What happened to Lucius Beebe Jr., and if possible, provide date of death.
The only clue I have to go on is a copy of a Pond's Cold Cream ad  in
Life Magazine  (1940s)
which reads in part "Sally, her fiance Lucius Beebe Jr., of the
Philadelphia Beebes..." and  "Sally Brannon's romance is a military
story.  Her engagement was announced July 28th by her parents, Captain
and Mrs. E.P. Brannon, stationed near Philadelphia.  Her fiance', a
member of a famous Philadelphia regiment and a trained pilot, is now
flying for the R.C.A.F.   "We probably won't be married very soon,"
she confided, "but we wanted our engagement announced before Lucius
left for Canada."  Her engagement ring is a small replica of her 
fiance's seal ring  with the Beebe  crest and motto: Se Defendendo (by
defending  himself).

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Request for Question Clarification by luciaphile-ga on 12 Apr 2004 13:02 PDT

Hi cedriclasalle-ga,

Are you satisfied with bowler-ga's comments or is there more that we
could find out for you?

Regards,
luciaphile-ga

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Clarification of Question by cedriclasalle-ga on 12 Apr 2004 19:24 PDT

This is the wrong Lucius Beebe Jr.   Perhaps a geneaology  of the
Philadelphia Beebe's or a roster of the R.C.A.F  from  the time would 
be revealing.  Does  Life magazine  or Ponds  beauty products maintain
an archive of advertisements as there is a small photograph of Lucius
Beebe
in the article or can I email a scan of the photo to you?

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Clarification of Question by cedriclasalle-ga on 14 Apr 2004 16:15 PDT

The Lucius Bebee Jr pictured on the cover of Life Magazine, January
16, 1939 is the wrong Luscius Bebee.   The Life Magazine in which my
mother appears (from which this question is based) is March 16, 1942,
in the Ponds Cold Cream  advertisement which includes a thumbnail
photograph of Lucius Bebee Jr. - not the same person.

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Request for Question Clarification by luciaphile-ga on 15 Apr 2004 11:21 PDT

Hi cedriclasalle-ga,

I'm reasonably certain I found your Lucius Beebe, Jr. There's a
Philadelphia connection. I found references to his career in the
airforce. I can tell you where he ended up. I've located an obituary,
a death notice, and a letter to the editor about his life. This man
would have been in his mid-twenties in 1942.

I do not, however, have a connection to Sally Brannon. Let me know how
you want me to proceed.

Regards,
luciaphile-ga

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Request for Question Clarification by luciaphile-ga on 15 Apr 2004 12:45 PDT

And I also have a connection to the Canadian air force. Just nothing for Sally.

Regards,
luciaphile-ga

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Clarification of Question by cedriclasalle-ga on 15 Apr 2004 17:48 PDT

It sounds as though you have found the correct Lucius Bebee Jr.   The
age, mid-twenties, is correct, as is the  reference to the Canadian
Air Force and  Philadelphia.   Please advise as how I may obtain
copies of the obituary, and  copies of all available, relevant
material.

Hi cedriclasalle-ga,

Thanks for your question. I enjoyed doing the research on this one a lot. 

I?ve got a search strategy listed below, but I wanted to take you
through my line of reasoning. The social security death index lists
two Lucius Beebes. One of these had a SSN issued in Pennsylvania. This
particular Lucius Beebe last received benefits in Charleston, South
Carolina. Going on the assumption that this might be your Lucius
Beebe, I checked out the Charleston papers and found an obituary
referencing a distinguished career in the Air Force during World War
II, and that he was the son of a Lucius Beebe and Lillie T. Keim
Beebe. A search on his mother?s name turned up the obituary of a
sister and a Philadelphia connection. Details are below.
	
According to the Social Security Death Index, Lucius Beebe was born on
5 December 1917. He died in Charleston, South Carolina on 25 June 1995

Social Security Death Index
http://ssdi.genealogy.rootsweb.com/

Beebe was the son of Lucius Beebe and Lillie T. Keim Beebe, of
Philadelphia. He wanted to get into the war even before America had
declared it. To that end, he joined the Canadian Air Force. After the
U.S. declared war, he transferred to the U.S. Air Force, where he
served with distinction. He was awarded the Silver Star, the
Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal, and the Purple Heart. Toward
the end of the war, his plane was shot down (more on that below), and
he was taken prisoner by the Japanese. According to one article, a few
days before his execution date, the second bomb was dropped and Japan
surrendered. According to the author, by the time Lieutenant Colonel
Beebe was liberated, he had lost more than 40 percent of his body
weight.

He evidently continued his career in the Air Force until the late
1960s, when he, his wife, and their children moved to Charleston.
Beebe earned a doctorate and became a professor at The Citadel in the
political science department. He was an expert on Southeast Asian and
South African affairs. He died at age 77 in Staunton, VA, and was
interred in Arlington National Cemetery.

?Former Citadel Teacher Lucius Beebe Dies.? The Post and Courier, June
28, 1995, p.A14.

Obituaries. The Post and Courier, June 30, 1995, p.A24.
http://www.ccpl.org/htbin/dbsearch?db=PCINDX&format=FULL&kwd=LN+'AAF-3914 

?Col. Beebe Contributed Much,? by Randell C. Stoney, Jr. The Post and
Courier, July 30, 1995, p.A16.

I cannot post these articles in their entirety as that would violate
copyright, but many libraries either hold microfilm copies of ?The
Post & Courier,? and they are probably indexed in several general
article databases that you could access from most public or academic
libraries.

Failing that, the Post & Courier's contact information is:
134 Columbus Street
Charleston, SC 29403-4800
(843) 577-7111
http://www.charleston.net/ 

When Beebe?s plane (the Kickapoo Lou) was shot down over the Sea of
Japan in 1945, he and others from the crew became POWs.

56 Years Ago
http://home.att.net/~sallyann6/b29/56years-4503a.html 

The obituary of his sister, the late Mary Elizabeth Miller, confirms
the same parentage, and shows Philadelphia connections.

Conway Public Library/Obituaries October ? December 2000
http://www.conway.lib.nh.us/history/obits/oct_dec2000.htm 

SEARCH STRATEGY
SSDI
lucius beebe lillie keim
lucius beebe "air force" japan
kickapoo lou
lucius beebe ?the citadel?

I hope this answers your question. If you need further assistance or
if the links do not work, please ask for clarification before rating
my answer and I?ll do my best to assist you.

Regards,
luciaphile-ga

Thank you very much, Luciaphile-ga, your answer has resolved a long time puzzle.

Is this a reference to the same Lucius Beebe:

"Lucius Morris Beebe, the other famous Lucius, was the son of Junius
Beebe and quite a personality in his own right, eventually appearing
on the cover of Life magazine."

If so there is a little info on this website:

http://www.wakefieldlibrary.org/zbeebe.htm

More from the above website:

Lucius Morris (December 9, 1902 - February 4, 1966) - This is the
Lucius who was famous for his high style, society journalism, and
interest in railroading.

The motto of the Beebe family is "Se Defendendo!" (by defending himself). 

The family coat of arms consists of a gold chevron (inverted "V"
shape) with two gold flying bees above and one below, all on an azure
background.

The date he was in Life Magazine (the Lucius referenced above):

January 16, 1939 Lucius Beebe  

http://nservices.com/life30.htm#January%202,%201939

Last of my comments:

Picture of cover of Life Magazine January 16, 1939:

http://www.oldlifemagazines.com/cover.php?d=011639

Lucius Morris Beebe was quite a well-known writer in his day, a gad
about town, and a confirmed bachleor.  He was not from Philadelphia,
and if he was, he would never admit it.

I don't believe he was the Lucius Beebe of your question.  Could there
possibly have been another...?

Many thanks for the great rating and the generous tip!

Regards,
luciaphile-ga