Hollywood

Hollywood Goes To War
Propaganda, Encouragement, and Escape on the Silver Screen
Though war raged in Europe and the Pacific, Hollywood was still producing movies, everything from Charlie Chaplin's spoof The Great Dictator to the Bing Crosby and Bob Hope musical Road to Morocco to the cinema classic Casablanca. Some films were pure escapism that featured romance or comedy, but others were more somber, and set among real world events. Most films had some patriotic angle, however.

In 1942, the Office of War Information (OWI) worked with military units and producers to produce propaganda and training films. The US War Department released seven films in the series Why We Fight to help first soldiers and the public understand the importance of the US involvement in WWII. It's a Wonderful Life director, Frank Capra, directed or co-directed these films and Disney artists provided animation, Even Donald Duck participated the action in the 1943 Disney short Der Fuehrer's Face, which depicted his nightmare about working in a factory in Nazi Germany. The OWI did produce a manual, which suggested that filmmakers should ask themselves, "Will this picture help to win the war?" The OWI's Bureau of Motion Pictures asked studios to include scenes of people sacrificing cheerfully and voluntarily, and to present the armed forces and their allies in a positive light.

Established actors also enlisted in the armed forces. Jimmy Stewart, Clark Gable, Gene Autry, William Holden, and Jackie Coogan into the US Army Air Forces, Douglas Fairbanks Jr. into the US Navy, Tyrone Power into the USMC, Sir Alec Guinness into the British Royal Navy, and David Niven into the British Army Rifle Brigade.. Bandleader, Glenn Miller, enlisted in the Army Air Forces and and died when his plane went down over the English Channel in 1944. British actor, Leslie Howard, known for playing Ashley in Gone with the Wind, was killed in 1943 when his plane was shot down by the Luftwaffe. Humphrey Bogart had served in the US Navy in WW and tried to re-enlist in WWII, but was told he was too old, so he volunteered for the Coast Guard Temporary Reserve.

Many actors and actresses found other ways to assist in the war effort, performing on USO tours and encouraging the public to buy war bonds. German born actress, Marlene Dietrich, not only served in those capacities, often on the front lines, but also created recordings for the Office of Strategic Services (O.S.S) in German. American actress, Carole Lombard, was killed in a plane crash while on a war bond tour.