Art & Inspiration The Bomber Jacket

Looks like the catalyst for the Car Club Jackets,... to follow shortly after the war. Thanks for posting this Ryan,.... I think a LOT of WWII influence spilled over into Hot Rods,.. for many obvious reasons.

 

So awesome, real heroes. Unlike today where people try to look like they are some badass and mimic a certain look such as that. (Mean while they are an accountant on a computer all day) These guys were actually badasses.

 

Cool jacket, I know these real originals fetch some deep pocket $. They are very rare and awesome. Nostalgia at its best, these brave warriors sacrificied a lot. ~sololobo~

 

Just plainn awesome!

 

Way cool..
I like the Patent Pending, and Mr. Completely jackets...
Cheers.....

 

Thanks, those are really cool.

 

These are image from my grandmother's photo album that I inherited. The guy in those images was my Grandmother's love of her life who was killed shortly after he got home from the war. His name was Gus and she spoke very highly of him....even more so then my grandfather who she met later on. I love the name Flak Magnet!!!

The last pic is a shot of the Albumthat the images are preserved in. I have a ton of these albums.

 

It's amazing what's out there on the internet! Thanks for sharing Ryan.

I often wonder what became of these old bomber jackets... Are they family heirlooms? Folded up in a box in an attic? Sold and forgotten?

 

Also for shits and Giggles I'll show you the one my brother had painted with one shot by Ronnie Lasker for my 1.5 year old son Memphis James.

It's tiny but it'll probably fit him until he's 2 or so...

 

I have a great picture of my dad sitting on his 48 Harley back around 52 or 53, sadly the squadron art work can't be seen in the picture since he was facing the curb on the bike..I asked him what ever happened to his jackets..sadly most were stolen from him while out on leave. He would go out with Air Force buddy's and visit the local Haufbrau's by the Base. Their jackets would be gone when that came back to the table .

 

I have always been a huge fan of the old WWII squadron flight jackets. I even had some replicas made when I was stationed in Korea back in the '80s. Those guys did great work. I changed sizes since then, so I gave them away to friends because they didn't fit me anymore. I gave away one to a fellow HAMB'r, hotrod 49. I'll ping him and tell him to take a picture of it and post it up.

If you are a big fan of these jackets, you MUST visit the Air Force Museum at Wright Patterson AFB in Dayton, Ohio. They have a huge collection of these jackets, all on display. It is freakin' incredible. If you are a military aviation buff, the museum is unbelieveable. I could spend days in that place.

Great thread!! The guys who strapped into those planes in WWII had balls the size of an elephant. Many, many, many never made it home. True heroes, all of them.

I went on the Air Force Museum website and came up with these, who don't come close to capturing the amount of displayed jackets they have there:
http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=15104

http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/shared/media/photodb/photos/090819-F-1234S-001.jpg

 

Awesome. Thanks for sharing Ryan.
I have the highest respect for the WW II Bomber crews. Those guys had balls of steel. Many of them were just kids right out of High School. IIRC, your tour was 25 bombing runs and many guys didn't survive. Of those that did, they signed right up for another tour.

Alas, "Section 8" means something completely different nowadays.

 

I laughed at the "Patent Pending" one!!!

 

Great thread Ryan !

And all these true American Heroes deserved every bit of pride that these iconic images created for their "personal" links to their combat duty.

In many cases, they were the continuation, or, copy, of the "Nose Art" that was featured on their planes, or, similar designs that were "one offs" and a viable link to the Unit or Squadron they had served in.

During WWII even Walt Disney and his company poured many, many hours into creating Logos for nose art, patches, decals, etc., to give all involved a "link to home & familiar humor" that they sometimes desperately needed. And, yes, during the war, Mickey, Donald, Pluto, Goofy, and many other Disney characters, adorned the noses of Bombers, Fighter Planes, Jeeps, Trucks, and, Jackets, all in the spirit of duty to try and help America (and those who were protecting us) in one of its darkest hours.

I have some patches & letters that my Uncles' who served in all branches sent home during that time period...but, sadly, none had any of those great jackets.

Thanks again !

Jonnie


PS: Here's a super book that contains a detailed look at many of the Nose Art pieces that were drawn & photographed, and, sometimes, turned into "Jacket Art"...

 

very cool.

 

Dad had one with "Little Teacher" and a drawing that resembled a young school teacher in Waco Tx on the back when he flew as a gunner in B-25's in SE Asia.

My mom threw such a fit over it after they got married that he burned it one day to shut her up.

 

Great thread, and great way to remember those brave young men with the big brass b*lls.

 

I have always loved the nose art of WWII and the jackets are even cooler. Those guys were walking billboards of cool and courage. You saw one you instantly knew which plane was theirs and what they faced each mission. I painted a few of the girls from the nose art in high school and they weren't allowed to be displayed because they were inappropriate! Funny I just see them as art and historical.

Thanks for posting

 

Neat stuff. I sure wish they were in color, as in Kodachrome. Gary

 

I was at the Confederate Air Force building in Mesa Az lookling for a real bomber seat to copy and in the back they had several bomber jackets including an original Hells Angel.

 

Got my Avatar from that Flickr page. Saw the picture in a book about WWII when I was a kid and loved that photo ever since.

 

Amazing art and photos. A bit of a reality check reading the descriptions on the Flickr page...

I can't even imagine the guts it took to fly those missions.

 

Those are awesome jackets! I love bomber art. Thanks for sharing, that is quite the extensive collection of photos.

 

Very cool!!

 

Always loved the nose art, but didn't realize that there were jackets. All persons that serve are my heroes. These jackets represent a lot of the things that America is all about. Thanks for the educational post, Cat

 

Thanks a million for sharing these.

 

Fancy Nancy IV
Shows 30 Bombing runs
and 2 Bailouts????

That is a war hero.

 

I love the artwork and the history..thanks for sharing

 

Great find. I love this stuff! Thanks!