With the advent of World War II many of our actors went to fight rather than stand and rant against this country we all love. They gave up their wealth, position and fame to become service men & women, many as simple "enlisted men".
This page lists but a few, but from this group of only 18 men came over 70 medals in honor of their valor, spanning from Bronze Stars, Silver Stars, Distinguish Service Cross', Purple Hearts and one Congressional Medal of Honor.
This page lists but a few, but from this group of only 18 men came over 70 medals in honor of their valor, spanning from Bronze Stars, Silver Stars, Distinguish Service Cross', Purple Hearts and one Congressional Medal of Honor.
- Alec Guinness (Star Wars~Bridge over the River Kwai) operated a British Royal Navy landing craft on D-Day.
- Earnest Borgnine was a U. S. Navy Gunners Mate 1935-1945.
- Charles Bronson was a tail gunner in the Army Air Corps, more specifically on B-29s in the 20th Air Force out of Guam, Tinian, and Saipan
- James Doohan ("Scotty" on Star Trek) landed in Normandy with the U. S. Army on D-Day.
- Charles Durning was a U. S. Army Ranger at Normandy earning a Silver Star and awarded the Purple Heart.
- Clark Gable (Mega-Movie Star when war broke out) Although he was beyond the draft age at the time the U.S. entered WW II
Clark Gable enlisted as a private in the AAF on Aug. 12, 1942 at Los Angeles.
He attended the Officers' Candidate School at Miami Beach, Fla and graduated as a second lieutenant on Oct. 28, 1942. He then attended aerial gunnery school and in Feb. 1943 he was assigned to the 351st Bomb Group at Polebrook where flew operational missions over Europe in B-17s.
Capt. Gable returned to the U.S. in Oct. 1943 and was relieved from active duty as a major on Jun. 12, 1944 at his own request, since he was over-age for combat. - Charlton Heston was an Army Air Corps Sergeant in Kodiak.