Roy Elmer LaGrone (1921–1993)

Roy Elmer LaGrone, an original Tuskegee Airman, was a member of the famous Red Tails, the first all-Black aviation group in World War II, and also became a noted artist.

Roy LaGrone was born in Pine Bluff (Jefferson County) on February 1, 1921, to Edward LaGrone (a veteran of World War I who was a fireman for the Cotton Belt Railroad) and Gussie LaGrone (a homemaker). LaGrone attended the segregated school system in Pine Bluff during the 1930s, graduating from Merrill High School. His fascination with flying began as a teenager when he took a short ride in an airplane from a local airfield. The experience steered him toward aviation.

LaGrone attended the Tuskegee Institute (now Tuskegee University), where he was a member of the Senior Army Reserve Officer Training Corps, serving as first sergeant. Before graduating, he was drafted into the Army Air Corps in 1942 and later entered flight training at the Tuskegee Army Air Field, graduating with Class 44-D on April 15, 1944, and being commissioned as a second lieutenant.

While at Tuskegee, LaGrone married Arkansas native Lynzine Hardaway, a Tuskegee student and later a teacher; they would have two children, Marilyn and Tania, before separating.

LaGrone was a fighter pilot with the 332^nd Fighter Group (the famous Red Tails), flying P-47 Thunderbolts and P-51 Mustangs in escort missions for heavy bombers over Germany and occupied Europe. He participated in the longest escort mission performed by the Tuskegee unit, a 1,600-mile round-trip from Italy to Berlin on March 24, 1945, for which he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. He also received two Bronze Stars during his European service.

LaGrone was stationed in Caserta, Italy. He often noted that the Italian theater of the war provided a different social experience than the United States, famously stating that it was the first place he could “sit down in a restaurant and be treated like a customer.” LaGrone attained the rank of major and after his discharge remained in Italy to study at the University of Florence. After his discharge and return to the United States, he completed his studies and moved to New York, where he studied at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, graduating in 1949.

LaGrone’s artistic career as an artist began with work for various studios and magazines; notably, he served as illustrator and designer for Family Circle magazine. He then worked for the U.S. Department of State, serving as art director for America, a magazine distributed behind the Iron Curtain. He later designed and illustrated book jackets for major New York publishers such as Harper & Row, Random House, and others, in addition to serving as senior artist for a cartoon commercial that aired on ABC Television. He served as art director for Avon Books for thirteen years and, in 1964, was hired as art director at Pagents Magazine. He was an Artist Member of the New York Society of Illustrators. LaGrone’s lifelong project was to tell the story of the sacrifices and contributions of the nation’s Black military aviators through his paintings. Twenty-four of his paintings are in the Air Force Art Collection housed in the Pentagon.

Later in life, Lagrone worked in the Department of Media Resources at Rutgers Medical School, retiring in 1991. He died of a heart attack at his home in Somerset County, New Jersey, on December 8, 1993, and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery. He was survived by one brother, Ed Henry Lagrone, and his second wife, Ester, as well as his daughters and first wife. Tuskegee’s Heroes: As Depicted in the Aviation Art of Roy E. LaGrone was published by Motorbooks International in 1996. In 2001, he was inducted into the Aviation Hall of Fame and Museum of New Jersey. He was inducted into the Arkansas Aviation Hall of Fame in 2026.

For additional information:
Roy E. LaGrone. https://royelagrone.com/ (accessed July 8, 2026).

Saxon, Wolfgang. “Roy E. LaGrone, 72, a Tuskegee Airman and Ex-Art Director.” New York Times, December 14, 1993. https://www.nytimes.com/1993/12/14/obituaries/roy-e-lagrone-72-a-tuskegee-airman-and-ex-art-director.html (accessed July 8, 2026).

Richard Holbert
Little Rock, Arkansas