Project 4.1
In 1994, a 1953 "Castle Bravo" program prospectus was found which included reference to Project 4.1 apparently written before the "Bravo" shot had occurred. The U.S. government responded that someone had gone back into the project list after the "Bravo" test to insert Project 4.1; thus, according to the U.S. government, the acts were not premeditated. All other U.S. documents point to Project 4.1 having been established after the "Bravo" test—most sources point to its having been organized on March 7, 1954. The final Project 4.1 report began in its preface with the statement that "Operation CASTLE did not include a biomedical program" (it mentions this in discussing the ad hoc nature by which the project personnel were assembled). All official and mainstream historical accounts of the "Bravo" test indicate that its high level of fallout was a result of a miscalculation in relation to its design and was not deliberate (see the Castle Bravo article for more information on the alleged accident).
Castle Jazz Band
The band was a cooperative venture that never paid its members. It was led by banjoist Monte Ballou. The first recordings took place March 28 and April 16, 1944, and their first issue was limited to 200 copies. Wartime and employment difficulties ensured the band would not record again until 1947, but this recording was more widely distributed and garnered the nationwide attention of jazz fans and garnered critical acclaim. Ballou changed from guitar to banjo for the 1947 recording, and this, plus a change from string bass to tuba, had a significant effect on the band's sound. The most famous lineup was formed in 1948, and played music at the Jantzen Beach Amusement Park in Portland, dressed as various characters. They were regulars at the Rathskeller Cafe in 1948, and then moved to a more upscale location, the Sportsman Club, where they were a draw not only locally, but also from the traditional jazz fanbase in San Francisco. Their heyday was from 1949 to 1951. This time period included being a featured group at the 1949 Dixieland Jubilee concert, and a series of recordings on the Castle Records label that began in 1944. Trumpet player Don Kinch claimed one of these records, "Floating Down the Old Green River" sold more than a million copies. George Bruns left in 1950 to join the Turk Murphy band, and was replaced by initially by George Phillips (who had worked and recorded in the earlier edition of the band), and then by Rod Levitt.