MIDWAY ISLANDS

MIDWAY ISLANDS, located 1,200 miles northwest of Honolulu, are part of a coral atoll containing two islands (Sand and Eastern), with a total area of about two square miles. Discovered in 1859, they were annexed by the United States in 1867.Attacked by the Japanese in World War II, Midway was the scene of a naval aircraft battle (June 1942) that resulted in a severe defeat for Japan. By checking the Japanese advance toward Hawaii, the battle proved to be one of the decisive American victories of the war. Since World War II, the islands have served as a naval and air base and as a stopover point for commercial transpacific flights.

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See alsoAircraft Carriers and Naval Aircraft ; Midway, Battle of ; Navy, Department of the ; World War II, Navy in .

Midway ★★ 1976 (PG)

The epic WWII battle of Midway, the turning point in the war, is retold through Allied and Japanese viewpoints by a big all-star cast saddled with dumpy dialogue and enough weaponry to seize Hollywood on any given Wednesday. 132m/C VHS, DVD . Sab Shimono, Robert Webber, Ed Nelson, James Shigeta, Monte Markham, Biff McGuire, Glenn Corbett, Gregory Walcott, Noriyuki “Pat” Morita, John Fujioka, Dale Ishimoto, Dabney Coleman, Erik Estrada, Clyde Kusatsu, Robert Ito, Steve Kanaly, Kip Niven, Mitchell Ryan, Susan Sullivan, Charlton Heston, Henry Fonda, James Coburn, Glenn Ford, Hal Holbrook, Robert Mitchum, Cliff Robertson, Robert Wagner, Kevin Dobson, Christopher George, Toshiro Mifune, Tom Selleck; D: Jack Smight; W: Donald S. Sanford; C: Harry Stradling Jr.; M: John Williams.

mid·way / ˈmidˌwā; -ˈwā/ • adv. & adj. in or toward the middle of something: [as adv.] Father Peter came to a halt midway down the street | [as adj.] midway profits roared from $130 million to $160 million. ∎  having some of the characteristics of one thing and some of another: [as adj.] a midway path is chosen between the diverging aspirations of the two factions | [as adv.] the leaves have a unique smell midway between eucalyptus and mint. • n. an area of sideshows, games of chance or skill, or other amusements at a fair or exhibition: the kids head straight for the midway.

Midway Islands Coral atoll in the central Pacific Ocean, c.2000km (1250mi) wnw of Honolulu, consisting of two small islands, Easter and Sand. The islands were annexed to the USA in 1867, and were made an air base in 1935. They were the scene of the Battle of Midway (1942) during World War II. The islands are administered by the US Department of the Interior. Area: 5sq km (2sq mi). Pop. (2001) 150.