'Casablanca' Trivia-- Part 2: Lois Meredith? And, It Hit Home

**  A NEW NAME FOR A HEROINE

When "Casablanca" was being cast, the lead female role was to be an American named Lois Meredith.  But when Bergman got the role, the name of Rick's love interest was changed to Ilsa Lund; her nationality was switched to Norwegian.

Director Michael Curtiz came up with her name, taking it from a 19th-century travelogue called "The Harz Journey" by Heinrich Heine, which featured an enchantress named Princess Ilse.

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**  TEARS ON THE SET

Several extras and actors in the cast were from Europe, and the realities of war hit close to home.  While filming a flashback scene, Ilsa and Rick talked about how the Germans would soon storm Paris -- when a female extra burst into loud sobs, ruining the take.

Another extra walked over to the director to apologize.  "I am very sorry, sir, but that is my wife," he told Michael Curtiz of the crying woman.  "Please pardon her.  You see, our home was in Paris.  And we went through that awful day."

--Cooter

Hans Johnsen, USN, Medal of Honor for Action on USS Winslow

From Wikipedia.

HANS JOHNSEN

(January 3, 1865 - June 17, 1920)

Chief machinist serving in the U.S. Navy during the Spanish-American War where he received a Medal of Honor for bravery.

He was born in Sandnes,  Norway, and fought in the Spanish-American War on board the torpedo boat USS Winslow at the Battle of Cardenas.  Along with the Medal of Honor, he was warranted as a gunner on June 27, 1898, and promoted to chief gunner on June 27, 1904.

During World War I, he received a temporary promotion to lieutenant on July  1, 1918.

He died June 17, 1920, and is buried in Bayview-New York Cemetery in Jersey City, New Jersey.

Destroyers at D-Day

From Wikipedia "List of Allied Ships at the Normandy Landings."

There were seven battleships, five heavy cruisers, twenty light cruisers and 139 destroyers and escorts.  Of interest, not all were British (85 ships including Canadian ones)or U.S. (40 ships).  There were also 7 Free French and 7 other Allied ones ( 2 Greek, 2 Polish and 3 Norwegian).

According to yesterday's article, three British and three U.S. destroyers were sunk at D-Day.

However, according to this list, just the USS Corry (DD-463) was sunk during the invasion on June 6, 1944.  Also a Norwegian destroyer (see below)

The others were sunk at later dates:

HMS Boadicea (H65) torpedoed and sunk June 13 June
HMS Fury (H76) mined June 21 and not repaired
USS Glennon  (DD-620)  Hit a mine June 8, sunk by German artillery June 10
USS Rich  (DE-695)  Sunk by mine June 10
HMS Swift  (G46)  Mined and sunk June 24 off Normandy

HNoMS Svenner  (GO3)   Norwegian   destroyer  Hit by German torpedo and sunk off Normandy at dawn, June 6, 1944

--Cooter

U-156-- Part 3: Sank 28 Fishing Boats and Presumed Sunk By a Mine On Way Home

Afterwards, the U-156 headed north to attack the U.S. fishing fleet where it sank 21 ships in the Gulf of Maine area. ranging from the 72-ton schooner Nelson A on August 4 to the 766-ton Dornfonttein on August 2.

On August 5 it sank the tanker Luz Blanca off Halifax and captured the Canadian trawler  Triumph off Nova Scotia.  The crew manned and armed this ship and used it in conjunction with the submarine to capture and sink seven other fishing boats in the Grand Banks area. after which they scuttled the Canadian ship.

After that, the U-156 returned home, but hadn't reported by September 25 and in the days that followed  It is believed that the submarine was negotiating the Northern barrage Mine Field between the United Kingdom and Norway and it is presumed that she struck a mine and sank.

The British almost sank her after they  intercepted a message from it telling its course and a British submarine was sent out to attack  but the U-156 dove and got away.  But it never made it home, nor were any of her crew seen again.

Quite A Story.  --Cooter

WW I Concrete Ship SS Palo Alto Smashed in Half-- Part 2

24 new concrete ships were ordered.  Concrete ships, reinforced with steel were cheaper and more available.

Concrete floating ships were an invention of the French inventor of ferro concrete, Joseph-Louis Lambol who had created a concrete dingy a half century earlier.

In 1917, Norway had built an 84-foot long ship of concrete, but no one was sure how even bigger ships like the Palo Alto would do.

Their capabilities, however, were untested during the war.  By the time the 420-foot Palo Alto was completed at the Naval Shipyard in Oakland, California, the war was over.  It remained at Oakland until 1929 when it was towed to Sea Cliff Beach and scuttled.  It soon was just referred to as the Concrete Boat and became a tourist destination.

In 1930, a pier was constructed out to the ship and the Cal-Nevada Co. installed a 54-foot long heated pool, a casino and a dance floor on it.  It lasted until 1932 when it was hit by a storm and then the Great Depression which closed it.

The State of California bought it and it has been closed to the public since 1950.

--CootRete

Norwegian Grove in Sycamore

I looked it up and found the grove is in Sycamore Township in DeKalb, Illinois.  Dr. Norbo was one of the first settlers in the area, coming in 1835.  he was Norwegian and claimed a grove of trees which became known as Norwegian Grove.

Now You Know.  --DaCoot