82nd Airborne Night Drop

Image Size: 13" x 20"
82 Gicleé Canvas Edition

Plane Type: C-131 Starlifter

The 82nd Airborne Division has had its share of famous soldiers from Sergeant Alvin C. York to General James M. Gavin. But that's not what the 82nd is really about. The real story of the 82nd is the thousands of unnamed paratroopers in jump boots, baggy pants and maroon berets, who have always been ready and willing to jump into danger and then drive on until the mission was accomplished. The 82nd Infantry Division was formed August 25, 1917, at Camp Gordon, Georgia. Since members of the Division came from all 48 states, the unit was given the nickname "All-Americans," hence its famed "AA" shoulder patch. In the spring of 1918, the Division deployed to France. In nearly five months of combat the 82nd fought in three major campaigns and helped to break the fighting spirit of the German Imperial Army. On August 15, 1942, the 82nd Infantry Division became the first airborne division in the U.S. Army. On that date, the All-American Division was redesignated the 82nd Airborne Division.

In April 1943, paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne Division set sail for North Africa under the command of Major General Matthew B. Ridgway to participate in the campaign to puncture the soft underbelly of the Third Reich. The Division's first two combat operations were parachute and glider assaults into Sicily and Salerno, Italy on July 9 and September 13, 1943. In January 1944, the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, which was temporarily detached from the Division to fight at Anzio, earned the nickname "Devils in Baggy Pants." The nickname was taken from an entry made in a German officer's diary. On June 5-6, 1944, the paratroopers of the 82nd's three parachute infantry regiments and reinforced glider infantry regiment boarded hundreds of transport planes and gliders and, began the largest airborne assault in history. They were among the first soldiers to fight in Normandy, France. On September 17, the 82nd Airborne Division conducted its fourth combat jump of World War II into Holland. Fighting off ferocious German counterattacks, the 82nd captured its objectives between Grave and Nijmegen. Its success, however, was short-lived because the defeat of other Allied units at Arnhem. When America was attacked on Sept. 11, 2001, the 82nd was called upon to fight global terrorism. 82d soldiers deployed to Afghanistan and the Central Command Area of Responsibility to support combat operations.

Larry Selman: A South Central Pennsylvania native he was raised in a military family, his father an Army veteran of 26 years. His love of historical and art has been nurtured all his life. These interests to enroll at the York Academy of Art and earned a commercial art degree in 1982. Following graduation, he built a very successful career with paperback novel illustration and collaborated with the top art directors and publishers all across the country receiving several prestigious awards along the way. After 20 years as a book and commercial illustrator he moved into the Western Fine art market and was a successful fine artist before ultimately deciding to move into the final phase of his career historical paintings of the American soldier. His original works are held in private collections and public museums all over the United States. They can be found at the Pentagon, the War College and military bases all across the United Sates and his prints are on most every military post thru out the world. His painting "The Tuskegee airmen" was part of the 100th anniversary of flight at Wright Patterson Air Force base. His commissions for the Sergeants Major Academy and the Chaplin Corp are the first for those schools. The painting of the 2nd Rangers titled "The Point" will be part of the new visitor's center presentation at Point Du Hoc. In his career he has painted the American soldier every conflict from the Revaluation to Afghanistan and Iraq and looks forward to telling to story of our current conflicts as well as the past. PLANE JUNKIE - Night Drop by Larry Selman (C-141 Starlifter)