Spotlight on Lee Falk - The WWII Years: Difference between revisions

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America's isolation from war ended on December 7, 1941, when Japan staged a surprise attack on American military installations in the Pacific.  
[[Image:LF-Draft-Card-1940.jpg‎ |thumb|240px|Draft Card 1940]]
==The WWII Years==
===Chief of Radio of the Foreign-Language Division of the OWI===
In October 1941 Archibald MacLeish was appointed director of the "Office of Facts and Figures" (OFF), an independent government information agency. To head the "Foreign Language Division" within the OFF MacLeish chose Alan M. Cranston <ref group="footnotes">Lee Falk's friend and collaborator of [[Spotlight on Lee Falk - Other writings|"The Big Story"]]</ref>. To assist him Cranston enlisted [[Lee Falk]] <ref group="footnotes">In the newspaper strip of [[Lothar the Champ|June 30, 1942]] there is an interesting real-time connection. Mandrake is talking about a new job, some sort of espionage, in Washington!</ref> to serve as associate chief of the FLD and handling radio issues and David Karr to head the press section.  


==Office of Facts and Figures==
Lee Falk had some experience with radio from his work for an advertising company in St. Louis in the years 1932 to 1934. In Cranston's letter inducing Falk to take the job, he explained that Falk would compose radio scripts for use in foreign-language broadcast designed to provide information about the war, to boost morale, and to ''sell the war to the German, Italian, and other groups in this country''. For this, Cranston said, Falk would have to relocate to ''a Washington slum'', work constantly, and ''take thyroid pills''.
President Roosevelt appointed Archibald McLeish to head the "Office of Facts and Figures" (OFF), a federal agency that took responsibility for the management and mobilization of the domestic foreign language press during the first six months after Pearl Harbor.  


==Foreign Language Division==
June 13, 1942, the "Office of War Information" (OWI) was established as a federal agency, to conduct the government's wartime information and propaganda programs. The office came into being by integrating several agencies — including the OFF, already engaged in information and intelligence activities.  
Within the OFF was the "Foreign Language Division" (FLD) which had: ''"the task of explaining how price control worked, how the draft worked and so forth, in foreign languages via press or radio to foreign language speaking groups"''.  


Alan M Cranston ''(collaborator of [[Spotlight on Lee Falk - Other writings|"The Big Story"]] and later senator from California)'' had left journalism and start working for "Common Council for American Unity", an organization that was trying to help immigrants adjust to American life. Read Lewis recommended Cranston to McLeish and McLeish chose Alan Cranston to head the Foreign Language Division of the OFF. Cranston enlisted two friends to assist him: [[Lee Falk]], served as associate chief of the FLD and handled radio issues; and David Karr to head the press section.  
By 1943 Congress made a varity of accusations against the OWI, as a political tool, and began its investigation. A more specific accusation involving the work of the Radio Section of the FLD and its head, Lee Falk. The inquiry, chaired by Edward E. Cox, claimed that in addition to the initiated moral- and unit-building foreign-language programs they also removed from the air broadcasters who were considered pro-fascist. The Cox Committee claimed that radio stationes were pressed to ''dismiss personnel by holding the treat of license suspension over their heads'', attendent ''to force upon radiostations a pro-Russian or an arbitrary OWI slant'', and that Falk usd the division to secure publicity for himself and employment for his friends.


In his letter inducing Falk to take the job, Cranston explained that Falk would compose radio scripts for use in foreign-language broadcast designed to provide information about the war, to boost morale, and to ''sell the war to the German, Italian, and other groups in this country''. For this, Cranston said, Falk would have to relocate to ''a Washington slum'', work constantly, and ''take thyroid pills''.
The inquiry started in August (1943) and by the end of the month Lee Falk had quietly quit his job at OWI.  


==Office of War Information==
===Army Signal Corps===
June 13, 1942, The Office of War Information (OWI) was established as a federal agency, to conduct the government's wartime information and propaganda programs. The office came into being by integrating several agencies — including the OFF, already engaged in information and intelligence activities.
Lee Falk was transferred to the Army Signal Corps, enlisted at Fort Devens (Massachusetts) on Mars 7, 1944. He said that he promptly was shipped from one end of the country to another. 12 times he was on the verge of going overseas, and 12 times the orders were cancelled and he was sent to some other post.


===Lee Falk - Chief of Radio of the Foreign-Language Division of the OWI===
==Note==
It is an interesting real-time connection in the newspaper strip of [[Mandrake the Magician]] from [[Lothar the Champ|June 30]], 1942. In the strip Mandrake is talking about a new job, some sort of espionage, in Washington. If we deduct six to eight weeks as a result of the difference between the script and the publication in newspapers this is written early May 1942. About this time Lee Falk was drafted as associate chief of the foreign language division in Washington, at a salary of a dollar a year.
<references group="footnotes" />
 
Lee Falk had some experience with radio from his work for an advertising company in St. Louis in the years 1932 to 1934. He had written a few [[Spotlight on Lee Falk - Other writings|radio program / sketches]] about this time, but it is unknown if any of them ever were aired. Late 40's it is mentioned that Lee Falk about the same time was involved in directing radio shows ''(eg. "Ethel King")'', but it is not confirmed.
 
{{stub}}
 
==Army Signal Corps==
Later, in 1944, Lee Falk was transferred to the Army Signal Corps.
 
In 1944, joined the Army Signal Corps which shipped him around the USA 12 times from one post to another. He managed to continue writing daily for his comic strips.
==Sources==
==Sources==
*Lorraine M. Lees, Yugoslav-Americans and National Security During World War II, p42
*[http://www.ancestry.com ancestry.com]; U.S. WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947, U.S., World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946
 
*Horten Gerd, Radio Goes to War: The Cultural Politics of Propaganda During World War II
*Lees Lorraine M., Yugoslav-Americans and National Security During World War II
*Sweeney  Michael S., Secrets of Victory: The Office of Censorship and the American Press and Radio in World War II


[[Category: Spotlight on|Falk - The WWII Years, Lee]]
[[Category: Spotlight on|Falk - The WWII Years, Lee]]

Revision as of 09:43, 2 July 2018

Draft Card 1940

The WWII Years

Chief of Radio of the Foreign-Language Division of the OWI

In October 1941 Archibald MacLeish was appointed director of the "Office of Facts and Figures" (OFF), an independent government information agency. To head the "Foreign Language Division" within the OFF MacLeish chose Alan M. Cranston [footnotes 1]. To assist him Cranston enlisted Lee Falk [footnotes 2] to serve as associate chief of the FLD and handling radio issues and David Karr to head the press section.

Lee Falk had some experience with radio from his work for an advertising company in St. Louis in the years 1932 to 1934. In Cranston's letter inducing Falk to take the job, he explained that Falk would compose radio scripts for use in foreign-language broadcast designed to provide information about the war, to boost morale, and to sell the war to the German, Italian, and other groups in this country. For this, Cranston said, Falk would have to relocate to a Washington slum, work constantly, and take thyroid pills.

June 13, 1942, the "Office of War Information" (OWI) was established as a federal agency, to conduct the government's wartime information and propaganda programs. The office came into being by integrating several agencies — including the OFF, already engaged in information and intelligence activities.

By 1943 Congress made a varity of accusations against the OWI, as a political tool, and began its investigation. A more specific accusation involving the work of the Radio Section of the FLD and its head, Lee Falk. The inquiry, chaired by Edward E. Cox, claimed that in addition to the initiated moral- and unit-building foreign-language programs they also removed from the air broadcasters who were considered pro-fascist. The Cox Committee claimed that radio stationes were pressed to dismiss personnel by holding the treat of license suspension over their heads, attendent to force upon radiostations a pro-Russian or an arbitrary OWI slant, and that Falk usd the division to secure publicity for himself and employment for his friends.

The inquiry started in August (1943) and by the end of the month Lee Falk had quietly quit his job at OWI.

Army Signal Corps

Lee Falk was transferred to the Army Signal Corps, enlisted at Fort Devens (Massachusetts) on Mars 7, 1944. He said that he promptly was shipped from one end of the country to another. 12 times he was on the verge of going overseas, and 12 times the orders were cancelled and he was sent to some other post.

Note

  1. ↑ Lee Falk's friend and collaborator of "The Big Story"
  2. ↑ In the newspaper strip of June 30, 1942 there is an interesting real-time connection. Mandrake is talking about a new job, some sort of espionage, in Washington!

Sources

  • ancestry.com; U.S. WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947, U.S., World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946
  • Horten Gerd, Radio Goes to War: The Cultural Politics of Propaganda During World War II
  • Lees Lorraine M., Yugoslav-Americans and National Security During World War II
  • Sweeney Michael S., Secrets of Victory: The Office of Censorship and the American Press and Radio in World War II
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