Oral History Interview with Irvin Spielberg, November 6, 2003

Oral History Interview with Irvin Spielberg, November 6, 2003

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Track One 1:10:44

Description

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Irvine Spielberg. Born 18 December 1918 in Cincinnati, Ohio, Spielberg graduated from the University of Cincinnati in 1941 with an aeronautical engineering degree. He worked at Wright Field in Dayton, Ohio as a civil employee in the aircraft laboratory until he was drafted in January 1943. He went through Army Air Forces basic training on three different occasions. Twice he was relieved from active duty, placed into enlisted reserves and returned to his job at the laboratory. In 1944 he was again called up and completed basic training … continued below

Physical Description

1 sound recording (1 hr., 10 min., 44 sec.)

Creation Information

Spielberg, Irvine November 6, 2003.

Context

This audio recording is part of the collection entitled: National Museum of the Pacific War Oral History Collection and was provided by the National Museum of the Pacific War/Admiral Nimitz Foundation to The Portal to Texas History, a digital repository hosted by the UNT Libraries. More information about this recording can be viewed below.

Interviewee

Spielberg, Irvine

Interviewers

Publisher

National Museum of the Pacific War
Place of Publication: Fredericksburg, Texas

Audiences

Check out our Resources for Educators Site! We've identified this sound as a primary source within our collections. Researchers, educators, and students may find this recording useful in their work.

Provided By

National Museum of the Pacific War/Admiral Nimitz Foundation

Established in 1967, the Museum honors the 8 million Americans who served in WWII in the Pacific Theater by sharing their stories with the world. Located in Fredericksburg in the restored Nimitz "Steamboat" Hotel, the Museum partners with the Texas Historical Commission to preserve the historical resources of the era.

Description

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Irvine Spielberg. Born 18 December 1918 in Cincinnati, Ohio, Spielberg graduated from the University of Cincinnati in 1941 with an aeronautical engineering degree. He worked at Wright Field in Dayton, Ohio as a civil employee in the aircraft laboratory until he was drafted in January 1943. He went through Army Air Forces basic training on three different occasions. Twice he was relieved from active duty, placed into enlisted reserves and returned to his job at the laboratory. In 1944 he was again called up and completed basic training at Sheppard Field, Texas. Spielberg then entered gunnery school at Lowery Air Base, Colorado. After six weeks of training he transferred into flight engineer school at Lowery and describes various aspects of his training. Upon completion in October 1944, he began training at Maxwell Air Base. After several months, he went to MacDill Air Base, Florida. There, his crew was assembled and training began. It included long flights and he explains the procedure of fuel transfers during flight. In June 1945, the crew was assigned to the 313th Bomb Wing, 504th Bomb Group, 421st Bomb Squadron on Tinian. He remembers fire bombing missions over Japan and 18 hour missions involving mine laying operations off Korea. During one mission, they landed on Iwo Jima due to engine problems. He was promoted to warrant officer and transferred to the 504th Group headquarters. He recounts a flight in which difficulties arose and as a result, he and others aboard bailed out. Spielberg was discharged June 1946.

Physical Description

1 sound recording (1 hr., 10 min., 44 sec.)

Subjects

Keywords

Library of Congress Genre/Form Terms

Library of Congress Subject Headings

World War, 1939-1945

University of North Texas Libraries Browse Structure

Language

English

Item Type

Sound

Identifier

Unique identifying numbers for this recording in the Portal or other systems.

Accession or Local Control No: OH01030
Archival Resource Key: ark:/67531/metapth1608247

Relationships

Oral History Interview with Irvin Spielberg, November 6, 2003, [transcript] ark:/67531/metapth1604438

Collections

This recording is part of the following collections of related materials.

National Museum of the Pacific War Oral History Collection

This oral history collection depicts an instrumental era in American history. In these transcripts of interviews with World War II veterans are personal experiences with the war, from the Doolittle Raid and D-Day to the Battle for Bataan.

National Museum of the Pacific War Digital Archive

The Digital Archive presents digitized collections from the Center for Pacific War Studies collections at the National Museum of the Pacific War. Collections and material are continuously being added and represent only a small portion of the archives' physical holdings.

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