England Jan. 4, 1944

Dear Mother,
       Received your letter of Dec. 19 and also Harley's
V mail today. I will answer it now while I have
time and it is all yet fresh in my mind.
     About my insurance. I am glad you paid it this
time. I will need all my money when I get home and
I don't want to be paying in back bills. Just how
much do I have from the allotments now?  I would
like to send a little more home, but entertainment
over here is so high priced. A good movie costs
about $1.20. It seems as if a pound lasts just about
as long as a dollar does in the states. There is
four dollars in a pound, so you can see how
easy it is to spend your money over here.
     I would like to have Bill Nicholson's address. I went
to school with him. I might be able to locate him over
here. Also Claude Woodring although he is lots younger
than I am. It would seem good to see someone you
know though.
      About the man from Wauseon. He said he use to
play ball at Berkey.  He knows Deek Sanderson. I hope I
get a letter soon telling about your Christmas and how
surprised Irene was about her gift. It has been nice
for awhile now. Our days are beginning to lengthen out
again. There is a beautiful moon tonight.
     We have our radio playing. The Armed Forces Network
here really has some grand programs. It really is
good to come in from work and listen to the radio.

We get the news quite often from the English broadcast
and then switch to a German station. The news is just
about opposite and it is hard just to know what the
news is.
     I figure on going to London this week. It is almost
four weeks since I have been in. That is about the only
town where you have variety of entertainment. I stay
at one of the Red Cross Clubs when I am there.
     I haven't had a letter from Irene for about three
or four days now. I hope they will come tomorrow.
     Well this is about all for now. Tell everyone
I said hello. I will try to write something to them,
but it is getting so it is hard to write every week
to everybody. Goodbye for now.
                                                 Love Ralph.


The next letter will be posted on January 9th.

Background Information (and comments):

• This letter was sent as an airmail letter. It cost 6 cents to mail. The stationery he used was airmail paper, too (it's as thin as tissue paper).
• Here's some information on the Armed Forces Radio Service and a YouTube clip of a radio show:
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mJchzzUkH8

Radio for the Troops, A Touch of Home

• The various efforts came together during WWII and were expanded after May 26, 1942, when the War Department created the Armed Forces Radio Service (AFRS). The fragile disks and turntables that were being provided in "Buddy Kits" to units deploying overseas were replaced by radio receivers. Programs would be sent to overseas radio stations from the ARFS Hollywood studios. Sometimes shortwave transmission to the frontline stations was used when the program required immediacy, but the preferred method was by phonographic disk. Transcription to disk was a relatively expensive process, but it guaranteed quality and reliability that shortwave could not.

Command Performance (1942-49) was an early hit over AFRS during World War Two. Servicemen were encouraged to write to the show and request their favorite stars, and suggest performances they would like to hear (Ann Miller tap-dancing wearing Army boots?) As the show gained popularity producers worried over the cost of talent to fill the show. From the beginning Hollywood A-List performers such as Bob Hope, Dinah Shore, Fred Allen, Frances Langford, Spike Jones, Frank Sinatra, Burns and Allen, Vincent Price, Ginger Rogers, Gary Cooper, Tallulah Bankhead, Andrew Sisters, Bette Davis, Judy Garland, Bing Crosby, and Margaret Whitingall appeared free of charge, allowing AFRS to produce extremely high quality shows for far less than expected. The free performances by celebrities became a tradition, and it has been pointed out on numerous occasions that no career was ever harmed by performing for the Troops for free. In 2009 the Military cable network, The Pentagon Channel", reprised Command Performance featuring currently popular acts.

• Mail Call(1942-49) was another early AFRS WWII radio show. Premiering in Aug 1942, the show drew its title from the military practice of gathering the troops when mail was delivered to the unit. The show also used A-list talent (working for free) and took the form of a love letter from the celebrities to the troops.
  GI Journal (1943-46) used the celebrities as the guest editors and staff for a weekly newspaper for the WWII troops. Comedy and Pin-up girl talent was featured with a healthy share of popular music.
  Music was the emphasis of GI Jive, a disc jockey program for WWII soldiers. Several disc jockey's "spun hot wax" for the program, sometimes civilian celebrities while other times servicemen would man the microphone. One of the most popular DJs was "GI Jane", the on-air persona of Martha Wilkerson. GI Jane was thought to be an answer to the Tokyo Rose propaganda broadcasts. The plain fact was that the WWII American troops like Ms Wilkerson better.
  The Jubilee Program (1942-53) was unique because it was directed towards African-American soldiers during World War Two. Modern collectors value the programs as some of the best War-time jazz performances. Music America Loves Best was produced and broadcast by NBC, then decommercialized and transcribed for AFRS. The program featured classical as well as popular music.
  Everything for the Boys (1944-45) was dedicated to raising the morale of our fighting men and sponsored by Autolite. The show featured a play by Arch Oboler and included a call to a serviceman stationed overseas, sometimes allowing a family connection to be made over the radio.