Jimmy Stewart: Bomber Pilot

by Starr Smith, Walter Cronkite Narrated by Adam Grupper

Overview

Of all the celebrities who served their country during World War II-and they were legion-Jimmy Stewart was unique. On December 7th, when the attack on Pearl Harbor woke so many others to the reality of war, Stewart was already in uniform-as a private on guard duty south of San Francisco at the Army Air Corps Moffet Field. Seeing war on the horizon, Jimmy Stewart, at the height of his fame after Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and his Oscar-winning turn in The Phadelphia Story in 1940, had enlisted several months earlier.



Jimmy Stewart, Bomber Pilot chronicles his long journey to become a bomber pilot in combat. Author Starr Smith, the intelligence officer assigned to the movie star, recounts how Stewart's first battles were with the Air Corps high command, who insisted on keeping the naturally talented pilot out of harm's way as an instructor pilot for B-17 Flying Fortresses and B-24 Liberators. By 1944, however, Stewart managed to get assigned to a Liberator squadron that was deploying to England to join the mighty Eighth Air Force. Once in the thick of it, he rose to command his own squadron and flew twenty combat missions, including one to Berlin.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

It goes without saying that James Maitland Stewart was one of Hollywood’s greatest and most enduring stars. Be he was also an American patriot of the first order … Veteran journalist Starr Smith has captured the true essence of the man in this superbly written and profusely illustrated biography … With so many of the current generation of Hollywood stars decidedly antiwar and antimilitary, this book is a refreshing, nostalgic look back at a time when personal fame, money and safety took a back-seat to the ideals of duty, honor and country. Not to be missed.” - WWII History

From the Publisher - AUDIO COMMENTARY

"Smith's clear admiration for Stewart comes through on every page, but with an understatement that even George Bailey could have lived with." —Publishers Weekly

Product Details

BN ID:	2940171213794
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Publication date:	08/08/2017
Edition description:	Unabridged
Sales rank:	528,350

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