Too Little Too Late

Too Little, Too Late
by
Keith Ferris
Lt. Joe Moore in his Curtiss P-40B Tomahawk at 22,000 feet, nine miles west of Clark Field. Over the smoke below is Petty Officer First Class Saburo Sakai's Zero pursuing Lt. Sam Grashio in his P-40E. In the foreground is Fort Stotsenberg's parade ground and in the distance is Mount Arayat.

RETURN TO CLARK FIELD'S
FIRST DEVASTATION ON DECEMBER 8, 1941

It's almost as if the volcano Mount Pinatubo knew.
Alnost fifty years after the "date which will live in infamy," Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines is back in the news again. In 1991 it was being buried under tons of volcanic ash, but in 1941, it was buried beneath Japanese bombs—heralding the start of World War II.
Many forget that Pearl Harbor wasn't the only place that was attacked on December 7th. Acriss the International Date Line—making it officially December 8th—lay Clark Field, which was pounded by Japanese "Betty" Bombers, then strafed by Zeroes.

The Signatures

Lt. General Joseph Moore, Col. Sam Grashio, Keith Ferris and
Lt. (jg) Saburo Sakai unite to sign Too Little, Too Late.

Lt. Gen. USAF (Ret) Joseph H. Moore was born and raised in South Carolina. He entered military service as an Aviation Cadet in 1937, and was awarded his wings and commission as Second Lieutenant in 1938. When W.W.II broke out, he was commander of the 20th Pursuit Squadron at Clark Field. He led three P-40 fighters against the Japanese aircraft which had effectively destroyed the Philippine air base. Even so, the P-40s shot down three Zeroes.
General Moore evacuated his squadron to Bataan on Christmas Eve, where they fought to repel enemy forces attempting to land on the Bataan Peninsula. He fought throughout the war in the Pacific and European Theaters. He continued to serve the Air Force attaining high command positions before retiring.

Col. USAF (Ret) Samuel C. Grashio was born and raised in Spokane, Washington. He enlisted in the US Army Air Corps as a Flying Cadet in September of 1940. He trained until November of 1941. He arrived in Manila just eighteen days prior to the commencement of hostilities. He became a prisoner of war at Bataan, and survived the infamous Bataan Death March. He was incarcerated in three different POW camps for 361 days before he escaped his captors.
He fought with the Philippine Resistance for five months until he was evacuated by submarine to Australia. He continued to serve his country in the Middle East, Italy, Canada, and America until his retirement in 1965. Since then he worked at his alma mater, Gonzaga University, as Assistant to the President and Director of Development.

Lt. (jg) Saburo Sakai was born in a farmhouse in Saga Prefecture. He enlisted as a seaman at Sasebo Naval Barracks in 1933. After graduating at the top of the 38th Pilot Training Class in 1937, he participated in central China operations. In 1941 he was promoted to the Petty Officer First Class rank, and became a shotai leader in the battles over the Philippines and the West Indies.
Despite severe head wounds received in the dogfight over Guadalcanal in 1942, he was part of the battle of Iwo Jima in 1945. Failing eyesight finally grounded him. Even so, he is considered one of the top aces, and is the author of Samurai.

Each print is accompanied by an exciting video in the Greenwich Workshop Living Canvas™ series, capturing the pilots at the signing ceremony, as well as other
events during the Admiral Nimitz Foundation symposium commemorating the
50th Anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.