This Day in WWII 28 January 1941 - 1945 *1932

[Donster]

Allison Engine Ad - February 1942

1941: French General Charles DeGaulle's Free French forces sack south Libya oasis.

1942: Timoshenko’s offensive in the Ukraine slows down after a 60-mile thrust.

1942: German forces recapture Benghazi.

**Jane Russell

1943: The whole of the German workforce is mobilised for ‘total war’. All men aged 16-65 and women aged 17- 50 to be registered.

1944: To make clear their displeasure about ongoing assistance to the Nazi war effort by Francisco Franco's Spain, the United States and Britain announce a total oil embargo of the country. With Spanish life grinding to a virtual standstill, Franco agrees finally to cease supplying the Germans with critical war materials and to withdraw the last Spanish troops fighting with the Germans in Russia. By May, the embargo is lifted.

1944: The Red Army succeeds in encircling several German divisions in the area of Cherkassy.

Jane Russell

1945: The Ardennes salient is finally eradicated.

1945: The first convoy for three years reaches China through Burma.

Jane Russell

1945: Chiang Kai-shek renames the Ledo-Burma Road the Stilwell Road, in honor of General Joseph Stilwell.

*1932: The Japanese attack Shanghai, China, and declare martial law.

Jane Russell

**Ernestine Jane Geraldine Russell was born on June 21, 1921 in Bemidji, Minnesota. Her father was an US Army lieutenant and her mother had been a student of drama and an actress with a traveling troupe. Once Mr. Russell was mustered out of the service, the family took up residence in Canada, but moved to California when he found employment there. The family was well-to-do and although Jane was the only girl among four brothers, her mother saw to it that she took piano lessons. In addition to music, Jane was interested in drama much as her mother had been and participated in high school stage productions. Upon graduation, Jane took a job as a receptionist for a doctor who specialized in foot disorders. Although she had originally planned on being a designer, her father died and she had to go to work to help the family. Jane modeled on the side and was very much sought-after especially because of her figure.

She managed to save enough money to go to drama school, with the urging of her mother. She was ultimately signed by Howard Hughes for his production of The Outlaw (1943) in 1941, the film that was to make Jane famous. The film wasn't a classic by any means, but was geared to show off Jane's ample physical assets. Although the film was made in 1941, it wasn't released until two years later and then only on a limited basis due to the way the film portrayed Jane's assets. It was hard for the flick to pass the censorship board. Finally, the film gained general release in 1946. The film was a smash at the box-office.

Jane didn't make another film until 1946 when she played Joan Kenwood in Young Widow (1946). She had signed a seven year contract with Hughes and it seemed the only films he would put her in were those that displayed Jane in a very flattering light due to her body. Films such as 1951's His Kind of Woman (1951) and The Las Vegas Story (1952) did nothing to showcase her true acting abilities. Probably the pinnacle of her career was in 1953's Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) as Dorothy Shaw, with Marilyn Monroe. This film showed Jane's comedic side very well. Jane did continue to make films throughout the 1950s, but the films were at times not up to par, particularly with Jane's talents being wasted in forgettable movies in order to show off her sexy side. Films such as Gentlemen Marry Brunettes (1955) and The Revolt of Mamie Stover (1956) did do Jane justice and were able to show exactly the fine actress she was.

After The Fuzzy Pink Nightgown (1957) (a flop) in 1957, Jane took a hiatus from films, to dabble a bit in television, returning in 1964 to film Fate Is the Hunter (1964). Unfortunately, the roles were not there anymore as Jane appeared in only four pictures during the entire decade of the sixties. Her last film of the decade was 1967's The Born Losers (1967). After three more years away from the big screen, she returned to make one last film called Darker Than Amber (1970) in 1970. Her last play before the public was in the 1970s when Jane was a spokesperson for Playtex bras. Had Jane not been wasted during the Hughes years, she could have been a bigger actress than what she was allowed to show.

[The Dude]

All I remember Jane for is her saying full-figured in those bra ads back in the '70s.

Seems her full figure hasn't hurt her any ... she's still going strong at 88

[Joker]

Bell P-39 Airacobra (U.S.) The British call it "Rubbish"

[Old Guy]

The Russians liked the P-39. Check out this interview with a Soviet P-39 pilot.

Soviet Pilot interview

It's fairly long. Scroll down if you want to skip over his training experiences.

OG

[Joker]

Yeah, I've always enjoyed flying the P-39 in IL2, Jim!

For some reason, pilots in New Guinea just couldn't stand the P-39. Not sure if it had to do with morale, training, tactics, or maintenance, or what. Aces like Buzz Wagner had success with the P-39 in New Guinea, and as you say, the Russians loved it. Chuck Yeager always had good things to say about the P-39, too. Of course, one part of that might be that P-39s were vastly more comfortable than Soviet machines; it if was easier to fly, Soviet pilots were bound to be more effective in it.

Boy, though, the Brits sure showed it the door fast, didn't they?

[Old Guy]

I think pilot attitudes and success with the P-39 and P-40 were functions of two things: combat environment and alternatives.

British pilots in England had to fight at high altitude, where neither the -39 or -40 were very capable. In addition, neither airplane could outrun the competition. Pilots in England also already had two good birds to use in lieu of the American ships.

British and Colonial pilots in the desert had few choices. They were equipped mainly with Hurricanes and P-40s. Both planes were used with some success since the air fighting generally took place at low altitude and the competition was a mixed bag -- Italian fighters, ME-110s, and ME-109s. Allied pilots also had numbers on their side most of the time.

In the Pacific the situation was different. The Australian and American pilots had to fly what they had, which meant Buffaloes (only in the early going, thank God) plus the P-39 and P-40. Once they learned how to fight the Zero and Oscar, they did well with either plane, although the P-40 was more successful. I can't remember if the P-39 could outrun a Zero, but the P-40 could. Also, either plane would take a good deal of punishment and survive. Every Japanese plane they fought against had a tendency to burn easily. Not for nothing did Japanese pilots call the G4M Betty a "cigar" or "the Type 1 lighter".

As Joker points out, Russian pilots loved American planes for their creature comforts, if nothing else. Things like heaters, decent radios, and relatively standard control layouts were a real bonus to them. Even English pilots commented favorably on the heaters and control layouts in American planes.

OG

[Joker]

Yep, Jim, you're right, when they removed the blower from the production version of the P-39, it neutered the machine.

In New Guinea, I'd put the P-39's failure down to four things: 1) training, 2) morale, 3) logistics, and 4) environment. USAAF pilots weren't taught to fly against the Japanese in a manner that maximized the P-39's advantages. This only exacerbated their already poor morale. The Japanese were steamrolling across the Pacific, after all, and our guys were pretty stunned. They assumed they were outclassed by supermen who flew wonder weapons. A touchy, complex ship like the P-39 didn't inspire confidence. They were also at the end of a long supply chain that wasn't getting the highest priority to begin with, so their Airacobras probably always performed far below specifications. Finally, the Solomon Islands and New Guinea are among the most inhospitable places on Earth, ravaging both men and machines in equal measure. All the maintenance in the world couldn't prevent an airplane from deteriorating under those conditions, not to mention the human body -- men who served in the theater routinely fought while running a fever and suffering from diarrhea, not to mention malaria. That tends to alter your perceptions, and your capabilities, and not for the better.

Once they got to know the P-39, USAAF pilots in New Guinea could fly it quite well, apparently. I've read accounts of the sort of things they routinely put those ships through, and wondered how any of them survived if it was such a poor aircraft to begin with. But I'd have to say that, in the Airacobra, the pilot made all the difference. It wasn't an acemaker -- it wasn't going to cover up your shortcomings as an aviator. In a place like New Guinea, this characteristic must have been compounded in spades, especially when compared with a relatively viceless aircraft like the P-40, or a powerful, heavily armed birds like the P-38, the P-47, or the P-51.

The Soviets flew what they were given and made it work, because there weren't many alternatives. Compared with a MiG-3 or a LaGG-3, the P-39 was a spaceship. The Finns had a similar attitude, and that's why they made the Buffalo a success. They just didn't have much choice.

As it turns out, I'd say that our USAAF boys in New Guinea made the P-39 a success, too. The Iron Dog held the line against ZEKEs, OSCARs, TONYs, and BETTYs for more than a year, in some cases longer, stopping Imperial Japan cold in its tracks and beginning the long process or reversing fascist expansion in the South Pacific. The main difference between USAAF pilots and their Soviet and Finnish counterparts? Our boys bitched about their Airacobras, mainly because they knew better machines were in the pipeline. And the Airacobra's reputation has suffered accordingly.

Who can blame them? Heck, if you give me a choice between the P-39 and the P-38 in IL2, I know which one I'll pick!

[Madman]

Yep, Jim, you're right, when they removed the blower from the production version of the P-39, it neutered the machine.

Yup, exactly. An interesting little read here about how the US pretty much screwed itself on the P-39.

http://home.att.net/~C.C.Jordan/XP-39.html

Oh, almost forgot......hi Jane!

[Joker]

Great link, Madman!

I've always liked the P-63 Kingcobra.