Posted on 10/07/2016 5:21:51 AM PDT by DFG
Jimmy Stewart suffered such extreme PTSD after being a fighter pilot in World War II that he acted out his mental distress during 'It's a Wonderful Life'. Stewart played George Bailey in the classic movie and channeled his anger and guilt into the scenes where he rages at his family. Stewart was haunted by 'a thousand black memories' from his time as an Air Force commanding officer that he took with him back to Hollywood after the war. Pilots who flew with him said that became 'Flak Happy' during World War II, a term to describe what is now known as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
I’m surprised that this article didn’t include mention of the fact that it’s widely believed Jimmy was the man who shot Liberty Valance. I know some of you tin foil hat types out there think there was a second shooter, but for my money, Jimmy took the shot.
Of the 16.3M Americans who served in WWII, only ~2-3% are alive today. The author claims to find one unnamed flier who alleges Stewart told him he was flak happy and had gone to a flak farm. That’s thin cruel. And of course this book is written long after the subject is gone. No thanks.
From Henry Fonda, who volunteered and served patriotically in the Navy during WW2, to his daughter Hanoi Jane. What a decline of Hollywood!
I have a better perspective now of that movie. I didn’t much care for it until just reading several articles about him.
In 1941 the Army Air Corps became the AAF—Army Air FORCE.
If you’ve read the DM enough you’ll figure out that the writers are either Indian or Pakistani.
20 bombing missions was a lot. Most guys didn’t make it that far before they got shot down or wounded. My great uncle got shot down on his 15th mission and spent the rest of the war in a POW camp.
Beat me to it. He was a bomber guy. That’s probably MORE stressful than a fighter; flying straight and level to line up a target makes it easier to hit you.
Damn, that had to have been pretty rough. Although I do not think it was quite as bad as the German soldiers in Russian POW camps. I met one of those back in Arizona in the late 1990’s. He heard me say something in Russian in a restaurant and almost had a fit.
Yes, the media lies so much, now they do it even when they don’t need to.
My dad is an example: 5 Air Medals and 2 DFCs from 11 mos flying F4s out of Da Nang, and he was never the same after he came home. Subtle but deep change.
Having people actively trying to kill you for months at a time is a profound thing.
Horse hockey
The above should show just how accurate this entire story is as 'Peter' Fonda was about 4 years old when this 'leave of absence. supposedly took place--
Jimmy Stewart=hero, national treasure, my very favorite actor of all time.
I knew he’d served, didn’t know many details.
What an awesome man he was. He was married to one woman for 45 years until her death, and never remarried after.
Thank you for posting this.
My father served with Stewart and received his DFC from him. He was an admirer of Stewart because he did fly with his crews, most times in the lead plane. I remember my dad saying that when Doolittle came in he raised it to 30 missions and my dad knew then he wouldn't make it. He was close to his 20 missions when this happened. He made the extra 10 and came home with 30.
Dad always liked Stewart and his movies and would speak of wanting to go meet him once again as late as the 60's and 70's. For whatever reason, he thought Stewart would remember him. Maybe he would have.
LOL!
Jimmy Stewart... making Pennsylvania Proud for decades!
:^)
At least, under the fascists, the trains ran on time.
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