William J . Cullerton William J . " Bill " Cullerton Sr . ( January 1 , 1923 – January 12 , 2013 ) was an American World War II flying ace , entrepreneur , radio show host , and outdoorsman . Cullerton destroyed twenty - seven Axis planes during the war , including twenty - one destroyed in low - altitude attacks on the ground , ranking him as the third - highest strafing ace in the 8th Air Force . He was the last surviving member of the 355th Fighter Group ( " Dragon Squadron " ) , which flew missions out of Steeple Morden , England , during World War II . Biography . Early life . Cullerton was born in Chicago and raised on Oak Park , Illinois , graduated from Fenwick High School . His grandfather , Bill Jamison , owned a firm which still manufactures collectible fishing lure s today . Cullerton worked for his grandfather as a teenager . He was a relative of several Chicago area political figures , including Edward " Foxy " Cullerton ( first elected to the Chicago City Council in 1871 ) ; his cousin , the current President of the Illinois Senate John Cullerton ; and former Chicago assessor under Mayor Richard J . Daley P . J . “ Parky ” Cullerton . Cullerton graduated from Fenwick High School in Oak Park . He attended college for a short time , but left soon after to enlist during World War II . World War II . Cullerton enlisted in the Army Air Forces during World War II . He flew P - 51 - D Mustang fighters as part of the Dragon Squadron , headquartered at the RAF Steeple Morden airfield near Steeple Morden , England . Cullerton , a flying ace , destroyed twenty - seven Luftwaffe planes during the war . He shot down six German fighters during aerial dogfight s . Cullerton also destroyed twenty - one planes on the ground in strafing attacks , ranking him as the third - highest strafing ace in the 8th Air Force . Cullerton was covered extensively by Chicago newspapers during World War II . Headlines featuring Cullerton included " Chicago Pilot Bags Eight Nazi Planes in One Day ’ s Fights , " " Germans Find Chicago Ace Too Hot to Handle " and " Cullerton has 18 ‘ Kills ' . " On April 1 , 1945 , Cullerton was shot down over Germany near the end of the war , crashing on a hillside near German forces . Cullerton was found and shot in the stomach by a German stormtrooper using his own gun . Cullerton described the attack in an interview years later , " They had a short meeting , and the guy came back to me , holding my gun in his hand , and he said to me , ‘ For you , the ‘ war ’ is over ’ — and he shot me in the belly . " He was discovered wounded in a field by a German farmer , who mistakenly believed he was a German pilot , rather than an American . Cullerton was taken to a German hospital , where he was tortured by German forces . " A Jewish doctor helped him escape the hospital , telling him to jump from a window into a heap of sheep manure . Cullerton did as he was instructed and managed to escape . American and Allied troops later discovered Cullerton wounded and hiding under a bridge near Feuchtwangen , Bavaria . The Allied forces were unsure if Cullerton was an American or a German impersonating an American pilot . To test Cullerton on his nationality , the Americans asked him " “ Who is Ted Williams ? " . Cullerton correctly identified Williams as the " Splendid Splinter " of the Boston Red Sox , proving that he was an American before collapsing . Chicago area newspapers reported his rescue as with headlines like " Capt . Cullerton ’ s Return Hailed as Near Miracle . " He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and the Silver Star for valor . Author John J . Kevil Jr . wrote a biography on Cullerton , " The Last Dragon of Steeple Morden . " Post - war . Cullerton married his wife , Elaine Stephen , after the war . He often called his wife " Steve " or " Miss Steve " in a reference to her original maiden name . A Chicago newspaper covered the wedding under the headline , " Chicago ’ s Army Ace is Downed by Cupid ’ s Dart . " The couple raised their children in Elmhurst , Illinois , a Chicago suburb . He also rejoined his grandfather ' s fishing lure business following the war . Cullerton founded the Cullerton Co . , in the 1950s . The company represents manufacturers of outdoor and fishing products Bill Cullerton is considered to be an early pioneer of the fishing travel industry . He also supported the growth of outdoor shows . Cullerton hosted a popular Chicago Sunday morning show radio show called " Great Outdoors " on WGN Radio for twenty years before his retirement in December 1999 . Charlie Potter succeeded Cullerton as host of " Great Outdoors , " which still airs on WGN as of 2013 . An outdoor enthusiast and conservationist , Cullerton advocated for environmental preservation in Illinois and surrounding states . Cullerton advocated for the restoration of the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie , now a United States National Grassland in Wilmington , Illinois . He championed an effort to install an artificial reef off the coast of Chicago in Lake Michigan to improve the habitat available for native fish . He was a founding member of the Illinois Conservation Foundation and was later named to its hall of fame . He was inducted into the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame in Hayward , Wisconsin . On May 9 , 2000 , the Illinois Beach State Park and North Point Marina in Zion , Illinois , was dedicated as the William J . Cullerton Complex in recognition of his conservation efforts . The ceremony , which was attended by then - Governor George Ryan and Illinois First Lady Lura Lynn Ryan , included a flyover by two P - 51 Mustang planes . The William J . Cullerton Complex includes the 4 , 160 - acre Illinois State Park and the North Point Marina on Lake Michigan , which is capable of holding approximately 1 , 500 boats . Cullerton died at Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove , Illinois , on January 12 , 2013 , at the age of 89 . He was survived by his wife , Elaine , three daughters and three sons . A longtime resident of Oak Brook , Illinois , Cullerton and his wife also owned a second home in Marco Island , Florida . He lived in Warrenville , Illinois , in 2000 .