Description
Book SynopsisThis work tells the full story of the weapons, including fighter-planes, tanks, ships, and guns, that America produced during the war to defeat the Axis powers, and how they were "sold" to those at home through the countless advertisements that appeared in popular magazines. Though well-known companies such as General Motors, Ford, Kelvinator, and B.F. Goodrich, and a whole host of others, could no longer sell their products to consumers, they instead turned their factories towards supplying the Arsenal of Democracy. In order to keep their names in the public spotlight, these companies advertised in great detail the weapons they were building; Cadillac touted its efforts in supplying components for Sherman tanks and P-38 Lightning fighters, Ford no longer built cars in Detroit, but B-24 Liberator bombers and Jeeps, while the home appliance company Kelvinator built aircraft components and flame-throwers. The story behind these advertisements, many of them stunning visuals which are here reproduced in color, is a unique aspect of World War II history that will both surprise and delight.
Table of ContentsIntroduction; Part I: Selling the War on the Home Front; 1 Advertising Basics during World War II; 2 "Reading" the Popular Magazine Ads; Part II: Weapons of War in the Magazine Pages; 3 Tanks and Other Armored Vehicles; 4 Naval Vessels Big and Small; 5 Army Air Force Fighters and Bombers; 6 Navy Fighters, Bombers, and other Aircraft; 7 Military Utility Vehicles; 8 Guns and Other Ordnance; Source Bibliography.
