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John was a child of Vaudeville; he became a professional entertainer at the age of four. He was an immediate hit on stage and when silent films came out, John was cast to co-star with the likes of Charlie Chaplin then later as a stand-alone child and young adult star in the \u201cTalkies\u201d.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s when John took his place in history\u2026 the first time \u2013 as the world\u2019s first child star. By the age of twelve John was one of the most popular entertainers in Hollywood, and was considered to be the most popular boy in America.<\/p>\n
Newspapers reported that \u201cOther children want to go see Babe Ruth \u2013 Babe Ruth wanted to visit the Kid.\u201d MGM signed him to a $500,000 contract (approx. 8 million in 2016 $).\u00a0 Life couldn\u2019t be better for a boy in his late teens.\u00a0 He even married the hottest starlet in movies \u2013 Betty Grable.<\/p>\n
Then the un-thinkable happened \u2013 his father was killed in a freak accident and his mother ran off with the family attorney. The couple made legal claim to all of John\u2019s assets. Since he was a minor he had no recourse.<\/p>\n
John\u2019s mother and her new beau kept John\u2019s fortune. \u00a0His marriage to Grable began to unravel and he couldn\u2019t work without parental consent. Virtually broke and abandoned, help came from an old friend and mentor \u2013 Charlie Chaplin, offered John enough cash to get him through to his 21st<\/sup> birthday and legal adulthood.\u00a0 He could get his next big role and repay Chaplin when he had the means.<\/p>\n With Chaplin\u2019s help, John filed a lawsuit and won. It was too late for him to recover any of his assets, but the law was changed to require a portion of any child star\u2019s income be put in trust until they were adults. This was the second time John took his place in history \u2013 the Law is named for him.<\/a><\/p>\n John was blackballed by Hollywood studios because of the lawsuit and couldn\u2019t get a part so he decided to take a different path and leave the movie industry behind.<\/p>\n He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1940. I\u2019m not sure if John was tired of chewing dirt or just thought he was a better pilot than infantryman but he decided to inform the Army that he was a licensed pilot.<\/p>\n In 1940 it was in vogue<\/em> for the rich to learn to fly and own airplanes \u2013 John was no different and by 20 he was an accomplished Pilot.<\/p>\n He transferred to the Army Air Force as a pilot and when given the opportunity to volunteer for an \u201cUnknown Unit with an Unknown Mission\u201d<\/a> \u2013 John volunteered and was accepted; this was the third time he made his mark on history, albeit anonymously.<\/p>\n He was trained as a Glider Pilot and became part of Gen Hap Arnold\u2019s 5318th<\/sup> Provisional Unit (Air)<\/a> \u2013 <\/strong>they were assigned to provide air and logistic support to the \u201cChindits<\/a>\u201d \u2013 British commandos operating in the rough Burma Theater. So named for the mythical Griffin like creatures locals believed guarded temples in Burma. \u00a0Chindits had a reputation for being hard and deadly.<\/p>\n The 5318th<\/sup> would go through a series of name changes with the final designation of 1st<\/sup> Air Commandos.\u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong>Gen. Arnold described the mission of the Air Commando, initially named Project 9, as having 4 objectives: \u00a0facilitate the forward movement of the Chindit columns; facilitate the supply and evacuation of the columns; provide a small air covering and striking force; acquire air experience under the conditions expected to be encountered.<\/p>\n In 1943 John was given a commission and sent to the Pacific to fly support operations for Wingate\u2019s Chindit commandos in the field.\u00a0 From what I can tell, this is the first Special Operations Aviation unit in the U.S. Army \u2013 the earliest ancestor to you Night Stalkers. <\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n