Maybelline supported the Troops during World War ll, by selling War Bonds and offering encouragement to the boys overseas

This ad was published in cooperation with the Drug,Cosmetic and Allied Industries in Modern Screen's 15TH Anniversary Edition, 1945

Maybelline - Worlds favorite eye make-up

Check out the list of Warner Brothers stars.

Maybelline's Rosie the Riveter during World War ll was the Wonder Woman of her time

Long before the Women's Movement, Rosie the Riveters of
WW11,  built all the planes, ships, tanks and all necessary equipment that our country needed to win the war.  They were
the ones who knocked down the doors for women's rights. 

It was a mans world up until 1941 when Pearl Harbor was

bombed. It was Rosie the riveters who built the B-17s and the

B-29. They found that the women were every bit as good at

these jobs as men were, some of us were better.  worked hard to promote Rosie.

Krier has had Congressman, Mike Fitzpatrick propose to make

May 23rd National Rosie the Riveter Day. She is working on

trying to get a statue of Rosie in the WW11 Memorial in

Washington D.C. There were between 16 and 20 million

women who went to work during the war. It is time for these

amazing women to get due recognition.

Krie goes to different groups to tell the Rosie Stories. Some

are really outstanding. Krier often said that "if it hadn't of been

for Rosies role in WW11, we may be speaking German or

Japanese today."

"ROSIE THE RIVETER WAS THE MOST SUCCESSFUL RECRUITMENT TOOL IN AMERICAN HISTORY."

" I think they were right,"  Mae Krier

It's officially Fall and the Holidays are around the corner. I'm happy and sad at the same time to see Summer go this year. I was thinking about Maybelline's new Wonder Woman line of make up and realized that during WW11, Rosie the Riveter was the Wonder Woman of her time. Our strong mothers, grandmothers and great grandmothers were the Wonder Women who inspired the Super Women of today. Here is Maybelline's Rosie the Riveter from the 1940s.

Romance Week: Two beautiful Maybelline sister's looking for the right guy during WW11.

Maybelline's tale of two sisters.

A long time ago, in another time and place, there were two lovely sisters named June and Marilyn Haines - who wrote to lonely servicemen during WW ll. 

Never, was there a more romantic time in history, than World War ll.  Young girl's just couldn't help but be caught up in it and the magic of advertising only fanned the flames of desire, for true love.   
 

Marlene Dietrich dancing with a Service man at the Hollywood Canteen.

 
The Hollywood Canteen was a place where young people hooked up, and exchanged address.  Even Movie Stars showed up to dance with out of town Soldiers, Navy men and Marines. 

Movies made writing Love Letters, the most romantic thing a girl could do, and being a pen pal hinted at the promise of having a guy home to your arms.

June and Marilyn Haines.

So that's how this Love Story began, with two young ladies,

 doing their patriotic duty.

When June graduated from high school in 1943, she realized there were no eligible young men to be found.  Which sadly meant, no Saturday night dates, no Summer picnics, and definitely no New Years Eve, kisses under the mistletoe.  Being a self reliant girl, she decided the best way to meet a nice man, was to write a lonely soldier overseas and build a friendship.  

Marilyn Haines with her cousin Tony.

Her younger sister, Marilyn knew plenty of boys from high school, but none of them seemed as exciting, or worthy, as her new pen pal, Dick Westhouse.  After all, he'd grown up in an orphanage and obviously needed her!!  

Before long, Marilyn's pen pal letters, turned into love letters, and people began to say, " Marilyn, seem more interested in the mailbox, than anything else in the world."

After the War, Dick Westhouse and Marilyn began dating

 and talking marriage!

As fate would have it, June never had any luck with her Soldier Boy letters, so Marilyn and Dick, decided to bring their two closest people together, on a blind - double date.  You see, Dick had grown up with John Gary at the Orphanage - and they were best friends....   

when June met Sergeant John Gary, secretary to a General at Fort Sheridan,  a flame ignited, true love. 

Though Eva and Ches Haines, weren't too thrilled about their 17 year old daughter, marrying Dick Westhouse, right out of High School, they gave them their blessing and a beautiful Wedding as well. 

As for June and John Gary - they dated for a while, before he was sent to Germany and when the long distance romance got old, John returned to the US and they married.

  

By 1955 all the Haines kids were married,  in this picture we see, Jackie and Bob Haines - Dick and Marilyn Westhouse and their two boys - David and Jerry - John and June Gary, with their daughter Cathy, and their mother Eva Williams Haines.

And so the two sisters made their dreams come true!!! They got their Soldier Boys, and lived Happily Ever After..... at least for a while!!!

Tomorrow will continue Maybelline Story, Romance week - as we head towards Valentines Day, Feb 14TH.

Veterans Day!...Graphic combat story taken from my father, Bill Williams, memories of World War 11

Bill Williams with his uncle Tom Lyle Williams at the Villa Valentino

When Bill and a few other men were sent out into the jungle to find the Japs hiding in the hills, he was excited to finally be part of some action. The worst part about looking for Japanese snipers was that they really knew how to hide well in the tropical environment and could sneak up on a soldier from behind and kill him without being detecting.

Bill and his bride, Pauline Mac Donald Williams,  My parents

It wad a well known fact that a guy could get killed right next
to his buddy before anyone could do a thing. Bill had gotten used to firing at anything that moved, because back at camp, when on night duty, he was told to shoot at anything that caused the tin cans to rattle from the bobbed wire. He had machine gunned down a few dogs who snuck around at night looking for food and accidentally hit the tin cans. Maybe the men were taught to be trigger happy, and shoot first, ask questions later, rather then take chances and risk their own lives or the lives of their buddies.

Bill in the Philippians on Reconnaissance Mission

When Bill and the men got to the spot on the map where the
Lieutenant reported Jap's hiding, he thought he saw something cross his path and yelled "halt, who goes there." The sniper didn't answer, and then took off running. Bill yelled again, "halt" but when he he kept running he shot him and killed him. The men slowly approached the body, to make sure he was indeed dead, and not faking it. There had been many stories of how Japs lay waiting for a soldier
to approach a dead body, then are ambushed and shot to death. Bill yelled for the others to cover him while he checked the sniper who was just a kid himself.

The other soldiers stood about 15 feet while Bill grabbed some souvenirs off the dead body, it was a right of passage,
as a soldier, his first and only kill before the war ended. Bill
quickly stripped souvenirs off the Jap while the other men watched for snipers. The only good Jap is a dead Jap," one guy said as Bill cut the snipers pockets open, reached in, and was shocked to find them full of blood. He didn't let that stop him and pulled out some Jap money, pictures, cards, and some letters. He took an aluminum canteen with carvings of a Japanese garden on it, a Japanese flag,

binoculars, and a knife. One man said to check for gold teeth, but when he looked in his mouth, he decided it would take too long to pull them out. He grabbed a watch, a compass, and a bayonet, and finally reached for the Jap's belt, only to stick his hands into his warm guts. It was an eerie feeling, but he was so pumped up that he simply
got up, didn't look back and headed down the hill with the other men.

Bill with his mother, Evelyn Williams

The G.I. 's had been warned about live mines, and it was one of their biggest fears. Stepping on a live mine could blow a man's limbs off, decapitate him, rip his guts out, blind him, and finally kill him if he was lucky. Japanese mines were very hard to find when they were buried. The men made it back to camp in one piece, and Bill told his
commanding officer about the Jap he killed, and he told Bill that he'd done the right thing, because if he hadn't of killed him, they might all have been killed. His Captain told him that it takes blood and guts to be in the infantry, and that he was proud of him.


Read more about this and more in my memoir, The Maybelline Story,  Buy my book at www.sharriewilliamsauthor.com

Memorial to the Maybelline Family Veterans who fought for their Country during WWl and WWll.

Today I honor the men in my family who served in the Armed Forces and fought in WW1 and WW11.

Maybelline family Veteran William Preston Williams, WW1.

This Memorial Day marked the 5TH anniversary of my father's death and brought to mind the War Heroes in the Maybelline Family.  Here are a few pictures of my grandfather Williams Preston Williams as he prepared to leave his home and family and fight for our Country during World War l.

This is what Chicago looked like when my grandfather William Preston Williams joined the Navy in 1917.  He was just 18 years old with visions of being a War Hero.  Like so many boy's from the Lost Generation he imagined the war would quickly end and he'd return unscathed by the ravages of battle - only to be greatly disillusioned with a broken spirit.

This is what was going on in the Maybelline Family at the same time.  Tom Lyle introduced Maybelline to the public as Silent Film became popular and Silent Film Stars were seen on screen with heavily made up eyes.

Theda Bara "THE VAMP" - 1917.  This is what was going on in Hollywood when WW1 broke out.  Women began to be conscious of the their eyes and buy Maybelline.  An interesting fact -  Maybelline was sent in an unmarked package insuring the buyer her privacy since Maybelline was so frowned upon at the time.

1917 Maybelline became available through mail order. 

Screen from the Silent Film WINGS.  This is what Preston was heading into.  He was a rear gunner on one of those Flying Sticks in the sky.


 

Preston with his parents Susan and TJ.  His mother was grief stricken after already losing her first son, Pearl to TB and the thought of losing another son to War was too much for her.  TJ on the other hand was proud his son was fighting for his Country like so many Patriots that went before him in the Williams Family.  He also thought the Navy might straighten his wild card son up a bit. 
                                                                               

Preston was leaving his family to go fight the enemy, an enemy he and so many young American boys thought would be easy to destroy.  It was far from easy, and Preston came home with Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, never to be the same again.  Here he is with his little sister Eva on the left, Frances Allen, Tom Lyle Williams Noel James Williams and Bennie Gibbs.

Mabel Williams on the left with her brother Preston, Helen, one of the first Maybelline models, Frances Allen Williams, Bennie Gibbs and Tom Lyle Williams in front of his new "PAGE "Convertible in Chicago. 

Tom Lyle enlisted as well but was denyed service because he was the sole supporter of his entire family according to his draft card in 1917.  Noel was married to Frances and also supported the family managing the Maybelline Company. He might have been too old for service at the time. 

Maybelline Ad during WW11, promoting War Bonds.

My father, Bill Williams (W.P. Williams Jr.) in the Philippines during WW11. Detailed in my book.

                        Maybelline Ad during WW11.

My Father's first cousin, Noel A. Williams,  joined the Navy right out of High School.

            Noel A. in his Navy uniform during WW11.

My father's first cousin - (on his mother Evelyn Boecher Williams side) - Bill Stroh.  Bill Stroh, is seen here on the right, standing with two Naval buddies on their Ship during WW11.

Bill Stroh in the middle.  I have done several posts about Bill Stroh and his 1965 Shelby 350 Mustang racing car.

Bill Stroh, during WW11. Want to know more about Bill Stroh, check him out in my archives.