Arthur was born on 22 July 1921 in the New York City borough of Manhattan, to Jewish immigrants from Hungary, Jack and Pauly Isaac. He completed two years of college before enlisting in the Air Corps on 23 March 1942. He trained in Texas as a bombardier on B-17s.



He flew 25 missions out of Thurleigh, England, over German occupied territory, including Schweinfurt. On one mission, when the targets were obscured by fog, Arthur opened the bomb bay and dropped the contents of a bag of stale bagels that had been sent to him by his parents which were carried on flights as a snack. Arthur was the subject of a story by war correspondent Bob Considine, which was published in the New York Mirror on 11 December 1943. After the war, Arthur married and raised two children. He had a career in sales. He died on 8 December 1992.



Shot down 26 July 1943 in B-17 #4124417 'Dixie Demo. ' Plane ditched in North Sea. Returned to base. Earlier 3 September 1943 returning from mission to Nantes, France, crashed in B17#42-3449 while attempting to land at RAF Wing. All crew returned, but 3 seriously injured.