Press Release

Photographed Letters on Wings: How Microfilmed V-Mail Helped Win World War II

(Levellers Press) by Tom Weiner, was published in March of 2018. 

The inspiration for the book came from the dedicated research efforts of Bill Streeter whose work Tom received when Bill was unable due to health reasons to write the book he’d wanted to write for almost 70 years.   Bill’s impetus had been the death in combat of his beloved double cousin, Henry Streeter, who had died in Germany 3 weeks shy of his 19th birthday and just a few weeks before V-E Day. 

Bill offered Tom all of his materials and most generously his friendship.  He also contributed the preface to the book, which can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHO6AGfMUxQ

Tom took the ball and ran with it.  With Bill’s guidance and exceptional support Tom learned of the history of microfilm and the impact of V-Mail.  The resources Bill supplied provided stories, photographs, newspaper articles, commentary and copies of thousands of V-Mail letters.  Tom found out about the processes involved in V-Mail, its military significance allowing many more troops and supplies to be flown across the ocean with mail taking up so much less space, the artwork folks did on the V-Mail letters and the letters themselves.                                                                                                                   

Ultimately the book is a tremendous tribute to the men and women who helped create and sustain first Airgraph, as it was called in England where it was invented, and then V-Mail in the U.S.A. where well over 1 ½ billion letters were mailed to and from the many fronts.  The processes used are described in rich detail with many photographs illustrating what was required to make the system work.

That the lofty goals and hopes for microfilm outlined in the book haven’t been achieved with the dominance of computers does nothing to diminish the role that V-Mail played in boosting morale throughout the war and immeasurably aiding the war effort. This is a story that needs to be told on a subject that remains largely unknown andPhotographed Letterstells it compellingly.