The island superstructure of an aircraft carrier, draped with sailors seeking a glimpse of the starlets that normally accompanied him, served as a common backdrop for Bob Hope’s United Service Organization (USO) shows. Displaying items generously donated by the late entertainer’s estate, the museum’s Bob Hope Exhibit includes a life-size mannequin of him complete with his signature golf club. Sound and video presentations present familiar jokes that kept generations of servicemen and women in stitches.

One of the prized artifacts in the Bob Hope Exhibit is the original banner from the entertainer’s 18th Overseas Christmas Tour, which traveled throughout the Far East in 1968, 25 years after Hope first took his act to the war zone during World War II. Among the feature guests on the 18th Overseas Tour, which included a visit to Vietnam, were Les Brown and His Band of Renown, a staple on Hope’s shows, and actress Ann Margret.

In December 1966, Bob Hope took his U.S.O. show to sea, performing on the deck of the aircraft carrier Bennington (CVS 20) off the coast of Vietnam. Costumed in Navy uniforms, Hope and Vic Damone engage in a skit with singer Anita Bryant, actress Joey Heatherton, entertainer Phyllis Diller, and others on a makeshift stage overlooked by the carrier’s island superstructure. Note the number of personnel wielding cameras to record the event for posterity.

The Navy couldn’t help but stage a bit of gamesmanship over the Army when it presented the entertainer a bath robe embroidered with the words “Bob Says Beat Army” on the back of it. Visits to carriers also brought gifts in the form of an American flag flight suit and a yellow vest like those worn by flight deck aircraft directors. Naval aviation had great appreciation for Bob Hope, who in 1986 headlined events at Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola, Florida, celebrating the 75th Anniversary of U.S. Naval Aviation. On that occasion he was bestowed wings of gold and designated Honorary Naval Aviator Number 19.