Tag Archives: World War One

November 11, 2017 · 1:25 am

HAPPY VETERANS DAY 2017!

Happy Veterans Day!

Happy Veterans Day!

Well, it’s been nearly 100 years since November 11th, 1918 saw the end of World War One, or the Great War as it was called before anyone knew a second global conflict would occur. As we all know the date eventually became designated as the day for honoring the people who make it possible for the rest of us to lead our lives in relative safety. 

Irrational political partisans often forget that the only reason any of them have the luxury of sitting back and making pompous, self-righteous pronouncements is because of the men and women who go out and actually DO something. 

And those men and women do it even though they know that Continue reading →

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November 10, 2017 · 6:51 pm

AMERICAN ACE J.M. SWAAB

Until Veteran’s Day – which is tomorrow – Balladeer’s Blog continues to salute neglected heroes from World War One.

Jacques Michael SwaabJ.M. SWAAB – Jacques Michael Swaab didn’t even take to the air with the 22nd Aero Squadron until August 27th of 1918 but before the war ended on November 11th he managed 10 confirmed kills and SEVEN more possible. At that rate Swaab could have challenged Eddie Rickenbacker’s total of 26 kills if he had started earlier in the war.  

On September 8th J.M. flew his Spad XIII in deadly combat, shooting down THREE German planes – including 2 Fokker D-VII’s. Before long he was an Ace and as an added bonus he shot down and killed Germany’s famed Ace Max Nather on October 23rd. Continue reading →

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November 9, 2017 · 10:38 pm

TOP NEGLECTED U.S. NAVAL BATTLES OF WORLD WAR ONE

Navy in World War OneYes, Veterans Day is coming so Balladeer’s Blog has been featuring some seasonal posts. In keeping with my blog’s theme I will take a look at more military actions that don’t get the attention that others do. Here is a look at U.S. Navy battles of the First World War.

OCTOBER 15th, 1917 – America entered the war just six months earlier and the Navy had been transporting the American Expeditionary Force under General “Black Jack” Pershing to Europe, with additional Navy craft escorting those transport ships and fighting German U-Boats. On this date the USS Cassin encountered U-Boat 61 and, after an hour’s pursuit the German submarine turned to fight the Cassin. After a lengthy exchange of torpedoes and depth charges the Cassin was battered but still afloat, while the U-61 suffered substantial damage also, including the destruction of its conning tower, forcing the sub to break off the action and flee.

NOVEMBER 17th, 1917 – The USS Fanning and USS Nicholson clashed with the German U-Boat designated U-58 when eagle-eyed sailors spotted the German sub’s periscope above the water line. Depth charges from the two U.S. ships damaged the U-58 and forced it to surface and engage in standard ship-to-ship combat. The Fanning and Nicholson sank the U-Boat, becoming the FIRST United States ships to Continue reading →

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November 8, 2017 · 11:50 pm

FLYBOYS (2006): WORLD WAR ONE ACES

Here is a fairly entertaining film fictionalizing the escapades of the American pilots in the Lafayette Escadrille during World War One. It’s based on facts but altered enough for a big screen drama. There’s even a Red Baron pastiche called the Black Falcon.

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November 7, 2017 · 9:48 pm

AMERICAN ACE OF WORLD WAR ONE: FRANK LEAMAN BAYLIES

Frank Leaman BayliesFRANK LEAMAN BAYLIES – For the first eleven days of November Balladeer’s Blog takes a look at neglected figures of World War One, ending on Veterans Day. Frank Leaman Baylies tried to serve as a pilot in the U.S. Army but was rejected for supposedly poor vision, so in May 1917 he enlisted in the French flying corps instead.

Baylies flew with Escadrille 73 as the 13th man in the unit, flying a plane numbered 13. Frank philosophically shrugged off superstition, feeling lucky to be flying at all after being rejected by his home country’s air corps. In December of 1917 he was transferred to Escadrille 3, and really found his niche flying a Spad.

On February 19th, 1918 Baylies got his first verified kill, ultimately notching a total of 12 plus one more possible by May 31st. March 28th saw Frank shot down over No Man’s Land. After landing his crippled aircraft Baylies grabbed the altimeter and time-piece from the plane before scrambling toward the French trenches. The pilot was pursued by German soldiers but made it safely to the French lines.   Continue reading →

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November 6, 2017 · 11:52 pm

“ANCIENT” SCI-FI ABOUT WORLD WAR ONE

World War One picWorld War OneWorld War OneYes, the first eleven days of November are about World War One here at Balladeer’s Blog – with my other topics thrown in as well.

This blog post combines World War One with my Ancient Science Fiction category to present vintage stories regarding that conflict.

Many of them feature dieselpunk inventions like I covered in my reviews of the pulp magazine G-8 And His Battle Aces.

Blood and IronBLOOD AND IRON (1917) – Written by Robert Hobart Davis & Perley Poore Sheehan. Dramatic depiction of advanced technology being used in World War One. In Germany one of the Kaiser’s scientists is experimenting with replacing lost limbs and organs with mechanical replacements. He has been trying to create cyborgs out of maimed German soldiers from the front lines.

After many failures, Experiment Number 241 is the scientist’s first success. His replacement arms and legs possess superhuman strength plus his replacement ears and eyes have granted him long-range vision and hearing.

Kaiser Wilhelm is thrilled, since this means that previously mortal wounds will now pave the way for cyborg soldiers. The Kaiser interrogates and drills Number 241 and expresses annoyance with the cyborg’s robotic way of speaking.

Number 241 at length has enough and kills the Kaiser, leaving a bloody pulp of a corpse. The horrified scientist’s expression of shock is met with a robotic reply of “Blood – and – iron.” (As in Otto Von Bismarck’s motto.)   

IN THE CHANNEL (1907)- Written by B.T. Stewart. Though penned seven years before the Guns of August blazed this story featured Kaiser Wilhelm’s forces launching an offensive in the English Channel and the surrounding waters.

The short story centers on naval battles, with the Germans unseating the Britons as “rulers of the waves.” The Germans then go on to win the entire war in this combination of the Future War sub-genre with the “are we fully prepared for war” exploitation tales.     Continue reading →

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November 6, 2017 · 12:30 am

EDDIE RICKENBACKER: AMERICA’S GREATEST FLYING ACE OF WORLD WAR ONE

Eddie RickenbackerBalladeer’s Blog had proceeded from the assumption that most readers were familiar with flying ace Eddie Rickenbacker but comments and emails indicate otherwise. Here’s a look at him as we lead up to another November 11th, now called Veterans Day but formerly known as Armistice Day since November 11th, 1918 marked the end of World War One.

EDDIE RICKENBACKER – “Fast Eddie” Rickenbacker was first known as a race-car driver who competed in four Indianapolis 500’s before the U.S. entered World War One. Upon America’s entry into the conflict Rickenbacker enlisted in the Army and was in France with his unit by late June 1917.

Fast Eddie’s mechanical abilities – honed working with engines during his racing days – kept him grounded as a mechanic for several months. During that period Rickenbacker learned to fly in nearly every spare moment. Eventually he got his wings and took to the air with America’s legendary Hat in the Ring Squadron (the 94th Aero Squadron).    

Eddie made Ace – five confirmed kills – with less than a full month between his first kill and his fifth. Lieutenant – eventually Captain – Rickenbacker scored his sixth verified kill on May 30th, 1918 before getting an ear infection which kept him out of the air for a few months. Many more kills lay ahead of him.   Continue reading →

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November 4, 2017 · 8:18 am

SEVEN AMERICAN ACES OF WORLD WAR ONE

eugene-bullard

Eugene Bullard

For another Veterans Day post I’ll do another shoutout to the Flying Aces of World War One. The movie Flyboys is a good fictional film about their mystique (but based on the real-life Lafayette Escadrille).

EUGENE BULLARD – This African-American boxer from Columbus, GA served in the French Foreign Legion as early as the Battle of Verdun in 1916 and had already won a Croix de Guerre before joining the legendary Lafayette Escadrille on a bet.(!) He qualified but the prejudiced Frenchman Dr Edmund Le Gros rejected him for service.

Bullard instead flew a Spad 7 with French Escadrille 93. Eugene still had an uphill fight against prejudice and the French supposedly failed to credit him with all of his kills, limiting him to just 2 in the official records but tradition credits Bullard with between 5 and 9. He had what may be the best nickname outside of the Red Baron and was called the Black Swallow of Death. On the side of his plane he painted the words “ALL blood runs red” in reference to the bigotry he had faced.

paul-iaccaciTHE IACCACI BROTHERS – In the 1960s young American men would head to Canada to avoid serving in the Vietnam War. During World War One a number of young American men headed to Canada to serve in British Military Units because the U.S. had not yet entered the conflict.

Two of those men were Paul T Iaccaci  and his younger brother August. The brothers served in the 20th British Squadron flying Bristol F.2 Fighters.

Both brothers were Ivy League men – Paul at Harvard, August at Princeton. Both Iaccaci’s became Aces on the exact same day – May 31st, 1918. Paul ended the war with 17 kills and his brother August … kept the uncanny coincidences going with 17 kills of his own. In late October of 1918 August was wounded in the eye and spent the few remaining days of the war hospitalized in England.   Continue reading →

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November 11, 2016 · 11:12 pm

SEVEN AMERICAN FLYING ACES OF WORLD WAR ONE

eugene-bullard

Eugene Bullard

For my final Veterans Day post I’ll do another shoutout to the Flying Aces of World War One. The movie Flyboys is a good fictional film about their mystique (but based on the real-life Lafayette Escadrille).

EUGENE BULLARD – This African-American boxer from Columbus, GA served in the French Foreign Legion as early as the Battle of Verdun in 1916 and had already won a Croix de Guerre before joining the legendary Lafayette Escadrille on a bet.(!) He qualified but the prejudiced Frenchman Dr Edmund Le Gros rejected him for service.

Bullard instead flew a Spad 7 with French Escadrille 93. Eugene still had an uphill fight against prejudice and the French supposedly failed to credit him with all of his kills, limiting him to just 2 in the official records but tradition credits Bullard with between 5 and 9. He had what may be the best nickname outside of the Red Baron and was called the Black Swallow of Death. On the side of his plane he painted the words “ALL blood runs red” in reference to the bigotry he had faced. Continue reading →

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November 11, 2016 · 5:52 pm

G-8: A WORLD WAR ONE PULP HERO FOR VETERANS DAY

G8 and the vultures of the white deathFor a light-hearted Veterans Day post how about a Balladeer’s Blog shoutout to the fictional American World War One pilot code-named G8. 

THE HERO: G-8 was the codename of an American flying ace of World War One. The character was created by Robert J Hogan in 1933 and over the next 11 years Hogan wrote 110 stories featuring the daring figure. G-8, whose real name was never revealed, was a master of disguise in addition to his piloting and hand-to-hand combat skills. 

Hogan’s hero (see what I did there) was unswervingly patriotic and fiercely dedicated to the defeat of the Central Powers.   

THE STORIES: With his two fellow operatives “The Battle Aces” G-8 conducted aerial commando raids, carried out special forces missions and even undertook espionage missions against the Germans, Austro-Hungarians and the Ottoman Muslim Turks. In true Pulp Story fashion the Central Powers threw a vast array of mad scientists, monstrous creatures and alien super-science against our heroes, who always prevailed in the end.   Continue reading →

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