Gregory Boyington

Born: 4 December 1912 Birthplace: Coeur D'Alene, Idaho Death: 11 January 1988 Best Known As: The model for TV's Baa Baa Black Sheep Boyington won the Congressional Medal of Honor in World War II, when as a Marine pilot he was credited with downing 28 Japanese aircraft. For three months in 1943-44 he led Marine Fighting Squadron #214, the so-called "Black Sheep Squadron," in the Solomon Islands. During that time the squadron was credited with 97 confirmed kills of enemy aircraft. In January 1944 Boyington was shot down and captured by the Japanese and spent the rest of the war as a prisoner. Boyington's autobiography, titled Baa Baa Black Sheep, was published in 1958. In the 1970s a television series by the same name ran for two seasons on the NBC network, with actor Robert Conrad playing Boyington.