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World War II Servicemen's Correspondence Collection, 1941-1945

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Immediately after Pearl Harbor and as the War progressed, Aztec students were soon scattered all over the globe, disconnected and separated from their college, their friends, their loved ones, and their former lives. In the spring of 1942, Dr. Post, professor of geography from 1937-69 and a veteran of World War I, decided to try a "news service experiment" intended to provide information about the locations of current and former Aztecs dispersed around the world. The Aztec News Letter thus became a crucial lifeline throughout the War for Aztec servicemen and women facing difficulty and danger wherever they were stationed. Lauded as one of the first of its kind in the nation, the Aztec News Letter premiered in May of 1942 and was released monthly until its 48th issue in March of 1946. By then, The Aztec News Letter circulated to more than 3,000 service and home front readers. The project and the letters that made it possible would forever characterize the Aztec spirit during wartime. Not only are the letters historically significant; they also offer a unique perspective about San Diego State during a global crisis.

The cartoon is by Lt. W. Pat Wyatt, bombardier and pilot in Marine Scout Bomb Squad 241, aka the "Sons of Satan." Wyatt's letter is dated less than a month after V-E Day, when Nazi Germany surrendered to the Allies. Using the satirical tools of the political cartoonist, Wyatt comments on the course of the War. A smug Adolf Hitler is shown in 1943 after his European conquests. In 1945, the destruction of the German armed forces and the ruin of the country is symbolized by the Iron Cross atop a coffin.

Wyatt's letter was written from the Philippines. He flew 63 missions with Bomb Squad 241, which paved the way for the invasion of Luzon and the liberation of Manila. Wyatt also sketched cartoons in several other letters held in the WW2 Servicemen's Collection.