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Some other related items available from this site. | ||||
  Vintage Mustangs by Stan Stokes. |   Tribute to Clarence 'Bud' Anderson by Ivan Berryman. |   Red Tails by Ivan Berryman. |  Checking Out by Anthony Saunders. | |
| Signatures on these products | |
| *The value given for each signature has been calculated by us based on the historical significance and rarity of the signature and is for the unmatted version where available. Values of many pilot signatures have risen in recent years and will likely continue to rise as they become more and more rare. | |
| Name | Info |
 Colonel Charles McGee (deceased) Died : 2022 *Signature Value : £55 Editions signed : Signed limited edition of 800 prints. Limited edition of 25 artist proofs. | McGee, Charles (Colonel Charles McGee (deceased)) Charles McGee graduated from flight school and shipped out to Italy in December 1943 as a flight Lieutenant in the 302nd fighter Squadron, 332nd Fighter Group. He flew missions in North Africa, Italy and Germany, and got his first victory on 24th August flying escort in the Ploesti oil field raid. After the war this outstanding flyer commanded fighter squadrons throughout the United States, Italy, the Philippines and Germany, logging up more than 6,100 hours in 409 combat missions spanning World War II, Korea and Vietnam. Serving in the armed forces for 30 years he holds the record of flying more combat missions than any other USAF pilot in history. Born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1919, Charles MeGee, who was to become a Command Aviator who would fly combat missions in three different military conflicts, spent his childhood in Ohio, Illinois, and Iowa. Following two years attending the University of Illinois, WW 11 began, and McGee was sworn into the US Army enlisted reserves on October 26, 1942. He was accepted for pilot training in November and entered the Army Air Corps Aviation Cadet Training Program. McGee earned his wings and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in June 1943, as a member of Class 43-F at Tuskegee Army Air Field. He was assigned along with many of the other black pilots who had earned their wings at Tuskegee to the 332 nd Fighter Group in Italy. With the 302nd Fighter Squadron McGee trained in the P-40 and would later fly more than 82 tactical missions in the P-39. His fighter group was then transferred into the Fifteenth Air Force and he first flew the P-47 and several weeks later the P-51 Mustang. In this duty, along with other 'Tuskegee Airmen,' McGee performed admirably surmounting many of the unfortunate hurdles placed in their path. The Tuskegee Ainnen became known for their superlative effort at protecting allied bombers from attacking German fighters. McGee is credited with downing one Fw- 190, and the destruction or damage of many others on the ground. He became a flight leader, was promoted to Captain, and after flying 54 more combat missions, returned to Alabama as a twin engine flight instructor. In 1950 McGee flew 100 more combat missions with the 67th Fighter Bomber Squadron of the 18th Fighter Group. He was then made Commander of the 44th Bomber Squadron flying out of Clark Field in the Philippines. Later he would serve with an F-89 Interceptor Squadron, and following a number of interesting operational and staff assignments he would serve as Commander of the 16th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron deployed in Vietnam. In his year in Vietnam, McGee would fly another 173 missions. Later assignments included Air Liason Officer for USAEUR and 7th Army, Chief of Maintenance for the 50th Tactical Fighter Wing, Director of Maintenance Engineering for AF Communication Service, and Commander of Richards-Gebaur AFB, and the 1840 Air Base Wing. He retired from the USAF in 1973 with 6,300 flying hours, including 1,100 hours flown on fighter combat missions. Col. McGee earned a BA Degree in Business Administration and worked for many years in the real estate business with ISC Financial Corporation. He also served as Director of Administration forthe city of Prairie Village, Kanasas, and as Manager of the downtown Kansas City Airport. Now fully retired Charles lives with his wife, the former Frances Nelson of Champaign, Illinois. The McGees have three children, ten grandchildren, and five great grandchildren. His numerous decorations include the Legion of Merit with one cluster, the Distinguished Flying Cross with two clusters, the Bronze Star, the Air Medal with 25 clusters, the Army Commendation Medal, the Air Force Commendation Medal with one cluster, a Presidential Unit Citation, and the Korean Presidential Unit Citation, to name only a few. He died 16th January 2022. |
| Second Lieutenant Elbert Hudson (deceased) Died : 2014 *Signature Value : £45 Editions signed : Signed limited edition of 800 prints. Limited edition of 25 artist proofs. | Hudson, Elbert (Second Lieutenant Elbert Hudson (deceased)) In September1942 Elbert Hudson joined up and went for pilot training at the Tuskegee Flight School, graduating as a fighter pilot on P51Bs. He soon found himself posted to the 332nd fighter Group in Europe, where he undertook his first of many combat missions in June 1944. Elbert flew with the 332nd escorting bombers on 23 combat missions in the Mediterranean theatre of operations right through until the end of hostilities in May 1945. After the war, he opened a private law practice in 1953 and over the course of his legal career represented many individuals, businesses and organizations in the Black community. He also mentored several young Black attorneys who worked in his office and who went on to become judges. In his later years, Al provided pro bono legal services to seniors at the Estelle Van Meter Multipurpose Center in South L.A. He was inducted into the Langston Bar Association Hall of Fame and was recognized as a Distinguished Alumnus by Loyola Law School. In 1961, Al was appointed to the Los Angeles Police Commission. He was serving on the Commission during the Watts Rebellion in 1965 and played an important role in working with the Police Department to improve police-community relations. During his tenure on the Commission, Al became its first Black President. Former Police Chief Bernard Parks remembered Hudson as a trailblazer and role model. |
 Second Lieutenant Lowell Steward (deceased) Died : 2014 *Signature Value : £30 Editions signed : Signed limited edition of 800 prints. Limited edition of 25 artist proofs. | Steward, Lowell (Second Lieutenant Lowell Steward (deceased)) Entering the Tuskegee flight school for training in July 1942, Lowell Steward graduated as a fighter and was sent to Italy in 1944 with the 100th Fighter Squadron, 332nd Fighter Group. From Capodichino Air Base in Naples he flew a number of missions in Bell P-39 Airacobras and Curtiss P-40 Warhawks. He was subsequently based in Ramitelli Airfield where he flew many more missions in North American P-51 Mustangs. In total, he flew 143 missions and remained in the service until July 1946. After the war and upon his return to Los Angeles, he helped to organize the Los Angeles chapter of Tuskegee Airmen, Inc. and to found a scholarship foundation in the name of the Tuskegee Airmen. In 2007, Steward attended President George W. Bush's presentation of the Tuskegee Airmen with the Congressional Gold Medal. On December 14 2014 Lowell came down with a cold that led to pneumonia and sadly died on December 17th in the Community Memorial Hospital of natural causes at the age of 95. |
| First Lieutenant Arthur Sherman *Signature Value : £40 Editions signed : Signed limited edition of 800 prints. Limited edition of 25 artist proofs. | Sherman, Arthur (First Lieutenant Arthur Sherman) Arthur Sherman joined up as soon as he could on 10th April 1942, and after training was posted to the 15th Air force in Italy, joining the 779th bomb Squadron, 464th Bomb Group flying B25s. He flew his first combat mission on 2nd May 1944. Transferring to the 483rd Bomb Group he flew B17 Fortresses and was regularly escorted by the 332nd Tuskegee Fighter Group. Among his numerous strategic bombing missions were included the momentous raid to Memingen airfield to destroy the factory where over 600 Me109s were being made every month, together with the new Me262 jet fighter. |
| Staff Sergeant Leon Walden *Signature Value : £30 Editions signed : Signed limited edition of 800 prints. Limited edition of 25 artist proofs. | Walden, Leon (Staff Sergeant Leon Walden) Joining up in November 1942 Leon Walden trained to become a waist gunner on B17 fortress, being posted to Europe, joining the 840th bomb Squadron, 483rd bomb Group in Italy. Going into combat on 12th April 1944, Leon flew 50 combat missions with the 483rd, including the heroic raid on the Me262 jet fighter factory at Memingen Airfield on 18th July 1944, when the group was attacked by a force of over 75 Luftwaffe fighters. |
| Squadrons Related to This Print |
| 332nd Fighter Group |
| Aircraft Related to This Print |
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This website is owned by Cranston Fine Arts. Torwood House, Torwoodhill Road, Rhu, Helensburgh, Scotland, G848LE Contact: Tel: (+44) (0) 1436 820269. Email: cranstonorders -at- outlook.com |
Signature(s) value alone : £200
Signature(s) value alone : £200