Anonymous This poem was copied into a journal kept by Corman Bean, a navigator on a B-24 with the 445th Bomb Group whose plane was shot down on the Kassel Mission bombing raid of Sept. 27, 1944. Bean acquired the poem while he was a prisoner of war at Stalag Luft 1 in Barth, Germany.
Oh, Hedy Lamar is a beautiful gal Madeline Carroll is too But you’ll find if you query a much different theory Amongst any bomber crew That the loveliest thing of which one can sing This side of the heavenly gates Is no blonde or brunette of the Hollywood set But an escort of P-38s
In all the days past when the tables were massed With glasses of scotch and champagne It’s quite true that that sight was a thing to delight us Intent on feeling no pain But no longer the same nowadays in this game As we sail onto the missing state Take your sparkling wine but always make mine An escort of P-38s
Byron, Shelley and Keats ran each other dead heats Describing the views from the hills Of the valleys in May where the winds gently sway An army of bright daffodils Take your daffodils Byron, the wild flowers Shelley Yours is the myrtle, friend Keats Just preserve me those cuties All American beauties An escort of P-38s
Sure we’re braver than hell on the ground all is well In the air it’s a much different story As we sweat out our track through the fighters and flak We’re willing to split up the glory Well, they wouldn’t reject us so heaven protect us Until all this shootin’ abates Give us courage to fight ‘em and another small item An escort of P-38s |
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