PBY Blister Gunner
1 of 2
Object Label
The naked figure in this photograph can seem incongruous, even surreal, without its historical context. During World War II, a PBY amphibian aircraft was sent to rescue a Marine airman who had been shot down while attacking Japanese forces at Rabaul Harbor. With the airman temporarily blinded and helpless in the water, the gunner from the rescue plane stripped down, getting rid of his encumbering flight suit and boots, dove into the water, and brought the injured man on board. In a combat situation, under enemy fire, the gunner had no time to get dressed again before returning to his battle station.
Caption
Horace Bristol American, 1908–1997. PBY Blister Gunner, 1944, printed later. Gelatin silver print, image: 10 1/2 x 9 3/4 in. (26.7 x 24.8 cm) sheet: 13 7/8 x 10 3/4 in. (35.2 x 27.3 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Purchased with funds given by the Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation, Harry Kahn, and Mrs. Carl L. Selden, 1994.77. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 1994.77_PS9.jpg)
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Artist
Title
PBY Blister Gunner
Date
1944, printed later
Medium
Gelatin silver print
Classification
Dimensions
image: 10 1/2 x 9 3/4 in. (26.7 x 24.8 cm) sheet: 13 7/8 x 10 3/4 in. (35.2 x 27.3 cm)
Signatures
Signed on verso in pencil: "Horace Bristol"
Credit Line
Purchased with funds given by the Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation, Harry Kahn, and Mrs. Carl L. Selden
Accession Number
1994.77
Rights
© artist or artist's estate
Copyright for this work may be controlled by the artist, the artist's estate, or other rights holders. A more detailed analysis of its rights history may, however, place it in the public domain. The Museum does not warrant that the use of this work will not infringe on the rights of third parties. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions before copying, transmitting, or making other use of protected items beyond that allowed by "fair use," as such term is understood under the United States Copyright Act. For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
Frequent Art Questions
What can you tell me about this?
The photo was taken in Rabaul Harbor in Papua New Guinea during WWII. Rabaul was a key base of air and naval operations for the Japanese in the South Pacific. During a battle, an American plane was shot down, and another aircraft was sent to retrieve the airman who was now in the water.The rescuing gunner realized he would have to go in the water to save his mate, so he stripped nude, jumped in, and brought the injured man on board.Before he had any time to put his clothes back on, however, he had to get back to his machine gun post, and so he did, butt naked! That is the moment the photographer, Horace Bristol, captured. Can you see the text behind the gunner's backside?Amazing. And he's hot...Is this guy a pilot? What's going on here?
This man is not a pilot, but he is in an airplane. This photograph was taken during the 2nd World War in the Rabaul Harbor in Papua New Guinea and this man was a gunner firing at the Japanese enemy. Allied fighters attacked the location continuously from 1944-45.This gunner had removed his clothes to jump into the water and rescue a fellow soldier. He didn't have time to put his clothes back on before returning to his station!
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