What did they do - Actors & Presidents in WW 2

[Jon Skagfeld]

Originally posted by Alex Blair
Audie Murphy is buried in Arlington National Cemetery, just across Memorial Drive from the Memorial Amphitheater. A special flagstone walkway has been constructed to accommodate the large number of people who stop to pay their respects to this hero. At the end of a row of graves, his tomb is marked by a simple, white, government-issue tombstone, which lists only a few of his many military decorations. The stone is, as he was, too small.

Alex: as a sidebar to your comments about Audie Murphy, I was an escort officer in Washington DC in 2002.

Part of my itinerary was the obligatory tour of Arlington cemetary.

As I listened to the tour guide describing some features of the gravesites, I glanced down...damned if I wasn't standing right beside Audie Murphy's grave! It's an awesome experience just being in Arlington, looking at Murphy's grave, JFK's grave and many others including the Tomb of the Unknowns and its attendant ceremonies.

Upon leaving, I noticed a funeral cortege approaching...there were also two P51D Mustang WW II fighters circling overhead.

What going on here, I wondered. I instructed my group to stand to attention as the funeral procession passed by, since I felt that something important was happening.

Later, after picking up a copy of the Washington Post, dated Thursday 18 Jul 2002, it was reported that the funeral was for General Benjamin O. Davis Jr, the first black General Officer in the US Air Force.

He was the Commanding Officer of the "Tuskegee Airmen" (q.v.), a P51 equipped fighter aircraft unit based in Europe during WW II.

Incredible experience!