Greetings Friends,
It is a rainy stormy day here, so I'm catching up on a little office work that I've been meaning to do for a while. I picked up a great grouping from the estate of a US soldier who served in World War II. I've been scanning and archiving the many items in his group. Here in the Photo and Paper Forum, you can see a collection of German propaganda leaflets he kept as well as some cool postcards from Casablanca and other sites.
Now I'd like to share a classic World War II booklet by renowned cartoonist Bill Mauldin. Everyone here should know who he is. I know his booklets are not rare but they are so popular that they are still being reprinted!
Here is an original soldier's copy of one of Mauldin's booklets. We can all read the cartoons and get a kick out of them. But what made these so special to GIs was that Mauldin--an enlisted man himself--was able to capture the essence of life with all it's humor, fear, stress, and frustration as it was for the common soldier.
I've talked with many WWII vets who commented on one or another of Mauldin's cartoons and then shared a personal tale that reflected a similar experience as illustrated in the cartoon.
What I really love about this particular booklet is that the GI took the time to make so many personal notations on many of the cartoons. We've all said before "If only this item could talk!" Well, here's the closest thing to a talking item. Have a look at these cartoons and see what one common foot soldier was thinking about during the war as he thumbed through his booklet.
Enjoy,
Z
It is a rainy stormy day here, so I'm catching up on a little office work that I've been meaning to do for a while. I picked up a great grouping from the estate of a US soldier who served in World War II. I've been scanning and archiving the many items in his group. Here in the Photo and Paper Forum, you can see a collection of German propaganda leaflets he kept as well as some cool postcards from Casablanca and other sites.
Now I'd like to share a classic World War II booklet by renowned cartoonist Bill Mauldin. Everyone here should know who he is. I know his booklets are not rare but they are so popular that they are still being reprinted!
Here is an original soldier's copy of one of Mauldin's booklets. We can all read the cartoons and get a kick out of them. But what made these so special to GIs was that Mauldin--an enlisted man himself--was able to capture the essence of life with all it's humor, fear, stress, and frustration as it was for the common soldier.
I've talked with many WWII vets who commented on one or another of Mauldin's cartoons and then shared a personal tale that reflected a similar experience as illustrated in the cartoon.
What I really love about this particular booklet is that the GI took the time to make so many personal notations on many of the cartoons. We've all said before "If only this item could talk!" Well, here's the closest thing to a talking item. Have a look at these cartoons and see what one common foot soldier was thinking about during the war as he thumbed through his booklet.
Enjoy,
Z
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