Cool little article about Bea Arthur — of Maude and Golden Girls fame — and her WW2 experience in the Marines.
Also cool: The Marines were the last service to admit women to support the war effort — but, interestingly enough, the Commandant of the Marines refused to come up with a "cute" name or acronym for the female members of his service.
'Public opinion favored a catchy nickname for these new female Marines, with suggestions of names like Glamarines and Femarines. General Holcomb wasn’t having any cute names for his Marines. “They are Marines,” he told Life magazine in 1944. “They don’t have a nickname and they don’t need one. . . . They inherit the traditions of Marines. They are Marines.”'
Including Bea Arthur.
Bea Arthur, US Marine | The National WWII Museum | New Orleans
Bernice Frankel’s Official Military Personnel File reveals a Golden Girl’s WWII service history.
