| Original caption: “General George S. Patton acknowledging the cheers of the welcoming crowds in Los Angeles, California, during his visit.” United States Army General George S. Patton (November 11, 1885 – December 21, 1945), Commanding Officer, 3rd Army, passes men’s clothier Silverwood’s at 558 South Broadway and Mullen and Bluett Department Store at 610 South Broadway. Patton and United States Army Air Force Lieutenant General James H. “Jimmy” Doolittle (December 14, 1896 – September 27, 1993), sent on a goodwill tour in June 1945. Other Army and Air Force ranking officers were paired on similar tours. Patton was already under a cloud of negative publicity after he took International News Service correspondent Doris Duke (November 22, 1912 – October 28, 1993) to a party with Soviet officers, who decorated Duke with 1 of their medals, as did Patton. The Soviets later claimed they thought she was an American officer. Duke, 1 of the wealthiest heiresses in the world, sparked interest and rumors with her relationship with the married Patton. During the trip to Los Angeles, Patton was separated from his staff and felt much trepidation about returning to the United States. Even General Walter B. “Beetle” Smith (October 5, 1895 – August 9, 1961), Chief of Staff at Allied Expeditionary Headquarters, teased Patton about his relationship with Duke. Not only would he face Beatrice Ayer Patton (January 12, 1886 – September 30, 1953), his wife, over the rumors about his relationship with Duke, but she also resented that his niece Jean Gordon (February 4, 1915 – January 8, 1946) was still in France. Patton and Doolittle 1st flew to Boston, where they greeted enormous crowds. Patton cried as he related his appreciation for the heroic American dead he left in Europe at dinner that 1st night of the tour. He recovered his composure with a cigar. They flew across the country in their Douglas C-54 Skymasters, accompanied by a baggage train of aircraft. They landed at Los Angeles Municipal Airport (today Los Angeles International Airport) at 1300 Hours on June 9, 1945. Patton, Doolittle, and their entourage boarded Dodge WC-56 Command Cars for the journey to City Hall. 3 inch (75 millimeter) guns at Fort Moore gave them a 17-gun salute. More than a 1,000,000 Angelenos turned out to line the streets. Patton could rally crowds. TIME Magazine noted in their June 18, 1945, issue Patton’s new 4-star rank of General in the Army of the United States: “He stepped down onto United States soil agleam with twenty-four stars, variously placed, all glittering: four on his shiny steel helmet, four on each shoulder loop, four on each collar tab, and four on the black butt of the automatic pistol at his hip. On the side of his helmet was the painted insignia of the armored divisions; on the front, below the stars, was the Third Army’s ‘A’ – which, in photographs, looked like a fifth star. On his chest was a quintuple corsage of campaign ribbons; on his left sleeve, five overseas bars and four wound chevrons. He wore two rings on his left hand, one on his right.” Patton, Doolittle, attorney Joseph Scott (July 16, 1867 – March 24, 1958), Episcopal Bishop Stephen Cutter Clark (August 6, 1892 – December 2, 1950) spoke to 50,000 attendees. The choir from Doolittle’s alma mater, Manual Arts High School, performed. After a reception for the Generals’ families and friends, Hollywood actors performed at the Coliseum. Over 100,000 people saw stars react to the most significant moments from the Generals’ military careers. Patton forgot to turn in his Brown Palace hotel key, tossing it out the airplane door just as it began to taxi to the runway. The War Department and Patton’s staff were concerned that he would say something inappropriate and upset the public during this trip. At the Coliseum, Patton’s microphone had a kill switch and a censor monitoring his speech, but it was too late – Patton started swearing at the Japanese before his wire could be cut off. The reaction was scathing. Rector Don Householder (June 10, 1902 – April 28, 1965) of the Trinity Methodist Church gave a sermon that claimed Patton was those “men guilty of such profanity, one would think, might have been schooled in hell, with the devil as instructor…We trust the General, whom we admire and respect, will hereafter remember his moral obligation to the youth of America.” The next day, in San Gabriel, California, Patton told a group of Sunday School children that they would be the soldiers, sailors, and nurses of the next war, “because, in my opinion, there have always been wars.” Before a news conference in Washington on his way back to Europe, Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson (September 21, 1867 – October 20, 1950) attempted to prepare Patton to constrain his remarks and protect him from the press. But Patton saw this as censorship, not as Stimson’s desire to protect him from himself. Patton was also frustrated that he could not meet with Catholic Archbishop Richard J. Cushing (August 24, 1895 – November 2, 1970) during his time in Boston. Cushing was a leading anticommunist, and Patton wanted to discuss the situation in Europe with him. Patton was told to cancel the engagement. Yet Patton was highly valued by the military establishment. He was privy to the atomic secret; United States Army General George C. Marshall Junior (December 31, 1880 – October 16, 1959), Chief of Staff, personally briefed him during this tour. Patton returned to his home in Massachusetts with Beatrice and his daughter Bea (March 19, 1911 – October 24, 1952). But his remarks followed him home. Stars and Stripes published a fictional letter from 1 of his dead soldiers, criticizing his comments about future wars, claiming that he had said his men had “died in vain,” Comic artist William H. “Bill” Mauldin (October 29, 1921 – January 22, 2003) wrote an article about how Patton tried to stop publication of “Willie and Joe,” his enormously popular strip, because Patton found it inappropriate for a military setting. Mauldin said Patton called his comics “unsoldierly.” Patton refused to comment. Patton longed to return to Europe and leave these controversies behind. In 1944, in France, he met with labor leaders. Not a fan of unions, Patton shocked the President of the United Auto Workers, Rolland Jay Thomas (June 29, 1907 – May 25, 1970), by calling the man he had slapped in Sicily a coward, even after he was disciplined and called to make an apology to his men. Thomas and Patton exchanged words, and Thomas felt that Patton attempted to intimidate him. At the Los Angeles Coliseum months later, Patton blasted the labor movement. Patton was glad to return to Europe. His relationship with his wife was strained because of his affairs with Jean Gordon and Doris Duke. While the crowds adored him, the press and the labor movement hounded him. As his staff wrote home, Patton excelled at 1 thing: waging war. At that, he was a genius. But as a politician and a diplomat, Patton was out of his element. | |
| Image Filename | wwii0922.jpg |
| Image Size | 858.36 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 2916 x 2308 |
| Photographer | |
| Photographer Title | Office of War Information |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | June 9, 1945 |
| Location | |
| City | Los Angeles |
| State or Province | California |
| Country | United States |
| Archive | National Archives and Records Administration |
| Record Number | NWDNS-208-PU-154F(5) |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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