Evening star., 1943-08-13
Gable DepreeaiesR Role
In Fortress Attack
On Enemy Territory
BY the Associated Press.

by tne Associated Press.
AT A U. S. BOMBER STATION
IN BRITAIN. Aug. l3-Capt. Clark
Gable, back from his third Flying
Fortress raid over enemy territory
raid in which a shrapnel burst
missed him by 2 feet--sat in his
barracks today and resolutely dep
recated his part in the anniversary
attack
1t was an operation falling exactly
at the end of his first year in the
Army-he enlisted August II, 1912
but it was not from his point of view
complete success.
He was acting as Photographic
officer in the famous Flying Fortress,
Amt 1t Gruesome." piloted by Mai.
Theodore R. Milton of Washington.
Il didn't get any really good pic
lures Gable explained. You get up
there and get your camera on some
thing you think is really the thing
and then, bing, something else hap
pens"
Gable, strictly a military figure
who automatically got up and of
fered his chair when Mai. Milton
entered the barracks, was less talk
ative- than almost any other man
who went over and came back in
the "gruesome.
Didn't See Hit.
A shrapnel burst that hit the top
turret missed him by only "a inches.
Il saw lots of hits" he said with
a brief smile, but l didn't see that
baby. I didn't know when it hap
pened-I didn't know anything
about 1t at all until we had dropped
down to about 1000 feet. Then I
saw hole in the turret on one side
and asked one of the boys where it
went out He said it just went
right on out the other side.
You see how it is. There are
plenty of times when you don't know
when they hit. You don't hear any
noise OF the impact although you
feel 1t If the burst is directly under
the ship. You just see a little puff
sometimes-and you don't even see
that If you don't happen to be look
ing that way just when it happens.
Il did see one clearly" Gable went
on. 1T was hit on our radio an.
tenna-a whip antenna-and il
curled that thing up"
Fired No Guns on Trip.
Gable fired no guns on this trip
although he had done so on other
raids over Paris and Antwerp. AS
he explained:
| Il found couldn't do both cam.
era work and the other very vel
and, after all, my job is to do that
camera work.
Il was fairly busy because be.
tween the times of working the
camera I was helping fire signal
flares to other groups of our boys"
Asked If those flares had anything
to do with photography, he ans
wered: No, that was for the main
business"
Gable, who was plainly concerned
that any intention might be given
to him to capitalize on his former
| status as movie star, was a hare
man to find at this base and per-
sistently waved away his part in
yesterdays proceedings over the
Ruhr.
With the typical understatemen
OF airmen. he said it was a littl
rough-rougher believe than other
I have been on"
And 1t was only through hi
friends, such as Maj. Milton, tha
some little incident Of the actor
emerged.
Cramped Position.
Gable stood for six hours benin,
the pilots seat. cramped into a posi-
tion almost doubled, and thrust hi
camera out whenever he could ge
it through the windows. For 4 hour
and 40 minutes of that time he wa
on oxygen, along with the mucl
younger men who were with him
He Is doing Photographic work TO
a gunnery training film which h
and others are making and with hin
were two of the gunners who ar
being used much in that work. o
! course, this means that they ar,
photographed on the ground as vel
as in action in the air.
Yesterday while Gable was drink
ing coffee in the briefing room afte
the return from the Ruhr, one o
these youngsters entered and asked
Not shooting on the ground to-
day, captain?"
NO shooting today answered
Gable