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127 7 “Unnecessarily Unsatisfactory” Bob Hope and Frances Langford were two of the most famous entertainers in the United States, and in 1943 they traveled to England and North Africa to entertain American soldiers and airmen. Their schedule of events had been coordinated by the Special Services officer and his staff in the American Supreme Headquarters and approved by General Eisenhower. It was obvious the troops enjoyed Hope and his one-line jokes and references to their service in England, but GIs being GIs, their loudest cheers were for the beautiful American girl Langford. Moved by the posting of casualties and missing aircrews , the entertainers also visited hospitals. From England, Hope, Langford, and their crew traveled to North Africa, where they experienced a German air raid. In North Africa were the combat troops who had engaged the Afrika Korps in battle and finally defeated them, but at a high cost. As in England, the two stars visited the hospitals and put on stage shows for the troops, and, again, the loudest cheers and whistles were for the real American girl with a great smile and upswept brunette hair. The tour was overseen by a Special Services lieutenant, who arranged every aspect of the shows, using the technicians of the Special Services company to ensure that microphones and speakers worked and that GI musicians were prepared to accompany Hope and Langford. One of the loudest crowds of appreciative GIs was at an airfield near Tunis, where fighters and bombers flew against the German army.1 In the audience that day was Corporal William E. George of the 415th Fighter Squadron, who was thrilled at seeing two famous stars. That night he wrote to his mother in Little Rock, “Well I saw Bob Hope and Francis [sic] Langford today in person, yep ain’t that grand, this is a ‘wonderful world.’ I 128 American Girls, Beer, and Glenn Miller am telling you, you would have died to hear some of the jokes he pulled off, of course not knowing the army life and England as we do it would not be so funny.”2 Two days later George was promoted to the rank of sergeant, and he wrote to his parents to tell them the good news, but of equal length and enthusiasm was his recalling of the show put on by Bob Hope and Frances Langford .3 Hope, Langford, and hundreds of other stars of radio and the movie screen would visit and entertain the troops in every theater of war, and their trips through the auspices of the USO would be made possible by the coordination of the Special Services in the United States and overseas. The number of overseas trips grew dramatically throughout 1944 and well into 1945 and became a major factor in maintaining GI morale. The Special Services Division had come a long way since its founding, and the focus of Special Services activities had changed considerably as the war grew in intensity. One of the areas with which Special Services dealt in 1942 was the identification of artists among the incoming draftee soldiers. The project aimed at putting artists at work to “embellish mess halls, recreation rooms, Service Clubs, administration buildings, classrooms, etc., with appropriate mural decorations.”4 By 1943 and well into 1944 and 1945, Special Services and the Army Exchange System built clubs and PXs as quickly as possible out of wood or, if lucky, concrete, painted or paneled the walls, put in equipment or showcases, and opened for business. GIs were not particularly interested in artistic representations when they wanted a cold beer and a hamburger, to play pool, or attend a dance. Also, by 1944 the army needed more and more infantry, not mural painters. The cooperation between the USO camp shows and the Special Services had grown as more and more shows went overseas. Problems had surfaced with some of the shows, and Special Services had to screen participants better as to health conditions, character, and actual skills such as singing, joke telling, and expertise with musical instruments. The director of Special Services , now General Joseph Byron, wanted Special Services personnel to hold auditions. The USO entertainers had to be questioned to make certain that there were no problems with air travel. Special Services had been informed that boat travel for entertainers was simply impossible. Army transportation was stretched to the limit as far as shipping space was concerned, and ships were needed for troops and necessary supplies. If an entertainer...

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