Sinking the Rising Sun: Dog Fighting & Dive Bombing in World War Ii: A Navy Fighter Pilot's Story - Hardcover

William E. Davis

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 076032946X ISBN 13: 9780760329467

Publisher: Zenith Pr, 2007

Synopsis

Awarded the Navy Cross, Lieutenant William Davis, III, of the United States Naval Reserve was cited for "extraordinary heroism" while serving as pilot of a carrier based fighter aircraft on 25 October 1944. "Flying through intense anti-aircraft fire," the citation read, "he made an aggressive attack on a Japanese carrier, first strafing and then delivering a well placed bomb from low altitude. After this attack the carrier was left burning and subsequently sank." The burning carrier was the Zuikaku, the last Japanese carrier afloat that had taken part in the Pearl Harbor attack.

In this gripping memoir, Davis gives us a fighter pilots view of World War II. Recreating the life-and-death drama of dog fighting and dive bombing over the Pacific, Davis recounts how his squadron shot down 155 enemy planes while losing only 2 of their own in aerial combat. No torpedo bomber or dive bomber they escorted was ever downed by an enemy aircraft. His is a story of "courage and skill . . . in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval service," as his citation noted. It is also a rare true-life account of what such heroics feel like behind a cockpit, in the face of a deadly enemy.

About this title

About the Author

Bill Davis was a senior in college when the attack on Pearl Harbor took place. He volunteered for the Naval Air Corps, and ended up being credited as one of those who sank the Zuikaku, the last Japanese carrier afloat that had taken part in the Pearl Harbor attack. He lives in Santa Barbara, California.
 

 

In 1953, Jonathan Winters headed for New York for the “big time” with $56.46 in his pocket. Then came The Jack Paar Show, The Steve Allen Show, and The Tonight Show, where Jonathan was able to demonstrate his comic genius. He became a top name in American comedy. Jonathan and his wife Eileen have two children and five grandchildren. They live in Santa Barbara, where Jonathan paints and writes when he is not performing.

Foreword by the legendary Jonathan Winters, a good friend of the author's with more than five decades in show business. He enlisted in the Marines in 1943, and was an orderly and a gunner on the U.S.S. Bon Homme Richard. "I never got to land or take off," Winters quips, "but I saw a lot of planes."

From the Back Cover

Lieutenant William Davis III of the United States Naval Reserve was awarded the Navy Cross for "extraordinary heroism" while serving as pilot of a carrier-based fighter aircraft on October 25, 1944. "Flying through intense anti-aircraft fire," the citation reads, "he made an aggressive attack on a Japanese carrier, first strafing and then delivering a well placed bomb from low altitude. After this attack the carrier was left burning and subsequently sank." The burning carrier was the Zuikaku, the last Japanese carrier afloat that had taken part in the Pearl Harbor attack. Here is a fighter pilot's view of World War II, told in colorful language and gripping detail. His is a story of "courage and skill . . . in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval service," as his citation noted. It is also a rare true-life account of what such heroics feel like behind a cockpit, in the face of a deadly enemy. Sinking the Rising Sun includes a foreword by his friend and fellow World War II veteran, the legendary Jonathan Winters.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Foreword

Before I tell you about my friend "Bill," better known as William E. Davis, III, let me tell you briefly about my feelings about flying and wanting to be a pilot. I was born over seventy years ago in Dayton, Ohio. My grandfather, Valentine Winters, owned the Winters National Bank. He attended school with the Wright Brothers and helped finance their development of the first airplane. I was just a very young boy when my grandfather introduced me to Orville Wright. His brother Wilbur had died many years before. Along about that time I wanted to be a pilot--a fighter pilot. But from the first grade on I struggled with math! I was tutored, failed and finally folded completely with Plain Geometry. I knew I would never be a pilot. And so in 1943, I enlisted in the marines, and of all places to end up, I was admiral's orderly and a gunner on the USS Bon Homme Richard (CV-31). I never got to land on or take off from a carrier, but I sure saw a lot of planes.

It was when I moved to Montecito, California, that I met and worked with Bill. In my fifty years in show business, like many of us, I've met some fascinating people from all walks of life. I've met Orville Wright; Jimmy Stewart, Army Air Corps; Jimmy Doolittle, Army Air Corps; Eddie Rickenbacker, World War I ace; and Neil Armstrong. But I must stop here and mention after reading this book and knowing Bill for a number of years: if you're in need of a role model, this man ranks to me with the men I've mentioned. So put the canopy forward; you're about to take off on a wild and wonderful adventure.

--Jonathan Winters

June 2, 2002

In 1953, Jonathan Winters headed for New York for the "big time" with $56.46 in his pocket. Then came The Jack Paar Show, The Steve Allen Show, and The Tonight Show, where Jonathan was able to demonstrate his comic genius. He became a top name in American comedy. Jonathan and his wife Eileen have two children and five grandchildren. They live in Santa Barbara, where Jonathan paints and writes when he is not performing.

Edition details

• Publisher: Zenith Pr
• Publication date: 2007
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 076032946X
• ISBN 13: 9780760329467
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 304
• Editor: Steve Gansen