Special Edition Memorial Day Shirt Unveiled

Every Memorial Day we honor the brave soldiers who have made the ultimate sacrifice and died for our country. This year is no different, but I have decided to honor a specific group of the fallen who have no monuments and receive relatively little attention for their noble deeds—those who have lost their lives in the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts.

On the front of the shirt I have a cartoon of Willie, Joe and two of their fellow dogfaces to honor all 1,000 soldiers that have lost their lives in Afghanistan. On the back of the shirt, there are 3,500 Willie and Joes to honor every soldier that has fallen in Iraq. I do not intend for this shirt to marginalize our soldiers who have lost their lives in past wars; instead, I want to remind everyone that our troops are making that same sacrifice today.

NPR Host Scott Simon interview with Sam Mauldin

In World War II, Bill Mauldin created two cartoon soldiers named and Willie and Joe. His drawings are now starring on t-shirts (found in the Store section of this site) for sale to benefit a nonprofit for military personnel and their families called The Soldiers Project. On February 13, 2010 NPR Host Scott Simon spoke to Sam Mauldin about his father’s illustrations.

Listen to the interview

USPS News Release: 2010 Stamp Program Unveiled

With this stamp, the U.S. Postal Service honors Bill Mauldin, one of America’s favorite cartoonists. During World War II, military readers got a knowing laugh from Mauldin’s characters Willie and Joe, who gave their civilian audience an idea of what life was like for soldiers. After the war, Mauldin became a popular and influential editorial cartoonist. The stamp goes on sale in March.

Albuquerque Journal January 26, 2010