Snoopy: An American Military Icon

The United States military has long employed the services of animated characters be they on an official level (Uncle Sam) or amongst soldiers themselves. Of the latter Kilroy is possibly the most famous - his nose, eyes and hands protruding over surfaces from the south Pacific to western Europe during the Second World War. Of course American pilots were also well known for etching glamorous pin ups on the sides of their planes alongside risque slogans of the time. Thus a Boeing B-29 Superfortress in dull grey could adopt a certain level of glamour.

In the Vietnam era the most popular character amongst GIs was undoubtedly Snoopy whose image appeared on everything from t-shirts, to patches, to the etchings on the back of Zippo lighters. Its difficult to gauge exactly why the world's most ponderous dog was chosen. Perhaps it was simply down to his ubiquity - Snoopy, Woodstock and friends appeared in daily newspapers across the United States, and perhaps more tellingly in the papers issued to soldiers. A more interesting explanation lies in the timing of Snoopy's exploits fighting 'The Red Baron' atop his doghouse.

This cartoon strip was published in October 1965, coinciding with the escalation of troops to Vietnam as ordered by President Lyndon B. Johnson. Resplendent in flying goggles and with his own mortal enemy Snoopy was the ideal mascot for servicemen. Furthermore by morphing America's favourite hound into a soldier of combar Snoopy's creator Charles Shultz was able to preserve the patriotic spirit of the nation but project it through the lens of a less controversial war. It is perhaps telling that Snoopy's final battle with the Red Baron came in 1972 by which stage Vietnam had become the United States least supported conflict and President Nixon was desperately searching for a means for withdrawal.

Chinook helicopter featuring Snoopy & Woodstock:

Hand engraved Zippo lighter - extremely common amongst servicemen and now extremely collectable:

'Far East Cruise '67' Patch - Given American naval movement in 1967 its relatively safe to assume this patch was worn by sailors serving in Danang