About this project

Kay Kemble (1911-1989) is a character invented for this project. Kay sang on radio commercials as a child and went on to lead Big Bands and swing ensembles in the 30's and 40's. She worked at Scott Air Field as a WAAC enlistee and a civilian. She produced war bond rallies, and her all-female band promoted a popular shampoo brand. In the 80's there was renewed interest in Kay's musical career.

Kay informally adopted the orphaned niece and nephew of her partner Wilmetta "Teeny" Stockton, and in the early 70's the family moved from St. Louis to New Orleans. After Kay and Teeny's deaths, family members remained in New Orleans until displaced by Hurricane Katrina. In 2014, I arranged to archive, organize, and restore Kay's memorabilia. Most items were damaged due to age, hurried packing , and lack of funds for formal archiving.

I've "become" Kay in reproduction radio broadcasts, and created artifacts to represent damaged or destroyed items in the collection.



Saturday, October 23, 2021

Korean War weaponry -- Kay's military world

 Kay worked on an air base, mostly with radio and electronics as well as music for the military bands. But anybody in the military knew more than the average cicilian about the weapons used. One carry-over from the Second World War to the Korean conflict was the "qusd 50," aka "the meat chopper," a weapon in a wheekled carrier or on a tank which shot 50 caliber shells from a four-gun array. This  video is by a weapon experet who has recreated a working model from vintage parts. 






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