At Home and in Combat, Foss Led by Example

0 Comments | Insight on the News, Jan 8, 2001 | by James P. Lucier

Insight: Did you lose any of your "kids" in that mission?

JF: That one looked like it was a one-way mission, but none of them ever gave any sign as they shook hands saying "Good luck, God bless you!" All I can say is the good Lord meant us to come through it alive. You had situation after situation with people like that.

Personal Bio

Joe Foss: The World War II ace speaks to a new generation through computer games.

Personal: Born Joseph Jacob "Joe" Foss, April 17, 1915, South Dakota. Married Donna Wild; five children; six grandchildren.

Education: University of South Dakota, B.S., 1940.

Military career: Enlisted in U.S. Marine Corps, 1940. Became executive officer of VMF-121 after Pearl Harbor. Shot down 26 enemy aircraft in 1942-43, tying Eddie Rickenbacker's World War I record despite being out of combat six weeks with malaria. Served with Air National Guard during Korean War with rank of major general.

Honors: Congressional Medal of Honor, 1943. Distinguished Flying Cross. National Aviation Hall of Fame.

Politics: Republican. Representative in South Dakota Legislature, 1948-53; two-term governor of South Dakota, 1954-58.

Author: Top Guns: America Fighter Aces Tell Their Stories (with Matthew Brennan); A Proud American: The Autobiography of Joe Foss (with Donna Wild Foss).