World War II

This article is part of

"Robin's Personal Memories Project"

"The WWII History Project" Click here for World War II History category page

Click here for Special History Projects information

This article is more about personal feelings than about actual history

World War II involved the mobilization of over 100 million military personnel, making it the most widespread war in history. The war placed the participants in a state of "total war", erasing the distinction between civil and military resources. This resulted in the complete activation of a nation's economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities for the purposes of the war effort; nearly two-thirds of those killed in the war were civilians.

This series of articles presented in the SM-201 wiki is not about the actual "military battles". (For information on the military aspects of WWII, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WWII )

What I hope to do here, is to show how World War II affected the "kinky" people of the world, but first a little bit of background.

First of all, to put the scope of this "global conflict" in perspective, these tables show the massive numbers of people involved in "The War" in terms of casualties:

Allied Forces (in order of entry into the war)

Country	Pop.	Killed/Missing	Wounded	Total(Military)	Civilian (deaths)
China	450m	1.3 million	1.8 million	3.1 million	9 million
Poland	35m	130,000	200,000	330,000	2.5 million
U.K.	48m	400,000	300,000	700,000	60,000
France	42m	250,000	350,000	600,000	270,000
Australia	7m	30,000	40,000	70,000
India	360m	36,000	64,000	100,000
New Zealand	2m	10,000	20,000	30,000
So. Africa	10m	9,000	14,000	23,000
Canada	11m	42,000	50,000	92,000
Denmark	4m	2,000	?	?	1,000
Norway	3m	10,000	?	?	6,000
Belgium	8m	12,000	16,000	28,000	100,000
Holland	9m	14,000	7,000	21,000	250,000
Greece	7m	90,000	?	?	400,000
Yugoslavia	15m	320,000	?	?	1.3 million
U.S.S.R.	194m	9 million	18 million	27 million	19 million
USA	129m	300,000	300,000	600,000

Axis Forces

Country	Pop.	Killed/Missing	Wounded	Total(Military)	Civilian (deaths)
Germany	78m	3.5 million	4.6 million	8.1 million	2 million
Italy	44m	330,000	?	70,000
Japan	72m	1.75 million	?	350,000
Rumania	20m	500,000	300,000	800,000	400,000
Bulgaria	6m	10,000	?	50,000
Hungary	10m	120,000	250,000	370,000	200,000
Finland	4m	100,000	45,000	145,000	4,000

The major criticism I have with the tables above is that they don't show the affect on the families "on the home front". The death of a sailor, soldier or airman also caused the loss of the head-of-household and/or eldest sons from a family. Massive injuries caused by land- and sea-based battles caused hardships for families for lifetimes after the war. The tables don't begin to show the psychological damage of the troops coming home, nor on their loved ones who waited at home for their return.

Prime Minister Winston Churchill of England quoted John Milton saying, "They also serve who only stand and wait."

On a personal note, my father was injured during WWII. An observation tower he was in was shot out from under him and he fell, impacting his feet toward his pelvis. The Veteran hospitals did, I think, a marvelous job of repair and recuperative services. A series of operations stitched his shattered legs back together. They found enough bone fragments to rebuild his legs -- minus two inches.

My father spoke little of WWII. "Yes, I served" was a common answer -- and common to most WWII vets I have spoken to. Now that he is gone, I now wish I had more time to talk to him about his battles, before, during and after the war. To all the vets, from all the wars, I say "Thanks, and Welcome home!"

World War II Morale

Morale during World War II was truly abominable. Many people living in London spent nights in the subways, and they sent their children to camps in the country to protect them from the nightly bombings.

Many movie stars volunteered to serve in the military during WWII. Jimmy Stewart was the first major American film star to join the war. While flying B-24 bombing missions over Germany, Stewart was promoted to Major.

My father served with Douglas Fairbanks Jr who led amphibious combat and reconnaissance missions.

Many hundreds of people on the home front contributed to the morale of our military at home and abroad. Many of the people who participated were killed or injured while "in harms way". Most notable is the disappearance of US band-leader and musician Glen Miller in December 1944.

To improve morale, many servicemans organizations were formed, most notably:

United Services Organization (The USO)

Main article: USO

The USO was founded in response to a request from President Franklin D. Roosevelt to provide morale and recreation services to U.S. uniformed military personnel. This request led six civilian agencies-the Salvation Army, YMCA, YWCA, National Catholic Community Service (NCCS), National Travelers Aid Association (NTAA) and the National Jewish Welfare Board {NJWB} - to unite in support of the U.S. troops. The USO was incorporated in New York February 4, 1941.

USO centers and clubs opened around the world as a “Home Away from Home" for GI's. The local USO was a place to go for dances and social events, for movies and music, for a quiet place to talk or write a letter home, or for a free cup of coffee and an egg. The USO also brought Hollywood celebrities and volunteer entertainers to perform for the troops.

At its high point in 1944, the USO had more than 3,000 clubs, and curtains were rising on USO shows 700 times a day. From 1941 to 1947, the USO presented more than 400,000 performances, featuring entertainers such as Bing Crosby, Judy Garland, Bette Davis, Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Frank Sinatra, Marlene Dietrich, Hattie McDaniel, Ann Sheridan, The Marx Brothers, James Cagney, James Stewart, Gary Cooper, Danny Kaye, The Rockettes, Al Jolson, Fred Astaire, The Andrews Sisters, Joe E. Brown, Lucille Ball, Glenn Miller, Martha Raye, Mickey Rooney, Betty Hutton, Dinah Shore, and most famously, Bob Hope.

Hollywood Canteen

The Hollywood Canteen operated at 1451 Cahuenga Boulevard in Hollywood, California between October 3, 1942 and November 22, 1945 (Thanksgiving Day) as a club offering food, dancing and entertainment for servicemen. The costs of materials for the renovations and the labor were all donated by members of the various guilds and unions of the entertainment industry. The Canteen was operated and staffed by volunteers from the entertainment industry only. By the time the Canteen opened its doors, over 3000 stars, players, directors, producers, grips, dancers, musicians, singers, writer, technicians, wardrobe attendants, hair stylists, agents, stand-ins, publicists, secretaries, and allied craftsmen of radio and screen had registered as volunteers.

Glamorous stars volunteered to wait on tables, cook in the kitchen and clean up. On September 15, 1943, the one millionth guest walked through the door of the Hollywood Canteen. The lucky soldier, Sgt. Carl Bell, received a kiss from Betty Grable.

See also [ Hollywood Canteen ] To help with morale, air crews painted "nose art" on their aircraft. Ubiquitous posters warning "Loose lips sink ships" were posted to remind readers of security issues. In the field, several military magazines were founded, amongst them were "YANK" and "Leatherneck".

Yank Magazine

Yank, the Army Weekly was a weekly magazine published by the United States military during World War II, and was made available to the soldiers, sailors, and airmen serving overseas. It was published at facilities around the world-British, Mediterranean, Continental, and Western Pacific-for a total of 21 editions in 17 countries. Yank was the most widely read magazine in the history of the U.S. military, achieving a worldwide circulation of more than 2.6 million. Each issue was priced at five cents. Major Hartzell Spence, the founder of YANK is credited with creating the word "Pin-up"

Also see the page [ Category:YANK magazine pinups ] for over one hundred photos of "YANK" magazine Pin-ups.

To connect the dots --

Another outcome of the WWII was an almost unseen effect. Men, going off to war, learned to follow the orders of Sergeants and Officers. The wives left at home learned to step up and run the family while "hubby" was off doing his patriotic duty.

Returning vets continued taking orders, but now from the wives. The entire family structure changed within less than a decade.

Looking at pin-up art for the past century shows a graphic history of sexuality.

• Around the turn of the century, artists produced demure "ladies of the court style" drawings.
• The twenties (after WWI) show a marked influence of European-style sexuality.
• The thirties and forties added the "scantily-clad, sexy nymphs".
• The fifties and sixties introduced the "dominant female" to the art world.
• The seventies and eighties added fetish attire,
• while the nineties added various aspects of BDSM.

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