News and Notes

News and Commentary from the Who2 Staff

Thursday, September 28, 2006

So Long, (Alleged) Tokyo Rose

Iva Toguri D'Aquino, the "seductress of the shortwave" convicted of being Tokyo Rose, has died in Chicago at age 90. Tokyo Rose taunted Allied soldiers in the Pacific during World War II, broadcasting popular music mixed with breathy so-sorry-Yankee battle reports and hints that their wives were cheating on them back home. (A similarly sultry figure, Axis Sally, operated in Europe.) Experts say several women may have played the role of Tokyo Rose, but D'Aquino was convicted of treason in 1949 and served six years in prison. While she definitely made broadcasts, the evidence of treason was always a little sketchy and she was pardoned by Gerald Ford on his last day in office in 1977. She spent most of her post-war life selling rice crackers and import goods in Chicago.

Posted by Mr. Holznagel at 6:20 AM Share on Facebook  

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