1939. As a teenager living in Hollywood, he developed an interest in photography and worked in a commercial darkroom before experimenting with photography at Los Angeles City College. In 1948 he moved to New York and exchanged janitorial work for film classes at the New School for Social Research. Erwitt traveled in France and Italy in 1949 with his trusty Rolleiflex camera. In 1951 he was drafted for military service and undertook various photographic duties while serving in a unit of the Army Signal Corps in Germany and France. While in New York, Erwitt met Edward Steichen, Robert Capa and Roy Stryker, the former head of the Farm Security Administration. Stryker initially hired Erwitt to work for the Standard Oil Company, where he was building up a photographic library for the company, and subsequently commissioned him to undertake a project documenting the city of Pittsburgh. In 1953 Erwitt joined Magnum Photos and worked as a freelance photographer for Collier's, Look, Life, Holiday and other luminaries in that golden period for illustrated magazines. To this day he is for hire and continues to work for a variety of journalistic and commercial outfits. In the late 1960s Erwitt served as Magnum's president for three years. He then turned to film: in the 1970s he produced several noted documentaries and in the 1980s eighteen comedy films for Home Box Office. Erwitt became known for benevolent irony, and for a humanistic sensibility traditional to the spirit of Magnum. www.elliotterwitt.com http://www.magnumphotos.com/ http://norman.hrc.utexas.edu/erwittdc/ www.thecandidframe.com info@thecandidframe.com
Ken Maatman was an Officer in the Army Signal Corps during World War II. He supervised the installation and maintenance of communications lines in the China/Burma/India theater, particularly along the Burma Road in the last two years of the war. Letters and military documents appended to outline.