A significant way movie stars in the 1940s demonstrated
their patriotism was by serving in World War II, whether by being drafted or by
enlisting. To give up a Hollywood career to fight was a true test of loyalty
and devotion. David Niven, a dapper British actor with a witty and extraverted personality,
devoted his time and talents to the war effort.
When David Niven learned that Great
Britain declared war on Hitler in 1939, he was eager to join in the fight. He
was one of the first actors to enlist. Therefore, he would play his greatest
role as a patriotic soldier because he went back to his beloved country when the
British Embassy told British actors to stay in America. However, because of his
previous training in the army, he was well prepared to serve.
Niven’s father was also a military
man, and he grew up attending military academies. Niven left the army because
he grew bored of military life with no excitement. He discloses in his memoirs
that he remembered a particular time when he had to listen to a lecture about
machine guns, but instead he wanted to take a pretty girl out to dinner. He
decided then that he would leave the army. When the major general giving the
lecture asked if there were any questions, David Niven with typical wittiness responded:
“Could you tell me the time, sir? I have to catch a train.”
Niven caught that train and
traveled to America where he started his film career after Samuel Goldwyn of
MGM discovered him doing stunt work. He played in 19 films, and he had some supporting
roles in notable movies, such as The
Charge of the Light Brigade (1936) and Wuthering
Heights (1939).
However, when he learned that his
country was going to war, he packed his bags to go temporarily back to Great
Britain. Niven was ready for excitement and quickly joined the army. After he
arrived back in Great Britain, he fought with the Commandos and experienced
excitement. As an actor, Niven was part of the deception plan of Operation
Overlord. He arrived in Normandy a few days after D-Day, and he worked with the
Phantom Signals Unit to give an alert of changes relating to enemy movement. He
worked with the Army Film unit and made propaganda films, such as The First of the Few (1942) and The Way Ahead (1944).
At the end of the war, Niven achieved the rank
of lieutenant colonel. Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Supreme Allied Commander at
Normandy, awarded Niven the distinguished American award of the Legion of Merit for his contribution with the BBC Allied
Expeditionary Forces Programme. This was a radio show that reported the news
and entertained the troops with swing and jazz music.
After the war, Niven did not like discussing
his role in the war. However, in his 1971 autobiography The Moon’s a Balloon, he opened up about his involvement in World
War II by discussing the desolation of war. Of particular interest, he conveys
an experience he had with the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. In
1940, at a party, Churchill addressed Niven saying, “Young man, you did a
fine thing to give up your film career to fight for your country. Mark you, had
you not done so − it would have been despicable.”When he returned to
Hollywood, he transitioned well into being an actor again. In 1945, he was second
in a poll of popular British actors. David Niven certainly experienced some
excitement in World War II and played his best role serving his country.
Jimmy Stewart was not only a great actor, but he
was also a first rate pilot. Known for his clean-cut, down to earth, charming,
small town presence, Jimmy Stewart had already captured the hearts of
Americans with his acting, which was like his actual personality, long before
the war in Europe came to America.
Moreover, Jimmy Stewart was well educated and athletic,
two qualities that would serve him well in the military. Before the acting bug
bit him, Jimmy Stewart attended Princeton University, his father’s alma matter.
It was there where he started acting. He would later tour with a traveling
talent group called the University Players, where he met lifelong friends Henry
Fonda and Margaret Sullivan. Jimmy Stewart then went to Hollywood.
While in Hollywood, Jimmy Stewart’s dream of
flying an airplane came true. Jimmy Stewart was always interested in flying an
airplane. He got his first taste of flying when he was a child. A barnstorming
pilot came to his hometown of Indiana, Pennsylvania and gave him his first ride
in an airplane. Ever after that experience, Jimmy Stewart, smitten with flying,
desired to take lessons. After his acting career took off, he was able to pay
for some lessons in California. He also got his pilot’s license and bought an
airplane; eventually he even got his commercial pilot’s license.
When the Selective Training and Service Act of
1940 called on him, he dutifully answered the draft. He was following in line
after his father and grandfather who both served their country, in the First
World War and the American Civil War respectively. It was as if he had a duty
to carry on the legacy of the men in his family by serving his country when she
was involved in another major war. Despite Jimmy’s willingness to
serve his country, he was too underweight for the service. Thus, a diet of his
favorite tuna sandwiches, spaghetti, steaks, and other rich foods and carbohydrates
soon began to fatten him up to the required minimum.
Jimmy Stewart was 32 when he entered the
service, and he requested to be in the Army Air Corps because of his flying
experience. After his pilot training, he became a second lieutenant. The Air Corps
soon placed him as an instructor because of his previous flying experience. The
early lessons and flying practice served him well as he was able to train and
lead the men under his command. The Air Corps promoted him to a captain and Jimmy
Stewart’s unit went to England after a long wait. While in England, he began
flying B-24s (instead of the B-17s he was used to flying in the states). He
demonstrated courage and tenacity in bombing raids and earned many medals for
his bravery.
Jimmy Stewart even played a role in the Normandy
invasion. After he arrived in England, the Air Corps promoted him again.
Shortly before D-Day, in 1944, Jimmy Stewart became a lieutenant colonel. He was
in charge of four strategic bombings at notable places like Caen, St. Laurent,
St. Lo, and Coutances. The men of the 453rd Bombardment Group helped
distract the Germans from the Allies who would storm the beaches. Thereafter, Jimmy
Stewart’s bombers played a crucial role in bombing strategic places to cut off
German communications and distract the Germans from the Allied advance into
France. Jimmy Stewart gained a reputation for taking risks, but he was stealthy
and managed to escape harm. Because of his bravery and patriotism, he well
deserves the title American Hero. It is the role of humble hero he best plays
in the classic movies, and it is what best represents this American icon.
“Hometown Boy.” Jimmy Stewart Museum. Accessed February
09, 2014. http://jimmy.org/biography/. Smith, Starr. Jimmy Stewart: Bomber Pilot. Minneapolis:
Zenith Press, 2005.
