Well actually Col. Hessler , it's not quite that simple. The actual inspiration on Kilroy can not yet, (or maybe ever) be established for certain. The NY Times article is just one lead, and there were Canadian (named Clem) and British (named Chad) versions as well. Unfortunately, as widespread as the Kilroy phenomenon was, there is no concrete evidence to verify either when or where it began, nor who began it in each country (USA, England or Canada). In England, 'Kilroy' was known as 'Chad' and his slogan consisted of "Wot no...?" The blank was usually filled in with whatever there was a shortage of or whatever was being rationed at the time. Like Kilroy, Chad's origin is obscure, but British Cartoonist George Edward Chatterton is likely to have originated it. However, James J Kilroy story seems to be the most likely point of origin for the 'Kilroy was here' phenomenon, there is possible evidence of occurrences of the Kilroy much earlier than World War II. Chad was popular in England, just as Kilroy was in the US military, but nobody (other than James J Kilroy) has stepped forward to claim him as their own invention, (there were about 25 men named Kilroy in the US military during WWII). The Canadian version known as Clem was drawn from a hapless cartoon character that looked very much like kilroy, and was probably the inspiration for the Sad Sack cartoon.
The search continues...
Also, I just added another signting to the list, a sighting in the PC game Call of Duty: United Offensive, screenshot included.
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