LIFE1936-1948

These peaceful scenes of Tarawa belie the horrific battle that took place four months before on this central Pacific coral atoll in late November, 1943, between Japanese forces and US Marines. The Battle of Tarawa was the next major offensive in the Pacific after Guadalcanal. Heavy US naval bombardment and carrier-based bomber strikes were largely ineffective against the dug in Japanese. The use of amtracs to move troops on the beach was found to be effective and was put to good use in later engagements. The Marines lost one thousand killed and over 2,000 wounded as they fought their way to victory through hundreds of pill boxes, heavy artillery and tanks. It was critical that the US take Tarawa to set up forward air bases to support operations across the mid-Pacific, and they did. The Japanese lost over 4,500 defenders.  Not one of Tarawa’s 3,000 residents was killed during the battle since the fighting took place on just one heavily fortified island.  Today Tarawa has about 32,000 residents in this densely populated group of islands in Micronesia. “Bloody Tarawa” is another heroic chapter in US Marine Corps history.

This cover of LIFE features new coed fashions for 1939. In the meantime, a historic event took place when President Roosevelt invited a reigning British Monarch to set foot on American soil for the first time. With Europe on the brink of war Roosevelt moved to strengthen ties between the two democracies and foster a closer relationship. This signaled the dawn of a new era of friendship and cooperation between Britain and America. A new Imperial Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan was elected, James Colescott from Terre Haute, IN. His tenure did not go well. He displayed Nazi sympathies and added fuel the Detroit Race Riots in 1943. The IRS slapped a lien of $685,000 on the Klan in 1944 and it was dissolved. Actress Katharine Hepburn’s sister, Marion, is shown marrying “a Harvard man.” They remained happily married until her death at age 68. And Henry Ford II, the crown prince of Ford Motor Company is captured doing laundry for the Yale crew team during his junior year. In six short years he was named president of Ford…it’s nice to see a hardworking young man get ahead in the world. He is best remembered for firing Lee Iacocca who then moved to Chrysler to lead its’ resurgence.

Hal Roach Studios teamed up with Dictator Benito Mussolini’s eldest son, Vittorio, to create a new film company in 1937. The Dictator provided $5,000,000 for the venture and Roach took the bait. Hollywood was outraged and forced Roach to back out of the agreement with the Facists. Vittorio fled to Argentina after WW II but later returned to Italy and died in Rome in 1997. LIFE also reported on the first “mixed” jury ever to sit in a New York City courtroom that included women. Jurists felt that the “deliberative skills” of women were lacking and only 23 states allowed women to serve on a jury in 1937. Chuck Williams, Captain of the University of Southern California football team, is on the October 11, 1937, cover. The Trojans went on that year to post a lackluster 4-4-2 record.