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| U-Boat Commander Outfit similar to what Toughill and Mellor wore |
It was February 1942, America had just entered World War II, when Philadelphia Record reporters Frank Toughill and William B. Mellor Jr. paraded through the city dressed as Nazi submarine commanders.
A costume company had designed their outfits and the pair spoke in broken German-accented English. Not a single Philadelphian they encountered seemed suspicious.
“We walked through the streets in full Nazi regalia, complete with swastikas and nobody paid any attention,” according to their story. “We passed thousands of people, dined in a crowded restaurant, mingled with church throngs, asked questions and transacted business in broken English – and nobody said boo.”
They were most interested to find out what would happened along the Delaware waterfront where security should have been tight. They had informed the Navy of their experiment but not the police.
One cop politely directed the disguised reporters to a certain pier.
When they parked their car in a “no parking” area, an irate cop appeared. He looked at the pair and said, “Oh, Navy men, eh?”
That was it.
The “Nazi” reporters went into an automat and helpful citizens explained how it all worked.
They wore the heavy sweaters popular with German submariners and caps with Nazi insignias.
Their story was picked up by the wire services. Scores of American newspaper ran the story, mostly on page one.