This article about DJ-3A Dispatchers appeared in the April 1956 issue of Willys News.

Good news. The site is back up! Explanation on what happened to come ….

I haven’t had a chance to add posts from the recent few days, but this photo is from the April 1956 issue of Willys News. This CJ-3B certainly has an unusual crew setup!

Most folks don’t remember the movie the Conquerer, starring John Wayne and Susan Hayward. It was a Ghenghis Khan theme-movie, as it was a huge bust. The Conqueror movie was filmed in Utah locations such as Snow Canyon, St. George, Harrisburg, Warner Valley, and Hurricane during a 13-week stretch in 1954-1955 (source).

Unfortunately, what the movie is best known for is the unusually high percentage of deaths of the crew from cancer. The crew used some high powered fans to blow sands to simulate rough conditions. A documentary I watched suggested that disturbing the sand might have exacerbated the potential exposure to radiated materials.

You can read more in this article from People magazine: http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20077825,00.html

The Southern Bank of Norfolk in Virginia thought the DJ-3A would make an excellent bank vehicle. Despite being outfitted with special locks and an ‘army-type’ lock box, the dispatcher did not look like a high security bank vehicle. Moreover, the bank might have been smarter not to put the bank’s name on the jeep. I would have liked a picture of the lock box. The article below was published in the June-July 1956 issue of Willys News.

Today the four 1956 Willys Newspapers in the mail I won on eBay arrived. There is lots of great stuff, both photos and interesting stories. I’ll be sharing them all in the coming weeks.

This first article from the page seven of the June-July 1956 issue tells the story of a retired couple by the name of Hawkins who readied a caravan for some cross country exploration. At the head of the caravan is a Fleetwood Caddillac. It pulls a camper-trailer that pulls a CJ-3B carrying a boat. Looks like they were ready for anything!