Mission

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What to expect

In March 1941, Jimmy Stewart, America’s boy next door and recent Academy Award winner, left fame and fortune behind and joined the United States Army Air Corps to fulfill his family mission and serve his country. He rose from private to colonel and participated in twenty often-brutal World War II combat missions over Germany and France. In mere months, the war took away his boyish looks as he faced near-death experiences and the loss of men under his command. The war finally won, he returned home with millions of other veterans to face an uncertain future, suffering what we now know as PTSD. Younger stars like Gregory Peck were now getting roles that might have been Stewart’s, and he didn’t know if he would ever work in Hollywood again. Then came It’s a Wonderful Life.

For the next half century, Stewart refused to discuss his combat experiences and took the story of his service to the grave. Mission presents the first in-depth look at Stewart’s life as a squadron commander in the skies over Germany, his return to Hollywood, and the changed man who embarked on production of America’s most beloved holiday classic.

Author Robert Matzen sifted through thousands of Air Force combat reports and the Stewart personnel files; interviewed surviving aviators who flew with Stewart; visited the James Stewart Papers at Brigham Young University; flew in the cockpits of the B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberator; and walked the earth of air bases in England used by Stewart in his combat missions of 1943 through 1945. What emerges in Mission is the story of a Jimmy Stewart you never knew until now—a story more fantastic than any he brought to the screen.

Critics Review

  • “Meticulously researched, articulately written, and beautifully narrated…Narrator Peter Berkrot has a tall order in the massively detailed text, but he exceeds expectations. Berkrot’s performance is replete with occasional understated and accurate vocal characterizations, making his authoritative reading honest and absorbing.”

    AudioFile

  • “A good story of history that you’ve never heard before.”

    Glenn Beck, #1 New York Times bestselling author

  • “Matzen’s compelling narrative gets inside his subject’s head to recreate specific moments in the heat of preparation for combat.”

    Leonard Maltin, film critic, historian, and New York Times bestselling author

  • “This week’s must-read books…A revealing look at the wartime service of one of America’s most beloved actors.”

    New York Post

  • “Exhaustively researched, exceptionally well written.”

    Midwest Book Review

  • “One of the first major studies of the actor’s risky missions over Nazi Germany…Matzen relies on extensive research and the cooperation of surviving crew members…An illuminating, recommended look at a hidden chapter in Stewart’s life.”

    Library Journal

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