On January 20th, 2012 Lucafilm with distribution from Twentieth Century Fox released a major motion picture based on the heroics of the Tuskegee Airmen titled “RED TAILS”.
The Tuskegee Airmen were the first African American military aviators in the United States armed forces. During World War II, African Americans in many states still were subject to the Jim Crow Laws. The American military was racially segregated, as was much of the federal government. The Tuskegee Airmen were subject to racial discrimination, both within and outside the army. Despite these adversities, they trained and flew with distinction.
The Tuskegee 332nd Fighter Group was the only operational unit, first sent overseas as part of
Operation Torch, then in action in Sicily and Italy, before being deployed as
bomber escorts in Europe where they were particularly successful in their missions. It has been reported by some they never lost a bomber they escorted.
During its opening weekend reports are that Red Tails came in second place at the weekend box office, about $58 million behind Underworld: Awakening. If you’re disappointed that Red Tails didn’t take the top spot, EW.com sees room for optimism in what was actually a better-than-expected opening. Here’s what Entertainment Weekly‘s Grady Smith had to say regarding the new LFL film…
“In second place, George Lucas’ passion-project Red Tails, a $58 million film starring Terrence Howard and Cuba Gooding Jr. that chronicles WWII’s African-American Tuskegee airmen, took off with $19.1 million in its first three days. The strong debut came out of 2,512 theaters, which gave Red Tails a hefty $7,604 per theater average, the second-best in the Top 20. A few weeks ago, these high-flying numbers seemed unlikely. But in the week leading up to release, the film gained momentum
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