John Ford's: "The Battle of Midway"(ca.1942) 2/2

[NiallatUTube]

Tonight I'm going to watch The Battle of Britain Special Edition (1969) with great names Michael Caine, Ian McShane, Laurence Olivier (narrator of The 'World At War' which I also have), amongst others.

And accompanied by a few bottles of Spitfire Ale no less!

[505Master]

my gradpa was in this battle and i saw him! his full name is orlando salcedo felix

[NiallatUTube]

@505Master I wish I had a war hero in my family!

[NoShame86]

Why is there UK national anthem?

[NiallatUTube]

@NoShame86 I wondered same.

The narrator seems to be British for some reason.

Plus winning WWII was overall an Allied effort, despite the Pacific being American predominated and greatly helping elsewhere.

[rhall4th]

For those interested in the Battle of Midway, I highly recommend the book "Miracle at Midway" by Gordon Prange et al. It's a good read.

[hill9868]

@rhall4th Yes I agree. Other good books on the battle include 'Incredible Victory' by Walter Lord, 'Midway' by Hugh Bicheno, 'Shattered Sword' by Anthony Tully and 'Battle of Midway' by Peter C Smith.

[rhall4th]

1:43 "There's Jimmy Thach, seven meatballs on his plane" lol

[rhall4th]

Colonel Harold Shannon and Captain Simard were the base commanders (Marine and Navy, respectively). They had been in charge of the atoll since before the war started. They were also known as the best tennis partners on the island.

[rhall4th]

Massy Hughes was a PBY pilot, and Captain Ramsey was the officer in charge of air operations on Midway. Ramsey was the one who famously sounded the alarm at Pearl Harbor when he broadcasted, "Air raid Pearl Harbor. This is not drill."

[zsqpwxxeh]

If you stop the video at 1:26, you can see the clear outline of a TBD. What's burning in the background? This is probably a mixture of actual combat footage (0:48--Mikuma; 1:02 Val) with filmed drills. See 1:08, looks like TBDs simulating an attack for training, dropping something close alongside. Jovial officers in dress whites at 1:19?

[leananshae]

I distinctly heard Henry Fonda's voice in there! Cool.

My favorite:

Narrator: Back at Midway, Tojo swore he'd liberate the natives.

(shows an albatross chick sitting in the sand)

Henry Fonda: But they're just as free as they ever were!

Ok, I cried during the funeral scene. Damn. War sucks.

[55121234]

This is not propaganda this is just about the heros of World war 2 that gave you the right to run your mouth and say what you want to say. Everything you have today is because of these veterans of World war 2. If World war 2 happened today we would be speaking German and Japanese do to the sissy people we have today in our country. No one has courage today like the veterans of World War 2. That type of courage is rare today.

[starmanskye]

@55121234 -- Well, that's an out-an-out exaggeration at the very least. Political schemers, MANY of them Americans, provoked Japan's desperate retribution against US sanctions, or hid sneak-attack knowledge. MANY Americans & companies funded & supported Hitler but were never tried as traitors & war-profiteers -- Like Rockefeller, Standard Oil, Henry Ford & Ford AG, Prescott Bush, Bendix Aviation, DOW, GE, Union Bank, Paul Warburg, GM, Alcoa, Siemens, Charles Dawes, JP Morgan. War is profitable.

[hill9868]

One of the Marine fighter pilots of VMF-221 who were based on Midway was Marion Carl. Despite being the pilot of an obsolete Brewster Buffalo, he managed to down a Japanese Zero and survive the battle on June 4th in which 14 of his squadron-mates were killed. Later he flew Wildcats over Guadalcanal where he became the first Marine ace of WW2. Sadly, in 2001, he was murdered while trying to protect his wife from an armed burglar. A tragic end to a grand old man of the skies.

[NiallatUTube]

@hill9868 that makes my blood boil. I won't scribe what I'd do to that burglar, he'd plead to put out of his misery!

[hill9868]

@NiallatUTube The killer was a 19-year-old named Jesse Fanus who was caught a week after he murdered Carl. He was sentenced to death. Whether the execution has happened yet or if he's still on death-row, I don't know. I got one detail wrong, Carl's death was in 1998, not 2001 like I previously wrote. Carl was 82 when he died. His wife's name is Edna.

[NiallatUTube]

@hill9868 Thanks for your follow up.

[NiallatUTube]

I also wonder why the US soldiers are wearing British style "Tommy" helmets?

The GI type helmet synonymous with Americans in WWII was the more protective bowl shape.

[hill9868]

@NiallatUTube The British-style helmet was standard issue for the US army and marine-corps from when they first began using them on the Western Front in WW1 back in 1917 right up until Guadalcanal in August 1942 when they were equipped with the GI style helmets.

[NiallatUTube]

@hill9868 thanks, good to know, it'd form the basis for a good pub quiz question!

[TheFlarbar]

I never thought I'd see this thing.O_O

[CitizenPaine1776]

Oh! How DEAR the price of FREEDOM!!!!

Paid for in full by the blood of Patriots!!!

[Braunheim]

the bill is coming due again....

[macnutz]

You post great stuff. Thanks big...

[THEUTUBEHATER]

It was his first cig. Man that drag sure tasted goo. LOL Good old ww2 propganda. lol

[2bn442RCT]

Yes! One of the few "propaganda" or historical flicks that really has my jaw dropping.

[THEUTUBEHATER]

Since I got your attention thanks for posting your The USS Yorktown: "The Fighting Lady". Never seen that moive before.

[2bn442RCT]

Your welcome! I see every post. I have to delete about half do to internet hooliganism.

[THEUTUBEHATER]

That is to bad that people don't respect what you are doing here on You Tube.

Thanks again for sharing the videos.

[Braunheim]

sounded like Henry Fonda"s voice...

[neddly]

A neighbor of mine, Dave Cook flew off the Yorktown at Midway flying the Dauntless dive bomber. He was an E-6 first class petty officer. During tht time, not enough officers were available to man all billets so the Navy created an enlisted group to fill the gaps. They were returning from a run and discovered the Yorktown in flames and listing. The Enterprise tried to take them on but many of them didn't have the fuel to make it there and had to ditch in the sea. What a story!

[hill9868]

@neddly Yes indeed. Of the 152 planes that the three US carriers despatched to attack Nagumo's carrier fleet, 39 were shot down and another 40 had to ditch or be jettisoned overboard after returning due to lack of fuel and/or battle damage. That included 37 out of 41 TBD Devastators from the three Torpedo squadrons and 18 of the 33 SBD Dauntlesses from Enterprise's Bombing & Scouting Six. They knocked out three Japanese carriers in one swoop but paid a stiff price.

[prplhze2000]

Emperor Tojo?

[Braunheim]

Prime Minister Tojo, head of the Imperial Government.

[lemonite1]

if this is the actual Midway footage, then one of those D3s has to be Tomonaga's. He attacked with only enough fuel to get him there.

[FirstBlueAngel]

Each Aircraft Carrier has its own number...

for instance - the USS. Yorktown is CV-5.

[cocoratwig]

What is TF-16 TF-17 is it sqadron # or Carrier fleet?

[california113xyx]

That is a good question. TF stands for Task Force and TF16 are carriers Enterprise and Hornet. TF17 is the Yorktown.