For young men in good shape, 1944 was a year of the most brutal combat the world had ever seen. For everyone else, it was a year of figuring out how to live life in the total absence of young men.
From a league of their own, to Hollywood stars, to life on the front lines of fighting fascism, here are 24 photos of what it looked like to be alive in 1944.
1
Tri-Deltas
In a dorm, University of Texas, 1944.
2
French Woman
Pouring tea to a British soldier during the fighting in Normandy, 1944.
3
Mom Works on the Car
While her son plays with parts.
4
Italian Woman
Inspecting the Kilt of a Scottish Soldier Near the Coliseum after the liberation of Rome, 1944.
5
Taking it Slow
Friends in 1944.
6
Mail Call
During the Battle of Peleliu, 1944.
7
1944 Mugshot
Phyllis seems cool.
8
Listening to Records
Teens in 1944.
9
An American Soldier
Cold during the Battle of the Bulge.
10
Men Playing Cards
New Orleans, August of 1944.
11
Hollywood Starlets
At the pool in 1944.
12
“My Grandpa During WWII”
The Pacific Theater, 1944.
13
Actress Lauren Bacall
Giving the side eyes in 1944.
14
Mel Brooks
Driving a Willys Jeep, 1944.
15
The Crew of B-17 “Shack Bunny”
A crew in 1944.
16
A Majorette
Marching in 1944.
17
Soviet Artillery Battery
During Operation Bagration, June, 1944.
18
War Correspondent Martha Gellhorn
She was the only woman to land at Normandy, after dumping her husband Ernest Hemingway.
19
Fit Soldier
Working out in 1944.
20
Newly Engaged Couple
A soldier and his fiance, 1944.
21
Captain “Waddy” Young and Crew
Posing in front of their caricatures on their B-29 Superfortress on Nov 24, 1944.
22
Sgt. Dog
Looking good sir!
23
An Army Base Wedding
Kansas City in 1944.
24
American Soldiers
With Dutch children in 1944.
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