Marjorie Bong Drucker, 79, former widow of Richard I. Bong, America's World War II "Ace of Aces" pilot
Hoodude
Marjorie Bong Drucker dies of cancer; she forged a second life
after husband died in '45
Oct. 2, 2003
http://www.jsonline.com/news/nobits/oct03/174152.asp
Nothing prepared Marjorie Vattendahl for what happened when her
picture was painted on the nose of a P-38 Lightning fighter plane
during World War II.
The plane was flown by Richard I. Bong, who eventually came to be
known as America's "Ace of Aces." Suddenly, the media realized that
the war hero had a sweetheart back home in northern Wisconsin, someone
whose name was "Marge."
She became a celebrity, too. The media followed their courtship. When
they married in Superior on Feb. 10, 1945, it was big news. Reporters
came from across the country - including the International News
Service, even newsreel crews from Hollywood studios.
They came, too, six months later when Bong died while testing the Air
Force's first jet.
The young widow disappeared from the limelight for 40 years, leaving
Wisconsin to try to make a new life for herself. She returned to
California, where she and Bong last lived, later marrying again and
becoming the mother of two daughters.
Many years later, concerned that veterans' stories were not being
heard, she began to return periodically to Wisconsin. Marjorie Bong
Drucker became an outspoken advocate for veterans and preserving
history.
In 2002, she moved to Poplar, Wis., to help in plans for the new
Richard I. Bong World War II Heritage Center in nearby Superior.
Marjorie Bong Drucker died of cancer Saturday in Superior. She was 79.
For much of their lives, her daughters did not hear much about their
mother's first marriage and celebrity. It was not until she began
making public appearances that they began to understand her earlier
life.
Even then, it was an amazing thing to visit her in Wisconsin and
realize their mother had been so famous. It was almost overwhelming to
find pictures of Marge and Richard - their wedding and brief life
together - on the walls of the restaurant when they went out to eat
with her.
"One of the things I've heard her say is that she never wanted to cash
in on Richard's name," said daughter Karen Drucker.
"She didn't want to stay and do that," she said. "My mother started a
new life and forged her way and really grew as a person. . . . I never
knew anything about it. I think she did it to honor my father, that
that was another life."
Grew up in Superior
She was born in Grand Forks, N.D., and grew up in Superior. She was a
student at the Superior Teachers Training College when she met the
farm boy from Poplar, destined to become the "Ace of Aces."
Bong would down a total of 40 Japanese planes - still the all-time
record for U.S. combat pilots - before he was sent home. Marge's
college graduation portrait flew along on nearly half of those
missions.
Bong told her that she was "the most shot-after girl in the South
Pacific."
Military leaders did not want to risk losing an American hero, sending
him back to the states at the end of 1944.
He next became a military test pilot. Bong died in California while on
a test flight of the F-80 Shooting Star, the first jet fighter. By
chance, his death occurred Aug. 6, 1945, the same day that the U.S.
dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima.
She heard the news of her husband's death on the radio.
"After Richard was killed, I had to come to grips with what happened,"
Bong Drucker said in an 1996 interview with the Milwaukee Journal
Sentinel.
"It was a question of survival," she said. "I didn't want to go back
to Superior. I had a teaching certificate, but I took a different
tack. I went into modeling and had a limited career."
She described modeling as "boring," and began to explore other
interests.
She met Murray Drucker, who had come to the Hollywood modeling agency
where she worked, looking for someone to write a column for his
California Girl magazine. She soon became its fashion coordinator.
She married Drucker and began a family. They made their home in Los
Angeles' Hollywood area.
In 1956, she began The Boxer Review, a magazine focusing on the boxer
dog breed. By the time she sold it in 2001, the magazine had won
national awards as best single breed publication, friends said.
"She became a writer and a publisher, and she was always an incredible
painter," her daughter said.
Over the years, requests would come to the Bong family, asking if his
widow could appear at one function or another. Bong's sister, Joyce
Bong Erickson, stayed in touch with Marge, sharing those requests but
protecting her privacy.
She got involved
In 1985, the pattern changed. Bong Drucker agreed to attend the
dedication of the Richard I. Bong Memorial Bridge, connecting Superior
with Duluth, Minn.
The former Mrs. Bong had finally come home.
With the support of her family, she became increasingly active on
veterans issues. When efforts began to preserve and restore another
P-38 Lightning, she helped establish a fund and raise the money for
the project.
That eventually led to the creation of the Bong Heritage Center, which
formally opened a year ago. The plane has been restored as an exact
replica of the original "Marge" plane.
In 1991, after the death of her longtime husband, Murray Drucker, she
became even more involved.
"Major Bong didn't enjoy the role of being a hero or celebrity, but he
understood it was important to the war effort," said Christabel Grant,
director of the Bong Heritage Center in Superior.
"She, too, was a private person, but she then realized that the World
War II veterans found it very difficult to talk about their
experiences," Grant said. "So she undertook, by example, to say this
is something we need to talk about."
Veterans would flock to her, wanting to share their own stories.
She spoke at public events throughout the country, with a special
fondness for school appearances. In 1995, she published "Memories," a
book about life with her famous first husband, with proceeds going
toward development of the Heritage Center.
"She always said, 'Put me where you need me,' " Grant said. " 'I'm
here to work.' "
"Richard was not unlike all of the other fellows who volunteered,
didn't wait to be drafted, and went to war," Bong Drucker said in a
2001 interview with Aviation & Business Journal. "Some even tried to
sneak in when they were 16 years old. That's sheer patriotism. That,
to me, sums up the era."
Her family and friends believe that, as much as her flier-husband, she
was part of the greatest generation.
"I'm so unbelievably proud of her," said her daughter. "She was an
inspiration to many people, always encouraging others to live life to
the fullest. She would say, 'Don't dwell on the bad things. Treat
yourself well and be kind to others. And go for your dreams.' "
Survivors include daughters Kristina Drucker, of Los Angeles, and
Karen Drucker, of San Francisco; and a brother, William Vattendahl, of
Longville, Minn.
Services were held Tuesday in Superior.