An Introduction
By Brooke Anderson
Younger folks are aware through family histories. WWI however, is dim and distant history. There were two early 20th century conflicts that became the classroom for WWII: the Mexican Intervention fighting Pancho Villa and WWI. The Mexican campaign gave many career men their first taste of combat and the logistics of it, and the US Air Service was first used tactically.
America was officially involved in the war from April of 1917 to November of 1918; American troops then pulled occupation duty in France and Germany through 1920. What we achieved in those first 18 months is incredible. On April 6, 1917, when the United States declared war against Germany, the nation had a standing army of 127,500 officers and soldiers. By the end of the war, four million men had served in the United States Army, with an additional 800,000 in other military service branches. And two million were sent overseas – and then brought home. Add to that solving the vast problems of transportation, supply chain and construction, all done within 18 months and it was virtually a miracle.
Add to that an entertainment industry ready willing and able to visit the troops and you have a huge story waiting to be told. The purpose of this section of the Golden Mystics is to explore that story and offer as many chapters as possible.
The next huge step was morale, and that is where we come in. This site will focus on troop entertainment, music being a large part of that program. This will go from the simplest to the more complex. Here’s an ersatz instrument offering poilus a moment of relaxation and a Victrola used in the trenches.
As time and location permitted the entertainment was more elaborate, as seen here, even in the field. The most complex would be costumed stage plays and revues, more likely to be seen during the occupation period.
1917 was over 100 years ago, but eons away in terms of technology; no Internet, no social media, no YouTube, only silent movies and radio still a diapered infant. Aside from major stage presentations, entertainment was a home-grown commodity with many participants. “:Hey, kids, let’s put on a show” really happened and Americans were prepared to entertain themselves. Therefore, within the military were many “hams” ready to go. Musicians, singers, entertainers and more could be found in any unit.
