Booty: The Gentleman Sailor (and How to Be One)

The above poster, which I found over at the always surprising Mid-Century on tumblr, gives some concise and easy to follow rules for gentlemanly courtesy to ladies (click to enlarge and appreciate the captions - and the somewhat surprisingly short skirts.) Produced by the U.S. Navy during the World War II era, the gestures probably seem quaint to most of us now. They shouldn't. We lose something of our humanity when we cease to treat others with respect (and the ladies with their heads screwed on straight always respond to a bit of chivalry, mates). Happy Friday!

Booty: Making WAVES

On March 17th I tweeted one of my favorite #Onthisday tweets to commemorate the founding of the U.S. Navy WAVES corps. On March 17, 1917, the U.S. Navy allowed women to join their ranks – officially – for the first time in history. The WAVES, which stands for Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service, became an integral if secondary part of navy service and the corps was particularly effective during and after World War II.


In response to my tweet, Triple P’s mate Mike from The Pirate’s Lair (see sidebar) sent me this link to his collection of pictures of some of the first WAVES in history. These “yeoman” were almost exclusively shore-based and most often utilized as clerical support to gentlemen officers. Women as a group did not gain active status – again, officially – until 1978 when the Navy became the first of the U.S. armed forces to integrate their all female reserve unit into service. The formation of the WAVES was a landmark step forward for women sailors and is well worth remembering. The pictures collected over at The Pirate’s Lair are a wonderful celebration of that memory. Thankee, Mike (follow him here on Twitter, by the way).

Enjoy your Friday, Brethren. I’ll spy ye tomorrow for Sailor Mouth Saturday.

Header: U.S. Navy recruiting poster from World War II

Booty: Bravest of the Brave

We've talked a lot about heroes lately; David Porter, Thomas Truxtun, USS Constellation; when dealing with our ancestors at sea the list is endless. Today, the story of a more modern hero whose name I cannot, unfortunately, find (please leave a comment if you know). The handsome gunner pictured above who served in the Royal Navy during World War II.


The picture was taken by Horace Bristol, a member of the RN’s photographers unit. He was in a plane rescuing Allied airman from Rabaul Bay in Papua New Guinea when he took this picture. Here is the brief description from Bristol himself:

… we got a call to pick up an airman who was down in the Bay. The Japanese were shooting at him from the island, and when they saw us they started shooting at us. The man who was shot down was temporarily blinded, so one of our crew stripped off his clothes and jumped in to bring him aboard. He couldn’t have swum very well wearing his boots and clothes. As soon as we could, we took off. We weren’t waiting around for anybody to put on formal clothes. We were being shot at and wanted to get the hell out of there. The naked man got back into his position at his gun in the blister of the plane.

When a job needs doing, a guy like this just does it regardless of the circumstances. More often than not, unnamed heroes are the best kind. 

Picture by kind courtesy of Mid-Century via Perpetual Collapse and Miss Folly; many thanks one and all