|  | | | Military Mahogany | | | Maintained by: | | Welcome to Military Mahogany, we offer the finest in military and aviation models including 21st Century Toys Ultimate Soldier, BBI Elite Force as well as beautiful Unique Hand Carved Mahogany Models. From World War II to present day we have it all: models, figures, patches, posters, caps and more. | |
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IN THE BEGINNING
21st Century Toys, Inc.™ is a family-owned, Northern California based toy company specializing in action figure toys of unbeatable quality, authenticity and with special attention to detailing. The company burst onto the scene in 1997 when it introduced the Vietnam Series 1&11 uniform sets or 12-inch action figures. Over the last nine years the company has grown exponentially and is well known among collectors for a wide variety of quality action figures and accessories. 21st Century Toys'™ action figures come in 1/6, 1/18 and 1/32 scale. Action figures include The Ultimate Soldier®, America's Finest®, The Villains®, The Ultimate Soldier Xtreme Detail™, The Ultimate Soldier 32X™, The Ultimate Soldier Cold Steel™ and Radio Controlled®. Each series of figures, uniforms, weapons and vehicles from World War II, Vietnam and Modern Era are historically accurate and have unparalleled detailing.
FROM A DREAM TO REALITY
21st Century Toys, Inc.™, once a vision of its' creative founders, has become a toy company known worldwide as a leading producer of action figure toys and accessories. The original company goal was to design and produce high quality products that would become the gold standard for authenticity and attention to detail™ and that would stand out from the competition to where the customer could Experience the Difference™!
THAT GOAL REMAINS THE SAME TODAY.
21st Century Toys, Inc.™' creative team is comprised of military veterans, historians, and top toy designers that have a devotion to this standard and it has become a commitment for the company. | | | |
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One of the things I love most about 21st Century Toys Ultimate Soldier Series is that most of their planes are authentic replicas of actual planes and pilots from World War II.
Here is a perfect example.
The P-38 Lightning known as Putt Putt Muru flown by Col Charles Macdonald,475 FG, Hollandia 1944. | | | |
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I had the honor of being contated by the grandson of the pilot who flew a P-47 Thunderbolt known as the Blond Angel and learned this great story.
Captain Thomas R. Litchfield—his middle initial appears to be the only mistake the model's manufacturer made—enlisted in the Army Air Corps around Thanksgiving 1941, just before World War II began. He spent several years training other pilots in the United States before heading to Europe, where he was part of the 506th Squadron of the 404th Fighter Group.
He flew a P-47, a powerful single-engine plane used to escort high-altitude bombers as well as fly low-level fighter-bomber missions. Don Litchfield reports that his older brother flew many missions on and after D-Day—June 6, 1944—when the Allied invasion of German-occupied France began.
The next month Tom Litchfield's luck ran out when flak from German anti-aircraft guns tore into his engine. As The Blond Angel plunged to Earth, Litchfield bailed out. He barely had enough time to open his parachute before hitting the ground. He soon was captured by the Germans.
Tom Litchfield spent the next 10 months as a prisoner of war, first at a camp in Sagan, Poland, and then in Moosberg, Germany, until the war ended in April 1945. He was interned at the prison camp for Air Force officers and personnel at Sagan for several months, where conditions were decent and food was good, he said. He was transferred to a camp near Mossberg, Germany, which was an international camp, holding Russians, Serbians, Poles,and other captives. Here, the food was poor and short, Captain Litchfield said. Due to an acute shortage of cigarettes, they became the medium of exchange. He was liberated on April 29 by American forces.
Meanwhile, Don Litchfield, who was two years younger than Tom, also enlisted in the Air Corps. He rose to the rank of First Lieutenant, became the left-seat pilot of a B-17 bomber, and flew 20 missions over Europe.
After 2 1/2 years of separation, the brothers had an emotional, unexpected reunion at a military base in Boston after the war ended.
Tom Litchfield didn't talk much about his wartime experience, his brother said. For Captain Thomas Litchfield, it is the first leave at home in a year and a half. A wearer of the Air Medal and six Oak Leaf Clusters and the European Theater of Operations Ribbon with three Battle Stars, he entered the service in November 1941. He was commissioned Second Lieutenant at Foster Field, Victoria, Texas on July 3, 1942.
As for this Blong Angel, (painted on his aircraft) who had accompanied Tom Litchfield on more than 50 missions over German-held territory........ this was a painting of his wife Harriet. | | | |
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