This was not the stock, newsreel or propaganda footage that the world had become all too familiar with seeing. This was provocative footage filmed by those who witnessed the war first-hand. This was the footage deemed ‘unfit’ for civilians to see. Until now. This Veterans Day, Smithsonian Channel premieres an epic presentation that will forever change the way we look at the Second World War, APOCALYPSE: THE SECOND WORLD WAR, a six-part, six -hour series narrated by acting icon Martin Sheen. Comprised of extraordinary footage that has been restored, colorized and transferred to stunning high definition, the series will air over six consecutive nights beginning Wednesday, November 11 at 8pm ET/PT.
As the French evacuated Paris in June 1940, amateur filmmakers documented the exodus as thousands of soon to be refugees lined the roads with their families and possessions. As the British sifted through the rubble, ordinary citizens grabbed cameras to capture first-hand what it meant to stand up to Hitler during the Blitz. When the Nazi army slogged through the mud and snow of Soviet Russia on the way to Moscow, soldiers used 8mm cameras to film war as they experienced it.
At the end of the war, this and other “Top Secret” footage of the war’s devastation was stashed away and forgotten. Now, thanks to the efforts of a few private collectors and archivists, these forgotten films have been rediscovered, restored and featured in Apocalypse: The Second World War.
Apocalypse: The Second World War recounts the battles and atrocities of the most destructive war in history, one that took the lives of millions. The restoration of the footage and its colorization were supervised by historical consultants to ensure accuracy. Researchers pulled and edited over 600 hours of footage from archives throughout the world.
“Smithsonian Channel is proud to be the exclusive U.S. home to this groundbreaking depiction of World War II,” said David Royle, Executive Vice President of Programming and Production, Smithsonian Channel. “The filmmakers’ remarkable discovery of unseen footage, the vivid storytelling and attention to historical detail is exactly the type of programming that we are looking to bring to our audience.”
Apocalypse: The Second World War executive producer for Smithsonian Channel is Joy Galane. The series was directed by Isabelle Clarke, Jean-Louis Guillaud, and Henri de Turenne. It is written by the historian Daniel Costelle and produced by CC&C Louis Vaudeville and France 2 in association with Smithsonian Channel.
Catchy title huh? Well, it’s true. Then-Capt. John “Jack” Nicholson, veteran of the Vietnam War, was awarded the Silver Star for actions over 40 years ago.
Dec. 27, 1963 had already been a devastating day.
Of the 240 men then-Capt. John “Jack” Nicholson was with, only 39 were able to walk away from an eight-hour battle with the Viet Cong.
But for Nicholson, the night wasn’t over.
He would lead his men to save the lives of nine people.
The Struble native’s actions that evening were honored this week at Fort Myer, Washington D.C. — more than 45 years later — where he was awarded the Silver Star, the third-highest U.S. military honor.
Nicholson is now a retired Brigadier General. To read more of General Nicholson’s story, check out the Le Mars Daily Sentinel.
On Tuesday, October 20th at 11:45 am EST, the President will hold a recognition ceremony to honor Troop A, First Squadron, 11th Armored Combat Regiment of the U.S. Army, recipients of the Presidential Unit Citation for actions in the Republic of Vietnam.
The citation recognizes Troop A’s extraordinary heroism and conspicuous gallantry on March 26, 1970 when it volunteered to rescue an American infantry company surrounded on the Cambodian border by an overwhelming enemy force. The determined enemy had resisted hours of aerial and artillery bombardment and was expected to destroy or capture the 100 American infantryman within hours.
Eighty-six Troop A veterans will be in attendance to receive the unit honor from the President at the White House in recognition of their exemplary service and personal sacrifice nearly four decades ago.
The Presidential Unit Citation is awarded to units of the Armed Forces of the United States and allies for extraordinary heroism in action against an armed enemy on or after December 7, 1941. The unit must display such gallantry, determination, and esprit de corps in accomplishing its mission under extremely difficult and hazardous conditions so as to set it apart from and above other units participating in the same campaign.
At 0300 hours on 2 March 2002, C Company, 1st Battalion, 87th Infantry walked about a mile and a half to the flight line in full gortex, poly-pro and full field uniform. They sat in chalk order until their loading time of 0500 hours. Their flight to LZ 13A gave them a touch down time of 0600 hours. SGT James Rissler was a Senior Medic of an Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) team attached to the Infantry Company. According to Rissler, they loaded one of the CH-47s with 34 packs and rucks. The flight was to take them from Bagram Airbase at 4,200 feet to LZ 13A in Shahi-Kot valley to just outside the city of Marzak at 10,500 feet in just an hour’s time. Their mission set up blocking positions outside the city of Marzak while Zia forces pushed the Taliban and Al-Qaeda forces in their direction.
The flight left at 0500 hours as planned and touched down at LZ 13A at 0600 hours. When the chopper touched down, the unit hastily split and went off to the left and right sides of the aircraft and soldiers assumed prone positions. Once the aircraft had taken off, the unit immediately started receiving small arms fire. The problem was that no one could locate the direction of fire, so they dropped their rucks and ran up the side of a small ridge. Soon realizing that the direction of fire was coming from the same side they were on, they ran to the top of the ridge to the other side to take cover. Once Sergeant Rissler reached the top of the ridge, an RPG round exploded about 10 feet from him and a piece of shrapnel hit him in the knee.
Once they all got to the other side, the unit consolidated and started constructing fighting positions. Soldiers were placed on a small observation post to the right of the unit, but were quickly targeted by Mortar fire also. The Mortars adjusted fire and the unit took 13 casualties by the time the second round hit. The unit then realized that the enemy forces were running out of the city of Marzak to surround them, which meant that they would now be taking fire from three sides, being targeted by Mortar fire. Sergeant Rissler set up a Command and Control Post at the bottom of the ridge and it was quickly targeted. As the enemy continued to adjust fire on them, Sergeant Rissler and other soldiers would drag as many casualties up and down the ridge as possible, covering their bodies with theirs to protect them as the rounds detonated.
While moving the soldiers up and down the hill, Sergeant Rissler was wounded a second time, taking fragments in the hand. Both times he was wounded he treated himself. Moving the injured soldiers up and down the ridge was only aggravating the injuries; consequently, each time a soldier was moved, controlling of bleeding and treatment of wound started all over again. The Mortar fire would slow down when fire missions were called in from the F-16s and AC 130s, allowing Sergeant Rissler and other soldiers to dig pits in the center of the valley to put the patients in and using dirt or whatever materials found to cover the wounded. All patients were stabilized and the unit lay in their positions returning fire until nightfall.
As night started to set in, Sergeant Rissler knew that it would be getting very cold soon. With the amount of blood lost through the day and the rapid decrease in temperature the patients would probably go into shock. So Sergeant Rissler used tape to repair the wounded soldiers’ clothing and covered the soldiers with whatever he had to prevent shock. Then he and other soldiers lay on the wounded patients to maintain their body temperature. Finally, when night fell MEDEVAC could get to the site. The first helicopter received two Mortar rounds and heavy small arms fire. Another AC-130 was called in to cover the evacuation. In all, 25 wounded were evacuated with no fatalities. Around 0200 hours the next morning, Sergeant Rissler and the rest of the unit were extracted.
On October 24 at Chicago’s Palmer House Hilton, the Chicago-based Tawani Foundation will present the Pritzker Military Library Literature Award for Lifetime Achievement in Military Writing to Gerhard L. Weinberg.
The Pritzker Military Library Literature Award recognizes a living author for a body of work that has profoundly enriched the public understanding of American military history. The recipient’s contributions may be academic, non-fiction, fiction, or a combination of any of the three, and his or her work should embody the values of the Pritzker Military Library.
Mr. Weinberg was born in Hanover, Germany, on January 1, 1928. He was the son of Jewish parents. His father was a decorated Soldier who had fought in the German Army during World War I and his mother was a loving homemaker. After returning from WWI, Weinberg’s father went back to work in the judiciary, but found the atmosphere so unpleasant that he moved to the new Ministry of Finance.
In 1933, the Nazis came to power and passed a law forbidding all Jewish persons from holding civil service positions. However, German President Paul von Hindenburg insisted that Jewish Germans who fought on the front lines of WWI be granted exception from the law. When Hindenburg died in 1934, everyone exempted under the Nazi law were fired.
Weinberg’s father was unemployed – and unemployable – and decided to open an office to advise Jews leaving Germany on the constantly changing rules about what could be taken from the country. Weinberg’s living room was converted into an office and his hallway became a waiting area full of Jews waiting for quote numbers to emigrate from Germany to the United States.
After the November 1938, Quakers in England followed up on changes in the English government as a result of the pogrom. The government allowed Jews waiting to get into another country to stay in England temporarily. Weinberg’s parents shipped him and his siblings on a boat from Hamburg to England where he attended school.
During the Battle of Britain and at the beginning of the blitz, the family’s quota numbers came up and in September of 1940 they were sent to the United States on one of the last passenger ships making the trip.
Weinberg settled in Albany, NY and it was there that he began his love for education and writing. A few years earlier, he had been abruptly removed from class while non-Jewish classmates looked on. The principal walked into the classroom and read the official decree that Jews could no longer be in the school system. He and another boy were literally required to collect all their belongings on the spot and leave the room, alarmed and concerned.
Weinberg loved his American education so much that he quickly decided he wanted to become a secondary school teacher. He went on to attend New York State College for Teachers in Albany, which is now known as the University of New York at Albany.
When Weinberg turned 18, his education was interrupted as he was drafted into the Army Air Corps. After attending basic training at Camp Polk, he was sent to San Francisco and transferred to the 4th Replacement Depot at Camp Zama, Japan. Shortly after arriving in country, his education was put to good use as he was transferred to Yokohama in August 1946.
At the time, Yokohama was home to an Army Education Program School. The Army needed teachers badly and Weinberg was a perfect fit, having completed three years of college credits prior to being drafted. For the next year, Weinberg taught American History and American Government for the Information and Education Headquarters of the 8th US Army.
In 1947, the Army was discharging all its draftees. Since Weinberg had not yet attained his American citizenship, he was unable to remain in service voluntarily. After hardly more than a year of military service, Weinberg was given an honorable discharge and sent back to the United States.
Weinberg returned to the University at Albany and used his G.I. Bill benefits to receive a B.A. in social studies and an M.A. at the University of Chicago. By the time he graduated in 1951, positions in the academic world were scarcest and enrollments were shrinking as all the WWII veterans had completed or were about to complete their G.I. Bill-funded education.
He began work as a contractor for the Air Force in Montgomery, Alabama at the Human Resources Research Institute on the “War Documentation Project.” His research included sorting through captured WWII German records that were being scanned to microfiche and sent back to Germany.
Through his years of teaching, lecturing, research, and study, Weinberg has published a string of books, and longer string of reviews, article and other publications, on World War II German history. He has become a trusted source of military history that is sought out by authors, scholars, and historians alike.
For his more than 50 years of military historical research, Gerhard Weinberg will be honored with a $100,000 honorarium, citation and medallion, sponsored by the Chicago-based Tawani Foundation, which will be presented at the Library’s annual Liberty Gala on October 24, 2009. Weinberg currently lives in Efland, North Carolina, with his wife Janet.
Friday, Sept.18, 2009 is National POW/MIA Recognition Day. The United States’ National POW/MIA Recognition Day is observed across the nation on the third Friday of September each year. Many Americans take the time to remember those who were prisoners of war (POW) and those who are missing in action (MIA), as well as their families.
The President is expected to issue a proclamation commemorating the observances and reminding the nation of those Americans who have sacrificed so much for their country.
Observances of National POW/MIA Recognition Day are held across the country on military installations, ships at sea, state capitols, schools and veterans’ facilities. This observance is one of six days throughout the year that Congress has mandated the flying of the National League of Families’ POW/MIA flag. The others are Armed Forces Day, Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day and Veterans Day. The flag is to be flown at major military installations, national cemeteries, all post offices, VA medical facilities, the World War II Memorial, Korean War Veterans Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the official offices of the secretaries of state, defense and veterans affairs, the director of the selective service system and the White House.
What do people do?
Many Americans across the United States pause to remember the sacrifices and service of those who were prisoners of war (POW), as well as those who are missing in action (MIA), and their families. All military installations fly the National League of Families’ POW/MIA flag, which symbolizes the nation’s remembrance of those who were imprisoned while serving in conflicts and those who remain missing.
Veteran rallies take place in many states, such as Wisconsin, in the United States on National POW/MIA Recognition Day. United States flags and POW/MIA flags are flown on this day and joint prayers are made for POWs and those missing in action. National POW/MIA Recognition Day posters are also displayed at college or university campuses and public buildings to promote the day. Remembrance ceremonies and other events to observe the day are also held in places such as the Pentagon, war memorials and museums.
Background
There are 1,741 American personnel listed by the Defense Department’s POW/MIA Office as missing and unaccounted for from the Vietnam War, as of April 2009. The number of United States personnel accounted for since the end of the Vietnam War in 1975 is 841. About 90 percent of the 1,741 people still missing were lost in Vietnam or areas of Laos and Cambodia under Vietnam’s wartime control, according to the National League of Families website (cited in the United States Army website).
The United States Congress passed a resolution authorizing National POW/MIA Recognition Day to be observed on July 18, 1979. It was observed on the same date in 1980 and was held on July 17 in 1981 and 1982. It was then observed on April 9 in 1983 and July 20 in 1984. The event was observed on July 19 in 1985, and then from 1986 onwards the date moved to the third Friday of September. The United States president each year proclaims National POW/MIA Recognition Day. Many states in the USA also proclaim POW/MIA Recognition Day together with the national effort.
Symbols
The National League of Families’ POW/MIA flag symbolizes the United States’ resolve to never forget POWs or those who served their country in conflicts and are still missing. Newt Heisley designed the flag. The flag’s design features a silhouette of a young man, which is based on Mr Heisley’s son, who was medically discharged from the military. As Mr Heisley looked at his returning son’s gaunt features, he imagined what life was for those behind barbed wire fences on foreign shores. He then sketched the profile of his son as the new flag’s design was created in his mind.
Mr. Heisley with the flag
The flag features a white disk bearing in black silhouette a man’s bust, a watch tower with a guard on patrol, and a strand of barbed wire. White letters “POW” and “MIA”, with a white five-pointed star in between, are typed above the disk. Below the disk is a black and white wreath above the motto “You Are Not Forgotten” written in white, capital letters.
Deputy Secretary of Defense William J. Lynn III, Secretary of the Army Pete Geren, and Vice Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. Peter W. Chiarelli will participate in a ceremony inducting Army Sgt. 1st Class Jared C. Monti into the Pentagon’s Hall of Heroes from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m., EDT, Friday, Sept. 18, 2009, at the Pentagon auditorium (6th corridor, basement level).
Monti will be awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously at a White House ceremony scheduled for Sept. 17. His parents will be present for the unveiling of the Hall of Heroes plaque on Friday, Sept. 18.
Monti is recognized for actions above and beyond the call of duty during combat that cost him his life on June 21, 2006, in Afghanistan. He is the sixth service member to be awarded the Medal of Honor during the Global War on Terror, the second to receive it for actions in Afghanistan.
Found this story buried in the obituaries and didn’t want this going unknown. This hero served his country in WWII, Korea and Vietnam! He was awarded numerous medals for valor. May God bless our combat veterans.
Colonel Richard D. Humphreys, 85, retired U.S. Marine, attorney-at-law, and real estate agent, of Forsyth Place, died Sunday, Sept. 13, 2009, at 8:10 a.m. at the Stone Pear Pavilion at the Fox Nursing Home in Chester.
Born in Pittsburgh, Pa., March 13, 1924, a son of the late Harry W. and Helen V. Davidson, he was a 1944 graduate of Franklin & Marshall College. He furthered his education in 1949 at the Dickinson School of Law where he earned a J.D. in Law. A Distinguished Graduate of the Naval War College in 1967 and a holder of the Certified Commercial Investment Member designation (CCIM) from the Realtors National Marketing Institute of the National Association of Realtors. He was admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, the United States Supreme Court, and the United States Court of Military Appeals.
He is past president of the Rotary Club of East Liverpool, and the Columbiana County Board of Realtors, and a former member of the Ohio Job Training Partnership, Inc., the Realtors National Marketing Institute, and the National Association of Realtors. He is a former member of and past chairperson of the Private Industry Council of Mahoning-Columbiana Counties, the Southern Columbiana County Joint Services Employers Committee, and of the Ohio Small Business Council Coordinating Board. He was formerly a member of the Ohio Governor’s Human Resources Advisory Council, the Business Advisory Council of the National Alliance of Business, the Advisory Committee for the Columbiana County Incubator, and a member of the Steering Committee of the Mahoning Valley Incubator. He is a member of the First United Methodist Church of East Liverpool, a member of Chapter No. 126 of the Korean War Veterans Association, a life member of the Korean War Veterans Association, a life member of the Disabled American Veterans, a member of the Dog Company 2nd Battalion Seventh Marines Association, and a member of the American Legion Post No. 374. He is the author of “Triumph on 1240″ the history of the Marines of D Company 2nd Battalion 7th Marines 1st Marine Division in Korea.
Colonel Humphreys’ active military service began with his enlistment as a Private in the U.S. Marine Corps on Dec. 14, 1942, and ended with his retirement on April 30, 1970, as a Colonel of Marines on duty as the Director of Legislative Plans and Coordination, Office of the Secretary of Defense. He joined the Second Battalion 7th Marines in Korea on Dec. 6, 1950, and was a Platoon Commander of the 3rd Platoon and later the company Executive Officer until June 6, 1951, when he was wounded and evacuated to the hospital in Japan. During his active service he received the following decorations and awards: The Silver Star Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Bronze Star Medal with Combat V, the Purple Heart Medal with one Star, the Secretary of Defense Identification Badge, the Good Conduct Medal, the American Campaign Medal, the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, the Victory Medal (WWII), the Navy Occupation Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal with one Star, the Korean Service Medal with three Stars, the United Nations Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation, the Presidential Unit Citation, the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, the Navy Letter of Commendation, the Vietnam Service Medal with one Star, the Vietnam Campaign Medal with device, and the Navy Commendation Medal with combat V.
Since his retirement from the service, he served in several positions in the East Liverpool Area Chamber of Commerce including that of Executive Vice President and Secretary from 1982 to 1987. He was also a member of the Riverview Cemetery Association Board.
His wife, Ann Louise Stewart Kerr Humphreys, survives at home. The couple married June 1, 1980.
There is a daughter, Paula Humphreys Land, and her husband Richard, of St. Jo, Texas; along with two sons, David S. Kerr, and his wife Victoria of Ellicott City, Md., and James R. Kerr, and his wife Marguerite of Medina.
Other survivors include six grandchildren: Catherine Gay, and her husband Matthew, Kenton Hutcherson, Allison Land, Virginia Land, Amy Kerr and Nicholas Kerr; and two great-grandchildren, Taylor and Lauren Gay; one sister, Jane Agriesti, and her husband Carl, of Johnson City, Tenn.; as well as a brother, David Humphreys, and his wife Loretta, of Pittsburgh.
He was preceded in death by a son, Richard D. Humphreys Jr., on July 10, 2009, a sister Marjorie Bright, and a brother Howard Humphreys.
Friends may call Tuesday afternoon and evening at the Dawson Funeral Home where the family will be present from 2-4 and 6-8 p.m. The Rev. Dale Sutton of the First United Methodist Church will conduct a funeral service at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday at the funeral home.
Burial will be at Riverview Cemetery where full military honors will be conducted.
Following the service, family and friends will gather at the Dawson Family Center for further remembrance.
In lieu of flowers, memorial tributes may take the form of contributions in care of the First United Methodist Church, 200 West Fifth Street, East Liverpool, Ohio 43920 or the Beaver Local High School Marine Corps JROTC, 13187 State Route 7, Lisbon, Ohio 44432.
View this obituary and send condolences online at www.dawsonfuneralhome.com
11:55 AM EDT, August 22, 2009
It was an honor for a former soldier from Lackawanna County forty years after his time in Vietnam.
It was a special ceremony at Genetti’s in Wilkes-Barre to honor one man’s heroism.
“The president of the United States of America has awarded the Silver Star to Private First Class Paul J. Wedlock, United States Army. . . ” the loudspeaker sounded on Friday evening.
Congressman Paul Kanjorski, D-Nanticoke, pinned the Silver Star onto Paul Wedlock of Scranton.
In 1969 Wedlock was 19 years old and serving with the U.S. Army in South Vietnam. During one firefight, he crawled across a battlefield to pull his severely wounded commanding officer to safety.
“I don’t feel like I’m a hero, no not at all, not at all, it’s just one of the things we do that’s our job being in infantry,” PFC Wedlock said of his bravery.
I was thinking about military women the other day. Past and present. They have made great strides since they were first allowed to serve openly (besides being nurses) during World War II. I say openly because when our country was founded, a woman by the name of Deborah Sampson served in disguise as a man for 3 years, taking the fight to the British. She even did surgery on herself to remove a musket ball from her own thigh.
“At a field hospital a French doctor bound up the head wound, but was not advised of the thigh injury. When the doctor began to attend another wounded soldier, Deborah limped out of the hospital, and later, with iron nerve, using her knife, managed to extract the musket ball in her thigh. She was some time recovering from her wounds until she was able to rejoin her company.“
And because she was thought to be a man, she served in the Light Infantry. She was a grunt.
Officially though, women couldn’t serve outside of nursing until the WAAC was formed in 1942 (later to be known as WAC). They were “auxiliary.” That word brings to mind typing and fetching coffee. But they were so much more. According to this article, they landed at Normandy a few weeks after the initial invasion. They’ve “been there, done that.”
Other branches opened up and there were WAVEs and WASPs. Women who served with distinction. One thing I discovered was that a handful of women in the WASPs towed target planes for anti-aircraft live fire practice. Stop and wrap your mind around that concept for a moment. Would you tow a plane to get shot at? Seriously?? Another little known fact is that the women who died during this time were not afforded the honor of a flag draped casket or even having the military pay to return their remains. That was left up to family and friends. They weren’t real military, I suppose.
And guess what…women have been receiving awards like the Medal of Honor and the Silver Star going back to the Civil War. Yes, they have served with distinction for all these years, through war after war, battle after battle. Laying down their lives alongside the men.
So next time you see a woman in uniform, think back to this blog post. Think of Lori Piestewa and Leigh Ann Hester or Monica Brown, who both were awarded Silver Stars, SGT Hester in Iraq and SPC Brown in Afghanistan. Think of the WAACs and WASPs and all the others who went before. Thank them for their outstanding service to our nation, going back to the very founding of it.
Oh, and that picture above…the tall gangly woman on the left….that would be Goldie Caroline Hundertmark. She and I share the same middle name. I know this why and how? Because she’s my grandmother and I’m damn proud of her and her service to the United States of America.
