ABSTRACT
Within days of the Pearl Harbor attack, Germany and Italy declared war on the United States. Isolationism was dead; patriotism was the order of the day. The song “Remember Pearl Harbor” written by Don Reid, music by Reid and Sammy Kaye, became an instant hit. Americans flew flags, planted victory gardens, collected scrap metal for the war effort, and endured rationing of gasoline, food, and other commodities destined for the military. Local civil defense wardens urged fellow citizens to look for enemy submarines along the coasts and planes in the sky. People hung blackout curtains in their homes, no more fireplace smoke or streetlights after dark. They abided by slogans they saw everywhere, “Buy War Bonds!” and “Loose Lips Sink Ships.”
