The late actor, Jimmy Stewart, gave us some very memorable characters during his time in Hollywood – many very funny; others endearing; and some dark and villainous. Perhaps Stewart’s most dramatic role was the one that not many people know about, but that molded his life and his psyche – not to mention his acting – for most of his career: serving as a fighter pilot in World War II. We talk to an author who delved into Stewart’s war service about how flying missions over Europe and seeing his comrades die affected the actor and the types of roles he chose to play post-war.

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