1944.06.17 “And it was such good reading” by Jack Lambert

“And it was such good reading” (June 17, 1944)
by Jack Lincoln Lambert (1892-1967)
12 x 15.5 in, ink on board

Jack Lincoln Lambert was a sculptor and a cartoonist. He received four awards for newspaper cartooning and had served with Medical Corps, United States Army, 1917-1919. His editorial work was for the Baltimore Evening Sun (1938-42), the Chicago Sun (1942-48), the Baltimore News Post (1948-64), and then the New-American, Baltimore.

The Bombing of Yawata on the night of June 15, 1944 was the first air raid on the Japanese home islands conducted by the US Army Air Forces B-29 strategic bombers during World War II.

The raid was carried out by 75 of the Superfortress bombers that were staged from bases in China. Only 47 of the aircraft bombed the raid's primary target, the Imperial Iron and Steel Works at Yawata, and little damage was caused.

While the raid did not achieve its aims, it had other effects. It raised Japanese civilians' awareness that their country was being defeated and received unduly positive media coverage in the United States. Intelligence gathered by the B-29s also revealed weaknesses in Japan's air defenses and the raid was the first of many on Japan.

According to the notation on the back, this was gifted to a fan on July 3.