#boyington

[carbone14]

Major Gregory 'Pappy' Boyington – US Marine Corps – 1940's

[roughridingrednecks]

Boyington

[floridaboiler]

WWII uncovered: Ball Caps for the Black Sheep

During their first combat tour, while on the island of Vella Lavella, the Black Sheep’s Intelligence Officer Frank Walton wrote to the Commissioner of Baseball with a proposition:

"The Black Sheep, said Walton, were in dire need of sun-shading ball caps due to the humid weather which quickly destroyed their military issue caps. He promised that his Squadron’s pilots would shoot down a Japanese aircraft for each cap sent to them. Only the St. Louis Cardinal organization of the National League responded, sending dozens of caps to the heroes in the Pacific.

Pictured is Major Greg “Pappy” Boyington (right) pretending to take a stack of Cardinals caps from Chris Magee who accepts a stack of Japanese Navy “victory” decals in return. According to the National Baseball Hall of Fame: "In return for the caps, the Black Sheep made good on their end of the bargain. Instead of taking down just 20 enemy planes, though, the original 20 members of the Squadron accounted for 48 enemy planes destroyed." The St Louis Cardinals more than doubled their investment and the Black Sheep Squadron were happy to oblige!! Semper Fi.

[wheelsgoroundincircles]

World War II Ace Greg "Pappy" Boyington

Gregory "Pappy" Boyington (December 4, 1912 – January 11, 1988) was an American combat pilot who was a United States Marine Corps fighter ace during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor and the Navy Cross. A Marine aviator with the Pacific fleet in 1941, Boyington joined the "Flying Tigers" (1st American Volunteer Group) of the Republic of China Air Force and saw combat in Burma in late 1941 and 1942 during the military conflict between China and Japan.

In September 1942, Boyington rejoined the Marine Corps. In early 1943, he deployed to the South Pacific and began flying combat missions in the F4U Corsair fighter. In September 1943, he took command of Marine fighter squadron VMF-214 ("Black Sheep"). In January 1944, Boyington, outnumbered by Japanese "Zero" planes, was shot down into the Pacific Ocean after downing one of the enemy planes. He was captured by a Japanese submarine crew and was held as a prisoner of war for more than a year and a half. He was released shortly after the surrender of Japan. The television series Baa Baa Black Sheep was inspired by Boyington and his men in the "Black Sheep" squadron. It ran for two seasons in the late 1970s.

[theparanormalperiodical]

Spook Of The Day #205 • the mysterious story of Boyington’s Oak

Its a classic tale of rags to riches in 19th century America - so classic that someone ends up with blood on their hands, and someone else gets haunted.

Charles Boyington moved to Mobile, Alabama during a time of expansion in the state. The young printer was a known gambler who had gotten into debt with his housemate. His housemate, Nathaniel Frost, was then stabbed to death and robbed by a local cemetery.

Boyington was the obvious suspect but still vouched for his innocence. He was sentenced to death but before he was hung he claimed to prove his innocence an oak tree would grow from his grave.

And it did.

Hit follow to hear a new ghost story everyday and follow the link in the bio to discover an online ghost stories collection!

[markloveshistory]

“Show Me a Hero...”

“Show Me a Hero…”

Today in History, January 3, 1944: Moments after he became the top fighter ace in the Pacific Theater by shooting down his 26th enemy plane, USMC Major Gregory “Pappy” Boyington was himself shot down over the Japanese base of Rabaul. He would be captured by the Japanese and held prisoner, brutally treated until rescued from a Japanese prisoner of war camp. Boyington had been one of the American…

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Shopping by Ray Boyington