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DeGaulle Photo Brings Back Memories Of Secret Mission THE CHRONICLE, Clinton, S. C„ Nov. 26, 1970—1-B EENVILLE PIE Fallen French Leader At Sum Clintonian Has Photos Of Meeting Based Wires of The Associated Press and United BY LEN LEDFORD 32 RA q ES GREENVILLE, S. C, TUESDAY AFTERNOON, NOVEMBE After 27 years, the storv can be tolcL A front page picture of the Tuesday, Nov. 10, edition of The Greenville Piedmont made me suddenly exclaim, “I have that very picture." And, almost instantly, a search was begun for the picture. Minutes grew into hours as I looked through my "trunk-full" of photographic evidence of a world at war-- the battles won, the personali ties involved. The picture in question was of France’s General Charles DeGaulle “who led France back from the humiliation of World War n defeat and saved it again from chaos in 1958." The general and former president of France, who died Monday, Nov. 9, was pictured with some other gentlemen of note. So, now, here was I, suc cess in hand, and with the manila envelope, 1 settled myself com fortably into retrospection of the year 1943--and, perhaps, to a few years before it when the world, as we knew it, was at peace--not a shooting war at least. I turned back the years to that day when I was driven from Los Angeles’ Union Sta tion to 1708 Talmadge Avenue and the east end of Hollywood Boulevard--and found myself within the hallowed walls of Warner Brother Vitagraph Studios. For me, it was a new beginning. This was head quarters for the Air Force First Motion Picture Unit. Our job was to organize--to recruit the best from the major studios so the Air Force could have the finest technical and training films available. Later, we moved to a new "home* <xi West Washington Boulevard, Culver City, Calif., next door to Selznik Inter national where "Tara" still stood from filming of “Gone With the Wind". Our ‘Air Force First Mo tion Picture Unit’ sign re placed the giant “Hal Roach Studios" sign. But even with this tremendous job of produce myrid films for the Air Force you could not forget that here at Hal Roach--they filmed “One Million B. C." with Victor Ma- PARIS Former French PrcMCiont Charles <.! G.mlle died Monday of a heart attack, a source a: The French presidential palace >aid. He was 79. H* is shown at left In center. De Gaulle is shown .« hire and Spanky’s “Our Gang" the “Topper" series. Some of the sets were still there to re mind you of some of the finest entertainment you could re member. For our job, from the major studios, we had gathered the best writers, directors, cameramen, “grips", “juic ers’, make-up men, sound effects men, actors and, oh yes, still photographers. That’s what this story is all about. It was January, 1943, and California’s rainy season was no myth. The half-mile wide Los Angeles River you could step across in summer was stretched ‘till its sides hurt from LonJt -W-tank. Slush and rock slides came down the mesquite - covered mountain sides and its tenacles of de struction took millions of dol lars worth of homes with it. A PHONE CALL It was on a morning in Janu ary, 1943, that a telephone call came from the Pentagon. It seemed casual enough at first but it soon dried out the soil of the flat country to the south of the “Hollywood Hills’. At first it seemed simple enough. All the War Depart ment wanted was four or five of our best still photograpliers to go to Washington and photo graph some VIPs. To clarify matters at the time of the telephone call, we asked if tele type orders would be coming in “tomorrow." “Hell, no! --these are the orders, NOW," said the voice Yarborough's Chapel Has Anniversary Yarborough’s Chapel United Methodist Church, Cross An chor, will observe one hundredth and twenty-fifth an niversary of the church in con junction with the South Caro line Tricentennial on Novem ber 29 at 7:30 o’clock. There will be an "Id fas hioned evening worship service. The public is invited.' Reverend M.B. Lee will be guest speaker. Reverend JohnP. Rnquemore is pastor. \!1 \ Oil In i d 1> this Ci l tltll .lt S.i\v it! SEMI LIFE SIZE 11x14 Bust Vignette LIVING COLOR PORTRAIT SUMMIT MEETING A summit meeting was taking place. It became known as the summit meeting at Casablanca. So, our still photographers were there to record history in its making. The summit meeting was a strategy session of Prime Minister Winston Churchill of England and Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the United States. Also in atten NOW ONLY AT Town & Country Shopping Center Fri. and Sat. Nov. 27 and 28 11 A.M. Til 7 P.M. Plus 50c Handlinu GENUINE FULL NATURAL COLOR PORTRAITS! Not the old style tinted or painted black & white photos. SATISFACTION GUARANTEED qr your money refunded. FOR ALL AGESI Babies, children, adults. Groups photographed at an additional 1.00 per subject. LIMITED OFFER! ONE per family. One per subject. ADDITIONAL CHILDREN S3.S5 each AT SLMMIT—This picture taken at the World War II summit meeting in Casablanca is amonjt Len Ledford’s collection of photographs. Gen eral Henri Giraud, French commander in North Africa, left, is shown shaking hands with Gen. Charles DeGaulle. Also shown are U.S. Presi dent Franklin Roosevelt and Great Britain Prime Minister Winston Churchill. tin* Casablanca summit m allied leaders. From left French commander in N Franklin D Roosevelt: De from the Pentagon. As diplo matically as we could sound, and as cooperatively as we could extend ourselves, we casually said, “Then these men should be on their way some time tomorrow?" This time the voice of the War Department seemed to have a bit more urgency in their re quest. “No, have these men on a plane at Mines Field in two hours--they have to be in Washington on a schedule already set up." Our simple problem then was to round up these men, tell them the details as we knew them, let them go home to pack some clothes, tell their wives they were going to Washington and then return to the AAF First Motion Unit. It was hectic rounding them up and getting them aboard the plane to Washington but we did it. They did land in Washington but, no sooner had they embark ed from the plane than they were directed to another air plane. This one was to take them to destinations unknown-- to them. They landed in North Africa. dance was General Charles De Gaulle and others. Now this brings us back to where the story began. The photographers returned to California and I fell heir to some of the original pictures of this summit meeting. These photos were as “Top Secret” as anything in the war to this point. They were pictures of a strategy meeting for the in vasion of Europe via Sicily and Italy, while “D-Day” took care of the European invasion from the west. The photos I have in my pos session today were securely bound and mailed to my family with instructions not to open under any circumstances. And, if I failed to come out of the war alive, not to open until the victory was won. The photographs were cen sored, eliminating all unit in signias and flags s" that no one could tell what divisions were involved. Fortunately that war is over. I am alive and I have the pic tures in question. The picture in the Green ville Piedmont shows General Henri Giraud, French com mander in NorthAfrica, Presi dent Franklin D. Roosevelt, General Charles DeGaulle and Prime Minister Winston Churchill. I do not have that picture. The picture I have is a companion picture, made just before or just after. The Pied mont picture is one shown in several histories of World War II.I have learned in later days that it was a humiliating ex perience for General DeGaulle to shake hands with General Giraud in North Africa. I do have that picture, 27 years later. my Twin gold bands unite in a ring that symbolizes the love of husband and wife. Brilliant synthetic birthstones mark the birth month of each child.Truly a gift Mother will cherish. Grandn#thers love them too. From $14.88 Ea. Additional Birthstone... $5 126 Muagrove St., Clinton, S. C. Ban kAmeri card. AUTHORIZED SfGNATURE fe D. ANDERSON GOOD THRU ^ 00/00* BAC MS 123 M'Bb < i ll! Ir.ttr iv :i\< it > a inrm //I FROM THE BAILEY BANK