Pass in Review - Military School Celebrities (Volume One): Pass in Review - Military School Celebrities: One Hundred Years (1890s - 1990s), #1

By Raymond C. Wilson

Military schools in the United States were established out of necessity due to the difficulties faced by the American colonists fighting for their independence. During the Revolutionary War, British forces were commanded by officers educated at the Royal Military Academies at Sandhurst and Woolwich. It wasn't until 1802 that the United States established its first military school: the United States Military Academy at West Point. Under the outstanding leadership of Brevet Brigadier General Sylvanus Thayer, West Point became the model for American military schools. From 1802 until 2017, there have been approximately 844 military schools in operation in the United States. Many well-known celebrities have attended such institutions. In Volume One, you will find the names and accomplishments of military school celebrities who began their careers in the entertainment industry during the 1890s through the 1930s. Subsequent volumes will contain additional names of well-known celebrities who have attended military schools.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Raymond C. Wilson
• Release date: May 7, 2021
• ISBN: 9781005558024

Raymond C. Wilson

Raymond C. Wilson is a military historian, filmmaker, and amateur genealogist. During his military career as an enlisted soldier, warrant officer, and commissioned officer in the U.S. Army for twenty-one years, Wilson served in a number of interesting assignments both stateside and overseas. He had the honor of serving as Administrative Assistant to Brigadier General George S. Patton (son of famed WWII general) at the Armor School; Administrative Assistant to General of the Army Omar Nelson Bradley at the Pentagon; and Military Assistant to the Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army at the Pentagon. In 1984, Wilson was nominated by the U.S. Army Adjutant General Branch to serve as a White House Fellow in Washington, D.C. While on active duty, Wilson authored numerous Army regulations as well as articles for professional journals including 1775 (Adjutant General Corps Regimental Association magazine), Program Manager (Journal of the Defense Systems Management College), and Army Trainer magazine. He also wrote, directed, and produced three training films for Army-wide distribution. He is an associate member of the Military Writers Society of America. Following his retirement from the U.S. Army in 1992, Wilson made a career change to the education field. He served as Vice President of Admissions and Development at Florida Air Academy; Vice President of Admissions and Community Relations at Oak Ridge Military Academy; Adjunct Professor of Corresponding Studies at U.S. Army Command and General Staff College; and Senior Academic Advisor at Eastern Florida State College. While working at Florida Air Academy, Wilson wrote articles for several popular publications including the Vincent Curtis Educational Register and the South Florida Parenting Magazine. At Oak Ridge Military Academy, Wilson co-wrote and co-directed two teen reality shows that appeared on national television (Nickelodeon & ABC Family Channel). As an Adjunct Professor at U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, Wilson taught effective communications and military history for eighteen years. At Eastern Florida State College, Wilson wrote, directed, and produced a documentary entitled "Wounded Warriors - Their Struggle for Independence" for the Chi Nu chapter of Phi Theta Kappa. Since retiring from Eastern Florida State College, Wilson has devoted countless hours working on book manuscripts.

Book preview

Table of Contents

Pass in Review

Military School Celebrities (Volume One)

Preface

L. Frank Baum (Author)

Edgar Rice Burroughs (Author)

Cecil B. DeMille (Actor/Director/Producer)

Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. (Actor/Producer)

Oliver Hardy (Actor/Director)

Will Rogers (Actor/Producer/Writer)

Noah Berry, Jr. (Actor)

Andy Devine (Actor)

Fred MacMurray (Actor)

Brian Donlevy (Actor/Producer)

Alan Hale, Jr. (Actor)

Victor Mature (Actor)

Roddy McDowall (Actor/Director/Photographer)

Spencer Tracy (Actor)

Robert Walker (Actor)

Bibliography

Appendix

About Raymond C. Wilson

Preface

Military schools in the United States were established out of necessity due to the difficulties faced by the American colonists fighting for their independence. During the Revolutionary War, British forces were commanded by officers educated at the Royal Military Academies at Sandhurst and Woolwich. Our French allies had officers educated at various military schools including reportedly the world’s first military school (Ecole Royale Militaire of Soreze). It wasn’t until 1802 that the United States established its first military school: the United States Military Academy at West Point. Under the outstanding leadership of Brevet Brigadier General Sylvanus Thayer, West Point became the model for American military schools.

Preceding the Civil War: Military schools in the United States increased to 171 institutions before the Civil War. By the onset of the ‘War between the States’, seventy-five percent of military schools in the nation focused on secondary education. Four collegiate military schools of the South (Virginia Military Institute, The Citadel, Georgia Military Academy, University of Alabama Corps of Cadets) participated as units in combat, while many other schools (including secondary schools) on both the Union and Confederate sides provided drill instructions that were vital to the initial training of their respective armies.

Following the Civil War: Military schools sharply declined after the Civil War due to the devastation of the south and its occupation by Federal forces. However, it didn’t take very long before the number of military schools began making a comeback -- reaching their peak just prior to the Great Depression of 1929. This rise in the popularity of military schools can be attributed to four factors: (1) the realization of the positive impact of military school education on young men; (2) the efforts of returning Civil War veterans; (3) the glorification of the cultural phenomena known as the ‘Lost Cause’; and (4) the swell of patriotism known as the ‘Spirit of 1898’ surrounding the Spanish American War. As a result of these four factors, the number of military schools in the United States rose to a high of 280 institutions in 1926.

During the Vietnam-era: Military schools once again lost their popularity. Progressive views dominated the field of education, as schools adopted changes such as open classrooms, student-designed curricula, and so forth. Many military schools did not survive this era. They either closed or became traditional boarding or day schools. The few surviving military schools were forced to adopt progressive ideas such as co-ed classes and more liberal arts studies.

Current situation: Of the approximately 844 military schools that have operated in the United States from 1802 until 2017, there are only 96 military schools (5 federal service academies; 12 military colleges and universities; 5 military junior colleges; 38 private secondary or primary schools; 36 public and charter secondary schools) currently in operation.

During my sixteen years of recruiting students for three reputable military schools (West Point, Florida Air Academy, Oak Ridge Military Academy), I began assembling a list of celebrities who had attended such institutions. My initial intention was to provide the names of well-known celebrities to parents so they would feel good about their decision to send their sons or daughters off to military school. Over time, my interest in this subject grew as my list of famous celebrities who have attended military schools got longer.

In Volume One, you will find the names of military school celebrities who began their careers in the entertainment industry during the 1890s through the 1930s. Subsequent volumes will contain more names of well-known celebrities who have attended military schools.

Raymond C. Wilson (author)

L. Frank Baum

Author

Lyman Frank Baum was born on 15 May 1856 in Chittenango, New York. His father was Benjamin Ward Baum (a Pennsylvania Oil tycoon) and his mother was Cynthia Stanton. Frank was born with health issues (a weak heart) so he wasn't a very boisterous child. He was home schooled and spent hours reading in his father's library. Baum's childhood with nine siblings was happy and set the tone for his future Oz series.

Frank at Peekskill Military School (The History Chicks)

When Frank was thirteen years old, he entered the Peekskill Military Academy in 1869. Arriving in Peekskill, New York, he asked locals how to get to the school. They reportedly replied, Just follow the yellow brick road, since there was a yellow brick road in Peekskill. Legend says that this would later inspire him. The strenuous activity at the military school proved too much for him physically and he was removed. Frank then turned to creative writing. After his father bought him a printing press, Frank started his own newspaper, the Rose Lawn Home Journal. Frank started to write the articles, editorials, fiction, and poetry to fill its pages. He would also write about the raising of chickens in The Book of Hamburgs (1896).

At the age of twenty-five, Frank began studying theatre in New York City. From 1881 to 1882, he managed an opera house in Richburg, New York. He wrote the play The Maid of Arran in 1882 in which he acted. In 1882, Baum married Maud Gage with whom he would have four children. He left theatre life in 1883 to go into private business. In 1888, Frank decided to move his family to Aberdeen, South Dakota. He opened a department store there which failed. He edited the newspaper, Saturday Pioneer, which also failed. In 1891, the Baum’s moved to Chicago,