Joseph K. Boy World War II Ephemera Collection

Title

Joseph K. Boy World War II Ephemera Collection

Description

The Joseph K. Boy World War II Ephemera Collection is a small collection of printed materials collected by Boy during his service in World War II. Boy served with Co. B, 1st Medical Squadron, 1st Cavalry, as a grade T/4 Medical Technician. He served in the Bismarck Archipelago, New Guinea and Luzon, Philippines. He most likely collected the materials during his time in those locations.

The collection includes ten examples of Japanese invasion money, paper bills printed by the Japanese government in 1942 as part of their attempt to establish control over the Philippines. Denominations represented in the collection are: one centavo, ten centavos, five pesos, ten pesos (two different examples), and 100 pesos.

Thirteen pieces of small printed propaganda in the collection were presumably printed by the Japanese to encourage American soldiers to surrender, as they convey anti-U.S. military sentiments. For example, one flyer depicts the island of New Guinea with a dead soldier lying across it, holding a military order signed by General MacArthur; the poster's text appeals to soldiers' fear of being killed and places blame on the U.S. military leadership. Another shows a lady representing death embracing a U.S. soldier and suggests that surrendering is the only way to avoid death. Three small pieces, each with different illustrations, are "Tickets to Armistice" that provide instructions to U.S. soldiers on how to surrender to the Japanese Army Headquarters.

At the end of the collection is one 30x42-inch color poster depicting a Lockheed P-38 Lightning and a Grumman F4F-3 Wildcat. The poster was produced as an aide for Japanese pilots to be able to identify American aircraft.

Digitized Materials: The propaganda pieces and aircraft identification poster have been digitized from this collection.

Please note that materials on TMOF: Digital Collections are presented as historical objects and are unaltered and uncensored. See our Disclaimers and Policies page for more information.

Date

circa 1939-1945

Creator

Boy, Joseph Kelly, 1907-1978

Language

Most materials are in English. A few pieces of propaganda have some Japanese text. The poster is in Japanese.

Rights Holder

The Museum of Flight Archives

Rights

Permission to publish material from the Joseph K. Boy World War II Ephemera Collection must be obtained from The Museum of Flight Archives.

Bibliographic Citation

The Joseph K. Boy World War II Ephemera Collection/The Museum of Flight

Identifier

2021-05-21-A

Collection Organization

Collection Items

[Aircraft identification poster depicting Lockheed P-38 Lightning and Grumman F4F-3 Wildcat]
Aircraft identification poster depicting the Lockheed P-38 Lightning and Grumman F4F-3 Wildcat, circa 1939-1945. Includes silhouettes and identifying features written in Japanese text. Caption: "Rokkuhiido P-38 [Lockheed P-38]. Guraman F4F-3 [Grumman…

Another "major victory" for the United States! [Propaganda flyer]
Propaganda flyer depicting people at a party, circa 1942-1945. When folded out, the illustration then depicts a soldier, tanks, and aircraft above dead soldiers tangled in barbed wires. Caption: "Another 'major victory' for the United States! As…

Jilted, Re-jilted [Propaganda flyer]
Propaganda flyer featuring a comic strip of a serviceman reacting to a failed rescue attempt and the arrival of Japanese ships, circa 1942-1945. The flyer was presumably printed by Japanese forces to encourage Allied service members to…

Siren. Beware, young man! [Propaganda flyer]
Propaganda flyer depicting a skeletal woman, representing the siren of death, embracing a serviceman, circa 1942-1945. The flyer was presumably printed by Japanese forces to encourage Allied service members to surrender. Caption: "Siren. Beware,…

Killed in action! [Propaganda flyer]
Propaganda flyer depicting a dead serviceman chained to the island of New Guinea and holding a citation from General Douglas MacArthur, circa 1942-1945. The flyer was presumably printed by Japanese forces to encourage Allied service members to…

Please! Please come back. [Propaganda flyer]
Propaganda flyer depicting a woman and skulls, circa 1942-1945. The verso text describes how to surrender to Japanese forces. Caption: "Please! Please come back. Don't die, it's terrible to be dead. We need each other. It would be awful if you're…

Ticket to meet your wife & kid [Propaganda flyer]
Propaganda flyer depicting a serviceman with his child and wife, circa 1942-1945. The verso text describes how to surrender to Japanese forces. Caption: "Ticket to meet your wife & kid. Here's all you do! 1. Come towards our lines waving a white…

Ticket to armistice [Propaganda flyer]
Propaganda flyer depicting a carved ham, circa 1942-1945. The verso text describes how to surrender to Japanese forces. Caption: "Ticket to armistice. Here's all you do! 1. Come towards our lines waving a white flag! 2. Strap your gun over your left…

Framed [Propaganda flyer]
Propaganda flyer depicting Uncle Sam pushing an American servicemen toward a grave marked "The Unknown," circa 1942-1945. The flyer was presumably printed by Japanese forces to encourage Allied service members to surrender. Caption: "Framed. You did…

Island of Deceit [Propaganda flyer]
Propaganda flyer depicting three Allied servicemen flanked by two Japanese servicemen on the island of New Guinea, circa 1942-1945. The flyer was presumably printed by Japanese forces to encourage Allied service members to surrender. Caption: "Island…
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