This monumental museum opened June 2000 to great fanfare with historian Stephen Ambrose, filmmaker Spielberg and actor Tom Hanks in attendance. It is huge with boats, planes, weapons and uniforms used in the Allied effort.
There is an enjoyable and educational film narrated by Tom Hanks. There are theatrical effects during the performance including shaking seats (remember when you put the quarter in the slot to shake the hotel bed in 1960?), flashing lights, etc.
This Army Air Force Uniform is the one worn by my Dad in WWII.
A new special exhibit is the USS Tang Submarine experience in which 27 people are given a card of the crew member of the patrol that last operated the Tang. Each one of us was assigned a station inside a submarine-shaped room according to the crew member's job. We were told we were in the China Sea in a battle. Loud noises, flashing lights, smoke effects, sudden floor movements were based on the actual battle. At the end we found out what happened to the soldiers on our cards.
Marvin didn't survive. Only five of the crew lived to tell the story.
The photo of the airplane hanging from the ceiling is so cool! The special-effects exhibits remind of the Queen Mary exhibits - remember? They took us down into the engine rooms of the ship -- and simulated what the Titanic may have felt like when it started sinking! It was so silly! I forgot about the shaking beds! Haha!
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