Again, I went for a more “realistic” look, meaning I didn’t want it to be perfect.  Overall, I’m fairly pleased.  If I did it again, there would be some things I would changed.  This one took less time, for two reasons; 1, less detail work, 2, unlike my brother’s jacket which was so beaten the finish was gone, making the paint soak right through, this jacket didn’t do that, so I didn’t need to put a million layers of paint on it.  Also, this jacket isn’t as old, and has slit pockets instead of flap ones.  But it suits nevertheless.

I found this beat up leather jacket at St. Vincent de Paul for a mere $5.00, and have always wanted to take up painting jackets and saw this as an ample opportunity.  Turns out, the jacket fits my brother, so my dad and I collaborated on this design and I knocked it out over a period of three days for a total of about ten hours.

The plane is Chuck Yeager’s Bell X-1, which broke the sound barrier on October 14, 1947, and the Muroc comes from Muroc Army Air Field in California.  As I was working on it, I wasn’t really liking it a whole lot, but once the AF logo got on the plane and the car got painted, I think it came together real well, and I’m fairly pleased.  The image isn’t perfect, but these jackets weren’t perfect works of art by anymeans, and that is what I wanted to go for.  I can’t wait to see how my brother likes it.

Now, getting to period and historical correctness…throw what you know about the ending of WWII out the window.  And, sure, the film was based on true events, however the large majority of those events have been…shall we say, enhanced?  Not to mention there is utter revisionist history going on at the end.  Oh how I wish that is how it really happened…Anyhow, since the film was gripping, heart-pounding, on the edge of your seat exciting, not to mention a good chunk of it is subtitled, I had difficulty picking out mistakes, and I am not all that familiar with German military gear.  However, two mistakes did stand out to me.  First off, at the film premiere, there are cigarette girls walking about in the most adorable of costumes, however, their stockings were incorrect; they were not double welted or seamed.  Secondly, after the film’s climax, there is a scene between Brad Pitt’s character and Christopher Waltz’s character where the two are sitting at the table, and on the table is a telephone.  This phone has a coiled cord, however these were not yet invented.

Costume wise, the film is stunning with outfits that are do die for.  (Maybe I’ll go as Bridget von Hammersmark, played by Diane Kruger – seen on the right – this Halloween.)  However costume designer Anna B. Sheppard is an old hand at WWII era costuming with films like The Pianist and Schindler’s List as well as the mini series Band of Brothers under her belt.

Do I recommend Inglorious Basterds? You can bet I do.  I’ll be buying this on DVD they day it comes out.  While some may lable it “violence porn”, I found it to be a meticulous and well thought out story with entertaining characters (including some kick-ass and well dressed ladies) that hold your interest throughout.

If you’ve never heard of WASP, like my instructor, here is a brief explanation: created in 1941, during WWII, women were called to duty to perform non-combat, ferry missions.  This left men to perform strictly combat missions.  The women of WASP were the first women to ever fly military aircrafts.  Over 1000 women joined, and 38 of them gave their lives during missions.  Since these women were considered civil service employees they did not receive military benefits.  It wasn’t until 1977, with the G.I. Bill Improvement Act, under the Carter Administration, with the help of Republican Senator Barry Goldwater (and 1964 presidential hopeful), who was a ferry pilot himself, did these women get their benefits retroactively.

Fast forward to today, on July 1, 2009, President Obama awarded WASP the Congressional Gold Metal for their service.  Obama said these women “answered their country’s call in a time of need while blazing a trail for the brave women who have given and continue to give so much,” he continued to say “Every American should be grateful for their service, and I am honored to sign this bill to finally give me some of the hard-earned recognition they deserve”.  These women were certainly pioneers, and certainly don’t get enough attention.

Also on the same note of female pilots, the trailer for the Amelia Earhart bio-pic, Amelia is out!  Earhart has always been an icon of mine, she was one of the gutsiest ladies in history.  The film stars 2-time Academy Award winner Hillary Swank in the title role, and co-stars Richard Gere and Ewan McGregor.  Release date is set for 23rd of October.  You can bet I’ll be there!