Book Review of B-25J "Mitchell" In Combat Over Pacifc and CBI
SMI Library no. 19013
Author: Marek Katarzynski
Kagero Publications
ISBN: 978-83-85437-51-8
By Ray Mehlberger
MSRP: $22.95
ISBN: 978-83-85437-51-8
By Ray Mehlberger
MSRP: $22.95
THE BOOK:
Kagero Publications is based in Lublin, Poland. They do their books in both English and Polish. This one has the pages split in two, with English on the left and Polish on the right and the captions in both languages. Unique!
The book is soft cover of 109 pages in 7 3/4" x 10 3/4" page format, and comes in a re-sealable clear cello cover. It also includes a stencil of the U.S. star with bars insignia in what appears to be 1/48th scale.
Kagero Publications is based in Lublin, Poland. They do their books in both English and Polish. This one has the pages split in two, with English on the left and Polish on the right and the captions in both languages. Unique!
The book is soft cover of 109 pages in 7 3/4" x 10 3/4" page format, and comes in a re-sealable clear cello cover. It also includes a stencil of the U.S. star with bars insignia in what appears to be 1/48th scale.
The cover art shows a B-25J in color. It is olive drab over a light-grey undercarraige. It has a tiger head on the nose with many bombing missioin marks and 2 ship kill marks, with "Bugs Bunny" and a illustration of him on the nose. There is a yellow serial no. 327957 on the rudder.
This B-25J was with the 823rd Squadron of the 38th Group, Lingayen, 1945.
A black and white photo of the actual plane sitting on a runway is at the top of the cover.
A black and white photo at the bottom of the cover is of a B-25J with "Pretty Pat" and a shark-mouth on the nose.
This aircraft was with the 499th Squadron, 345th Group, Lingayen, July 1945.
The book contains 260 black and white wartime photos, 36 color photos, 12 color illustrations of nose pin-up girls, 30 color group insignias and patches illlustrations.
B-25J nose arts shown are:
A red eagle head covering the nose and "Air Apache" emblem on the rudder, with Le Shima 1945.
"Betty's Dream" with a black bat's head on nose.
"Dirty Dora" with a black bat's head on the nose.
"Pretty Pat"
"Bold Adventure"
"My Duchess"
"War Admiral"
"Fatso"
"Apache Princess" with female figure illustration.
"Lazy Daisy Mae" with female figure illustration.
"Cactus Kitten" with female figure illustration.
"Reina Pacifico" with wolf head on the nose.
"Emergency Strip" with female figure on a heart and a green dragon's head on the nose.
Panther's head on the nose.
"Little Princess Dianna with tiger's head on the nose.
"Talisman" with tiger's head on the nose.
"Spinning Spinister" with tiger's head on the nose.
"Touch of Texas"
"Big Operator II" with bugs bunny on nose.
"Beautiful Ohio" with female figure illustration.
"Nasty Nancy" with femal figure illustration.
"Smilin Jack" with man's head illustration.
"Sweet Louise" with female figure illustration.
"Borneo Lawnmower"
"Waddy's Wanda-er" with female figure illustration.
"Sessy Sel" with female figure illustration.
"Helen Mae" with female figure illustration.
"1 For The Gipper" with football player illustration.
"Milk Run" with female figure illustration.
"Overshot too" with illustration of a drunk leaning on a lamp.
"Queen of Fairfield" with female figure illustration.
"Golden Gate or Bust" with a bridge and a female figure illustrations.
"Male Call" with female figure illustration.
"Miss Frontier" with female figure illustration.
"Ramblin Scooter" with illustration of a wolf riding a motorcycle and firing a pistol.
"Rosie" with female figure illustration.
"Hubuy Time" with female figure illustration.
"Betty Jane" with female figure illustration.
"Tricky Likk" with female figure illustration.
"Luki Bets" with female figure illustration.
"The Joker" with illustration of a joker on the nose.
"Lucky Legs" with female figure illustration.
"Weezie" with female figure illustration.
"Tokyo Traveler" with female figure illustration.
"Fay-vorite Lady" with female figure illustration.
"Strictly Fortesnay" with illustration of a mermaid on nose.
"Lil McMony" with illustration of a donkey on nose.
"Wolf Bait" with illustration of a wolf's head and female figure on nose.
"Herassing Agent" with wolf's head and female figure on nose.
"Ruff N Reddy" with female figure illustration.
"French Kiss" with female figure illustration.
"Panchito" with Mexican man shooting 2 pistols illustrated on nose.
"Miss Alice"
"Undecided" with female figure illustration.
"Sleep Time Gal" with female figure illustration.
"The Ink Squirts" with illustrations of 5 guys looking out of windows.
"Let's Face It" with nude female figure illustration.
"Yankee Dollar" with female figure illustration.
"Rhode Island Red" with nude female illustration.
"Giamazon" with female figure illustration.
"Oopeman" with illustration of caped super hero holding a bomb on nose.
Just a female figure on nose with no name.
"My Buck" with nude female figure.
"Gorgeous Georgetta" with female figure illustration.
"Sunday Punch"
"Milk Run" over illustration of 5 dogs on nose.'
"Pin Up Girl" with female figure illustration.
"Sack Time Sal" with female figure illustration.
"Problem Child" with female figure illustration.
"Oh Dee Whizz" with female figure illustration.
"Jiven Julie" with female figure illustration.
"Cornhusker" with a skull on nose.
"Incendiary Babe" with female figure illustration.
"The Green Hornet"
"Gun Totin Deacon"
"Rhapsody in Rivets"
"Sheridan Express" with female face on nose.
"Miss Phyllis"
"Niagra Belle" with female figure illustration.
"Rhode Island Red" with a illustration of a chicken on nose.
"Japutie Slugger" with a illustration of a bulldog wearing a top hat and boxing gloves on nose.
"Reckless Virgin" with female figure illustration.
"Whisky" with illustration of a drunk hobo on nose.
"Lil Hot Shot" with female figure illustration.
Color profiles are:
1 "Bugs Bunny" (the cover art subject, already described above.
2. "Little Miss Hell II", a 4-view with a blue bat's face on the nose, 39 mission marks. It is olive drab over grey undercarraige. It has a yellow 166 on the rudder over the "Air Apache" logo.
It is whit the 499th Squadron, 345 Group, Lingayen, July, 1945.
3. "Male Call", a 4-view. It is olive drab over a grey undercarraige. There is a illustration of a gal sitting atop Male Call and using the telephone and there are 55 combat mission marks on the nose, a yellow tipped rudder over a blue shield with a cross that has double horizontal arms over "Crusaders".
It is with the 390th Squadron, 42nd Group, Mar Airport, Sansapor, New Gunea, 1945.
4. "My Duck", a 4-view. It is olive drab with a grey undercarraige with a nude on the nose with 65 yellow combat mission marks, black serial no. 429509 on white bottom of the rudder beneath a squadron logo of a figure riding a bomb.
It was with the 17th TRS (Tactical Recconnaisance Squadron), 71st Group, Lingayen, 1945.
5. "Whiskey" a 3-view. It is olive drab with a grey undercarraige it has a white serial no. 252 and a character sitting on a white cloud with black "Whiskey" on it. The white serial no. is on the rudder too.
It was with the 18th Squadron, NEI, Batchelor, North Australia 1945.
6. "Ruff' N Reddy" a 3-view. It is overall bare metal, with a female figure above the Ruff' N Reddy on the nose. It has a black horizontal stripe on the rudder, above a black serial no. 328150.
It was with the 48th Squadron, 41st Group, Kadena, Okinawa, July 1945.
7. "Oh Dee Whizz" a 3-view. It is olive drab over grey undercarraige. It has a female on the nose with the wind blowing her skirt up.
It was with the 82nd Squadron, 12th Group, Fenny, India 1945.
8. "Sleep time Gal" a 4-view. It is overall bare metal with a female in a bathing suit on the nose and 50 bombing mission marks. There are 2 horizontal black stripes on the rudder over black serial no. 264934.
It was with the 396th Squadron, 41st Group. Okinawa 1945.
This is one neat book on the B-24J. It will be of great interest to modelers with all those schemes that are shown and to aircraft historians as well.
I want to thank the folks at Casemate Publishing who sent me this review sample and the folks at Kagero too.
All Kagero titles can be seen on Casemate's site at:
This B-25J was with the 823rd Squadron of the 38th Group, Lingayen, 1945.
A black and white photo of the actual plane sitting on a runway is at the top of the cover.
A black and white photo at the bottom of the cover is of a B-25J with "Pretty Pat" and a shark-mouth on the nose.
This aircraft was with the 499th Squadron, 345th Group, Lingayen, July 1945.
The book contains 260 black and white wartime photos, 36 color photos, 12 color illustrations of nose pin-up girls, 30 color group insignias and patches illlustrations.
B-25J nose arts shown are:
A red eagle head covering the nose and "Air Apache" emblem on the rudder, with Le Shima 1945.
"Betty's Dream" with a black bat's head on nose.
"Dirty Dora" with a black bat's head on the nose.
"Pretty Pat"
"Bold Adventure"
"My Duchess"
"War Admiral"
"Fatso"
"Apache Princess" with female figure illustration.
"Lazy Daisy Mae" with female figure illustration.
"Cactus Kitten" with female figure illustration.
"Reina Pacifico" with wolf head on the nose.
"Emergency Strip" with female figure on a heart and a green dragon's head on the nose.
Panther's head on the nose.
"Little Princess Dianna with tiger's head on the nose.
"Talisman" with tiger's head on the nose.
"Spinning Spinister" with tiger's head on the nose.
"Touch of Texas"
"Big Operator II" with bugs bunny on nose.
"Beautiful Ohio" with female figure illustration.
"Nasty Nancy" with femal figure illustration.
"Smilin Jack" with man's head illustration.
"Sweet Louise" with female figure illustration.
"Borneo Lawnmower"
"Waddy's Wanda-er" with female figure illustration.
"Sessy Sel" with female figure illustration.
"Helen Mae" with female figure illustration.
"1 For The Gipper" with football player illustration.
"Milk Run" with female figure illustration.
"Overshot too" with illustration of a drunk leaning on a lamp.
"Queen of Fairfield" with female figure illustration.
"Golden Gate or Bust" with a bridge and a female figure illustrations.
"Male Call" with female figure illustration.
"Miss Frontier" with female figure illustration.
"Ramblin Scooter" with illustration of a wolf riding a motorcycle and firing a pistol.
"Rosie" with female figure illustration.
"Hubuy Time" with female figure illustration.
"Betty Jane" with female figure illustration.
"Tricky Likk" with female figure illustration.
"Luki Bets" with female figure illustration.
"The Joker" with illustration of a joker on the nose.
"Lucky Legs" with female figure illustration.
"Weezie" with female figure illustration.
"Tokyo Traveler" with female figure illustration.
"Fay-vorite Lady" with female figure illustration.
"Strictly Fortesnay" with illustration of a mermaid on nose.
"Lil McMony" with illustration of a donkey on nose.
"Wolf Bait" with illustration of a wolf's head and female figure on nose.
"Herassing Agent" with wolf's head and female figure on nose.
"Ruff N Reddy" with female figure illustration.
"French Kiss" with female figure illustration.
"Panchito" with Mexican man shooting 2 pistols illustrated on nose.
"Miss Alice"
"Undecided" with female figure illustration.
"Sleep Time Gal" with female figure illustration.
"The Ink Squirts" with illustrations of 5 guys looking out of windows.
"Let's Face It" with nude female figure illustration.
"Yankee Dollar" with female figure illustration.
"Rhode Island Red" with nude female illustration.
"Giamazon" with female figure illustration.
"Oopeman" with illustration of caped super hero holding a bomb on nose.
Just a female figure on nose with no name.
"My Buck" with nude female figure.
"Gorgeous Georgetta" with female figure illustration.
"Sunday Punch"
"Milk Run" over illustration of 5 dogs on nose.'
"Pin Up Girl" with female figure illustration.
"Sack Time Sal" with female figure illustration.
"Problem Child" with female figure illustration.
"Oh Dee Whizz" with female figure illustration.
"Jiven Julie" with female figure illustration.
"Cornhusker" with a skull on nose.
"Incendiary Babe" with female figure illustration.
"The Green Hornet"
"Gun Totin Deacon"
"Rhapsody in Rivets"
"Sheridan Express" with female face on nose.
"Miss Phyllis"
"Niagra Belle" with female figure illustration.
"Rhode Island Red" with a illustration of a chicken on nose.
"Japutie Slugger" with a illustration of a bulldog wearing a top hat and boxing gloves on nose.
"Reckless Virgin" with female figure illustration.
"Whisky" with illustration of a drunk hobo on nose.
"Lil Hot Shot" with female figure illustration.
Color profiles are:
1 "Bugs Bunny" (the cover art subject, already described above.
2. "Little Miss Hell II", a 4-view with a blue bat's face on the nose, 39 mission marks. It is olive drab over grey undercarraige. It has a yellow 166 on the rudder over the "Air Apache" logo.
It is whit the 499th Squadron, 345 Group, Lingayen, July, 1945.
3. "Male Call", a 4-view. It is olive drab over a grey undercarraige. There is a illustration of a gal sitting atop Male Call and using the telephone and there are 55 combat mission marks on the nose, a yellow tipped rudder over a blue shield with a cross that has double horizontal arms over "Crusaders".
It is with the 390th Squadron, 42nd Group, Mar Airport, Sansapor, New Gunea, 1945.
4. "My Duck", a 4-view. It is olive drab with a grey undercarraige with a nude on the nose with 65 yellow combat mission marks, black serial no. 429509 on white bottom of the rudder beneath a squadron logo of a figure riding a bomb.
It was with the 17th TRS (Tactical Recconnaisance Squadron), 71st Group, Lingayen, 1945.
5. "Whiskey" a 3-view. It is olive drab with a grey undercarraige it has a white serial no. 252 and a character sitting on a white cloud with black "Whiskey" on it. The white serial no. is on the rudder too.
It was with the 18th Squadron, NEI, Batchelor, North Australia 1945.
6. "Ruff' N Reddy" a 3-view. It is overall bare metal, with a female figure above the Ruff' N Reddy on the nose. It has a black horizontal stripe on the rudder, above a black serial no. 328150.
It was with the 48th Squadron, 41st Group, Kadena, Okinawa, July 1945.
7. "Oh Dee Whizz" a 3-view. It is olive drab over grey undercarraige. It has a female on the nose with the wind blowing her skirt up.
It was with the 82nd Squadron, 12th Group, Fenny, India 1945.
8. "Sleep time Gal" a 4-view. It is overall bare metal with a female in a bathing suit on the nose and 50 bombing mission marks. There are 2 horizontal black stripes on the rudder over black serial no. 264934.
It was with the 396th Squadron, 41st Group. Okinawa 1945.
This is one neat book on the B-24J. It will be of great interest to modelers with all those schemes that are shown and to aircraft historians as well.
I want to thank the folks at Casemate Publishing who sent me this review sample and the folks at Kagero too.
All Kagero titles can be seen on Casemate's site at: