Blog Post

The movie “Wall Street”, directed by Oliver Stone. Seen here, Charlie Sheen as Bud Fox. (Initial theatrical release December 11, 1987. Screen capture. © 1987 Twentieth Century Fox. Credit: © 1987 Twentieth Century Fox / Courtesy Pyxurz).

One thing I am sure of: I am glad that I don’t have to compete against the likes of Gordon Gecko (or Bud Fox’s insider trading) when it comes to purchasing militaria. But something about this blue star interests me.

This veteran’s ribbon bar shows two bronze campaign stars affixed to his Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (source: eBay).

With the signing of Executive Order 9050 on February 9, 1942, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt approved one of the most recognizable and most senior (in order of precedence) unit awards for the United States Navy and Marine Corps, the Presidential Unit Citation (PUC). The initial criteria for this award read:

“The Secretary of the Navy is hereby authorized and directed to issue a citation in the name of the President of the United States, as public evidence of deserved honor and distinction, to any ship, aircraft, or other Naval Unit and to any Marine Corps aircraft, detachment, or higher unit, for outstanding performance in action on or after October 16, 1941.”

Just twenty days later, President Roosevelt extended a branch-specific version of the award to be available for the United States Army (Executive Order 9075).

Both forms of the PUC were created as ribbon-only devices (meaning that there is no associated medal pendant), intended to be presented to a unit that distinguished (“marked by eminence, distinction, or excellence”) itself in combat against an enemy. Though this criteria would be further defined in 1957 by President Eisenhower’s Executive Order 10694, the awarding of these ribbons remains limited, with very few units receiving the distinction since World War II.

This award letter from the Chief of Naval Personnel shows that the PUC ribbon was awarded with the blue enameled star to my uncle. It references the Navy’s general order #187 of February 3, 1943 for authorization of the award. This letter was prepared in November of 1944 demonstrating that the blue star was still being issued late in the war.

Here is a close-up of the blue enameled star affixed to the Navy Presidential Unit Citation (source: Shrapneldude).

When the Navy’s award was initially instituted in 1942, it was done with a unique appliance added to the ribbon. With most Navy and Marine Corps decorations, a star is representative of additional awards received. A single bronze star device added to a ribbon indicates that the wearer received the award twice, while a silver star affixed would show five of the same award. In the case of the Navy’s PUC, when it was initially presented to the personnel of the decorated unit, it was done so with a single blue-enameled star device. Subsequent awarding procedure then followed protocol by affixing additional blue stars, departing from the standard procedure for other ribbon decorations.

Collectors understand that it is typical for scarce, exceptional items to be highly pursued and the Navy PUC ribbon with the blue enameled star falls right in line. For the last two years, I’ve been seeking to complete a ribbon “rack” for my uncle’s display with this early variant of the Presidential Unit Citation ribbon. During that span of time, I have only seen one ribbon and star listed at auction. As I watched for my moment to bid on the ribbon, the price exceeded my threshold three days before the close, ending up  more surpassing my budget fivefold.

Unlike the bronze-colored metal of the current star devices, these blue stars were made from a silver-colored metal as seen on this heavily-worn example (source: Adam R.).

Something tells me that Charlie Sheen’s Wall Street character, Bud Fox, wasn’t referring to this wonderfully scarce ribbon device in his efforts to burn Gecko.