Herb Caen: Memorial Day 1949

Herb Caen's column helped introduce me to the Bay Area in 1981.  I loved his daily columns and later his book Baghdad-By-The-Bay from 1949.  Here is a excerpt of Chapter 13 for Memorial Day

You think about things like this today.  About the kids who bought a one-way passage to North Africa and Tinian, Normandy and Attu.  Especially the kids from San Francisco, because you're back and they're not, you were lucky, they weren't--and who knows why it was like that?

You can't help thinking about the guy from the Sunset who stopped a sniper's bullet at Saint Lo, and the paisano from North Beach who cashed in at Guam, and the boy from Pacific Heights whose last C-47 mission over the Hump ended in a question mark.

I was thrilled to read about the C-47 that led the D-Day invasion being found, restored and flown to Normandy for the 75th anniversary.  Check it out here.

Nearly 75 years ago, on June 6, 1944, That’s All, Brother led the main airborne invasion of Normandy. Piloted by Lt. Col John Donalson, the plane led over 800 C-47s that dropped over 13,000 paratroopers into a battle that changed the course of mankind. Our mission is to bring this great airplane back to the skies over Normandy for the commemoration of the 75th anniversary of D-Day.

My Dad flew C-47's during the war and pulled gliders full of paratroopers behind.  Here's remembering all of our vets and the other loved ones who have passed on to the other side.

Comments

[It Don't Come Easy]

I saw Wings of Freedom at Moffet Field this weekend--B-17, B-24, B25, P-40, and P-51. Hopefully, the C-47 will be added soon enough. It was the backbone of the Army Air Force.
And thank you for your father's service.

[Joe]

Thanks, Easy. I was hoping to go up in the B-24 this year, but couldn't pull it off. I did the B-17 last year:

https://www.burlingamevoice.com/2017/05/29/

[Joe]

I'll offer a big thanks to the Daily Journal and the Wall Street Journal for featuring front page tributes to the veterans on the 75th anniversary of D-Day today. And big raspberries to the Daily Post and the San Francisco Chronicle. Even worse, the sad stuff they latter two ran instead was pitiful.