This whirlwind tour of World War II barely touches on the major events and theaters of war. The main theme of the program is that America entered the war still mired in the Great Depression, and, four years later, it emerged out of the war as a superpower.
December 7, 1941: The attack on Pearl Harbor changed it all, as the Japanese Zero planes are able to fly 2,000 miles without refueling. At 7:50Am on the morning of December 7, the attack begins. All eight of the U.S. battleships are put out of commission, and over 2,000 are killed during the surprise attack.
One segment of the program is spent on the development of the Jeep, an all-purpose, efficient vehicle that is a marvel of American engineering. But the best kept secret of the war is the women, two million of whom work tirelessly on the home front often in dangerous manufacturing jobs in producing massive supplies of matériel. The total cost to America for World War II: $300 billion.
Paul Tibbets will be one of the American pilots sent across the channel, beginning on August 17, 1942. Many of the bombers are the B-17, the so-called Flying Fortress, which are tough, durable planes. The first goal is to destroy the German industrial bases. The attack on the depot in Rouen at the railway hub is an example of precision bombing that is an enormous success. Tibbets will later fly the Enola Gay where "Little Boy" will be dropped on Hiroshima.
By June, 1944, England has become a massive army camp with the build-up to Operation Overlord, the greatest amphibious landing in military history. The first day of the landing, or D-Day, is June 6, 1944. Five different beaches will be stormed, the most famous of which is Omaha Beach. The ramp is lowered, and next comes hell. 120,000 Americans are killed, wounded, or missing during the Battle of Normandy. But, finally, victory comes in Europe.
In the Pacific, America uses a new weapon that will end the war and change the world. As J. Robert Oppenheimer observed during the first atomic bomb testing in New Mexico, "I become death, the destroyer of worlds. " By the end of it all, the "greatest generation" comes home, and America becomes a superpower.
December 7, 1941: The attack on Pearl Harbor changed it all, as the Japanese Zero planes are able to fly 2,000 miles without refueling. At 7:50Am on the morning of December 7, the attack begins. All eight of the U.S. battleships are put out of commission, and over 2,000 are killed during the surprise attack.
One segment of the program is spent on the development of the Jeep, an all-purpose, efficient vehicle that is a marvel of American engineering. But the best kept secret of the war is the women, two million of whom work tirelessly on the home front often in dangerous manufacturing jobs in producing massive supplies of matériel. The total cost to America for World War II: $300 billion.
Paul Tibbets will be one of the American pilots sent across the channel, beginning on August 17, 1942. Many of the bombers are the B-17, the so-called Flying Fortress, which are tough, durable planes. The first goal is to destroy the German industrial bases. The attack on the depot in Rouen at the railway hub is an example of precision bombing that is an enormous success. Tibbets will later fly the Enola Gay where "Little Boy" will be dropped on Hiroshima.
By June, 1944, England has become a massive army camp with the build-up to Operation Overlord, the greatest amphibious landing in military history. The first day of the landing, or D-Day, is June 6, 1944. Five different beaches will be stormed, the most famous of which is Omaha Beach. The ramp is lowered, and next comes hell. 120,000 Americans are killed, wounded, or missing during the Battle of Normandy. But, finally, victory comes in Europe.
In the Pacific, America uses a new weapon that will end the war and change the world. As J. Robert Oppenheimer observed during the first atomic bomb testing in New Mexico, "I become death, the destroyer of worlds. " By the end of it all, the "greatest generation" comes home, and America becomes a superpower.
