He was born in Alameda, California.
He is most famous for conducting the so-called "Doolittle Raid" in 1942 which was a daring aircraft carrier-based bombing run against mainland Japan following the American defeat at the Battle of Pearl Harbor. The bombers didn't have enough fuel to return home and were forced to ditch in China.
Doolittle was awarded the Medal of Honor for accomplishing this mission which is viewed by historians as a major public relations victory for the United States. Although the amount of damage done to Japanese war industry was minor and quickly fixed, the raid showed the Japanese their homeland was not invulnerable and forced them to withdraw several frontline fighter units for homeland defense. President Franklin D. Roosevelt presented the medal to Doolittle.
Doolittle was also a legendary airplane pilot who performed many dare devil tricks, all of which had mixed results but none of which were fatal.
Doolittle died in California and is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.
External Link
- Arlington National Cemetery Website - James Harold Doolittle (http://www.arlingtoncemetery.com/jdoolitt.htm)
- Jimmy Doolittle Air & Space Museum (http://www.jimmydoolittlereunion.com/museum.htm)