Corporal Jimmy Stewart part of Bill of Rights 150th anniversary commemoration

80 years ago the United States celebrated the 150th anniversary of the Bill of Rights. To commemorate this special day, all four major radio networks aired a one-hour special program narrated by U.S. Army corporal Jimmy Stewart and other celebrities of the day.

Listen to this entertaining and powerfully patriotic program here: https://orsonwelles.indiana.edu/items/show/2037

Corporal Jimmy Stewart? Yes, the Academy Award-winning actor had tried to enlist in the Army since 1940. Stewart did not meet the weight requirements (he was too skinny) but finally worked his way into the service as an Air Corps private in March 1941. Told he was too old (33) to begin pilot training, he found his way around that and earned a commission and his wings. Stewart feared his celebrity status would keep him from combat, and the Army made him an instructor at Kirtland Army Air Field (New Mexico).

The unrelenting movie star eventually found his way into a combat assignment, flying B-24H Liberator bombers for the Eighth Air Force on 20 combat missions, earning two Distinguished Flying Crosses, four Air Medals, and the Croix de Guerre. He also flew as an observer on a B-52 Arc Light mission during the Vietnam War. Stewart retired from the Air Force Reserves as a brigadier general in 1968. He holds the distinction of being one of just a few Americans to rise to colonel from the rank of private in just four years.