Code Name Rascal

And other excuses.

For the past twenty years, I’ve been working on a women’s historical novel set in Hawaii during the first six months of the war. (Pearl Harbor to the Battle of Midway) Next Friday, the final revision is due to the editor, and for the last month, I’ve been head down at the computer working on it. This is my way of telling you, I did not write a newsletter this month.

(I’m posting links to past newsletter that deal with event I mention.)

The image above is a working cover design. The story is “inspired by” the Women’s Air Raid Defense unit. I will be doing two newsletters about this unit. The “Shuffleboard Pilots” were under the command of Brigadier General Howard C. Davidson, 14th Pursuit Wing.

Four divergent female characters represent the experiences of different demographics:

Character ONE represents the affluent haole population. She is a Punahou, Mills College “girl” who is meant to portray the daughter of the in-real-life (IRL) Mrs. Uma Walker.

Mrs. Walker was called by General Davidson to assemble fifty girls of “good character” to become the first class of the WARD.

IRL, I have no idea if Mrs. Walker even had a daughter. This character is total fiction. However, the setting of Character ONE’s home is the IRL home on the Pali Highway. Its grounds are periodically open to the public. This is the Walker Estate

.I used a photo of Lauren Bacall and a photo of an IRL Ward to help me imagine her. In the book, the old school sergeant dubs her “Hollywood.”

Character TWO represents the experiences of a military wife. She is a third-generation Navy officer’s wife who watched the attack from Makalapa Base Housing. One of the women I interviewed was staying at the home of Commander Momsen the weekend of the attack and shared her memories with me. I did use some of her stories in the book.

Here’s a link to information about the Momsen lung. https://navalhistoria.com/momsen/

The old school sergeant does not dare give the wife of a senior officer a knickname.
I used a photo of her because she represents the grace and vulnerability of this character but also her calm presence. The social obligations of an officer’s wife and the expectations of her are evident.

Character THREE is a feisty New Jersey reporter just out of Columbia School of Journalism who is married to a stubborn first-generation Italian USMC lieutenant. She lands a job at the Honolulu Advertiser. She experiences unsettling observations of a newcomer to Hawaii; this enables her to give the observations of newcomers to Hawaii and the fact that 1/3 of the population is Japanese, that there is only a 30-day food supply (Still is!) , the remoteness of the island. She also is restricted as to what she can write due to censorship under Martial Law. There will be no reporting on mandatory evacuations, civilian deaths, strikes by prostitutes, torpedoing of the island (ongoing), or other unreported tragedies. Here are links to a newsletter about prostitution and one about Martial Law.

Character FOUR. Is a Texas aviatrix who fell in love with flying when a “girl” pilot crash landed on her family ranch. (The pilot in the book is Netty Snook who IRL was one of Amelia Earhardt’s flight instructors.)

Character FOUR is tough and bright. She falls in love with one of her flight students who talks a good line and drinks more of it. She represents the challenges of a woman during World War 2 attempting to offer her best talents to the war. She is also a friend of Cornelia Fort, who will not join the WARD. She joins Nancy Love’s Womens’ AuxiliaryFerrying Squadron. IRL life Cornelia Fort was a pilot in the air with one of her flight students during the attack of Pearl Harbor. She joined the WAFS and was killed in a mid-air collision while ferrying a bomber. Fort is portrayed in the movie MIDWAY.

Here’s a link that includes information on Cornelia Fort. (I ca

n’t believe I didn’t give her her own post! I’ll have to fix that!)

The men in their lives include Character ONE’s childhood friend, a Navy doctor, a Harvard Med grad who gives a glimpse of life being a closeted gay man. The “Pansy Culture” of the Cole Porter era is portrayed.

Character ONE’s love interest is a PBY pilot. Through him, I’m able to explain the constant vigilance of the military and expose the training accidents that occurred during the war. (Whatever your politics, this is the image I used. It’s Lieutanant George H.W. Bush)

Character TWO’s husband is a senior Intelligence Officer. Through him the situtaton in China and Australia are explained. The most tragic are the Banka Island Massacre and the mass murder of 250,000 Chinese in retaliation for them helping the downed pilots of the Doolittle raid.

Character THREE’s husband is---OK, if you are a Marine or know who this guy is, don’t send me emails!—is a gruff immigrant son who represents the loving but paternalistic attitude of men in the 40s toward women’s careers. He is loving, but you want to ring his neck.

The image I used for this charater is John “Manila” Basilone, USMC, Medal of Honor winner.

Character FOUR’s husband, unfortunately, represents a person (in this case, a man) who blames the world for his lack of effort. This character allows me to explain the training of pilots and their function during the war.

The SERGEANT who trains the WARDs is a vehicle to report “News of the Day” exposing little known facts such as: the many transport ships that were sunk, the bombing of Roosevelt High School in March 1942, the training accidents that resulted in civilian deaths.

HONOLULU of 1941 is a character. The glitzy nightclubs and the tranquil agrarian life outside the city before the war are briefly portrayed. The reality was that overnight, it became a military encampment with the mobilization of a civilian population that was prepared for an attack, the mass immunizations, the dengue fever epidemic, the closing of schools, the constant fear of invasion, and the rumor—so many rumors.

So, there’s my excuse for having no newsletter this month. But I promise to make it up in April.

In the meantime, if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions to include in this note, please let me know. Thanks for your patience.

Here’s a link to a IRL love story between a WARD and a DFS Bomber pilot. (Yes, that’s me and that shows you how long I’ve been working on this project. And, I still have the hat.)

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