COMBAT STORIES FROM World War II

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Showing : WWII Videos

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  Frank Pomroy - Marines +35 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  After recuperating for a while in Australia, Frank Pomroy's next engagement was at Cape Gloucester. There was a new platoon leader who was a mean Warrant Officer with little respect from the men. The battle kicked off when Frank woke him up because he heard the Japanese setting up in front of his position. Part 1 of 2. (Second interview)

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  Harold Barber - Marines +14 Total Videos

  7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  He didn't even notice that he'd been hit. A piece of shrapnel from a Japanese artillery shell found Harold Barber's leg but he kept right on fighting because of the adrenaline. The Corpsman bandaged him and he was right back in the battle for Peleliu. The Navy was able to stay and take part in the fight unlike when he was on Guadalcanal.

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  B.E. Vaughan - Navy +9 Total Videos

  USS O'Brien (DD-725)

  After a nerve-wracking mission to bomb Tokyo and a typhoon, B.E. Vaughan and the destroyer O'Brien suffered a second kamikaze attack which killed all three of his hometown pals who served with him on board. Then, began the grim task of collecting the personal belongings of the dead and preparing them for burial at sea.

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  Frank Pomroy - Marines +35 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  Frank Pomroy prepared his last stand. He had a bayonet wound and three machine gun bullets in his leg but he was still ready to fight. He lined up his hand grenades on the coral ridge in front of him and waited. At daybreak he heard Japanese voices coming. Part 4 of 4. (Second interview)

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  Don Scott - Army Air Corps +8 Total Videos

  560th Squadron, 388th Bomb Group, 8th Air Force

  Two engines were out, a third smoking, and they were were losing airspeed and altitude, but they were flying level and pointed home. Then time ran out for the B-17 and Don Scott had to slip down the hatch into the slipstream. Part 2 of 3.

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  Ed Harrell - Marines +12 Total Videos

  USS Indianapolis

  Ed Harrell describes in detail the sinking of the USS Indianapolis from Japanese torpedoes, which left nearly 900 Sailors and Marines in shark-infested Pacific waters. Part 1 of 4.

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  Frank Pomroy - Marines +35 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  Frank Pomroy was late for the battle on Guadalcanal so he volunteered for a lot of patrols. He and a pal went on a lot of them, then they decided to take it easy for a day. That day turned out to be anything but easy. (Second interview)

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  LtGen Lawrence Snowden - Marines +16 Total Videos

  23rd Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division

  The first operation for the 4th Division was the landing on Roi-Namur. Lawrence Snowden remembers that, though it was an easy victory, valuable combat experience and important lessons were imparted on the Marines.

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  Carl Beck - Army +12 Total Videos

  501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division

  In the middle of the night, thousands of paratroopers loaded into C-47's for the crossing into Normandy. Carl Beck was just a teenager but he was ready. His plane was hit by flak when it neared the drop zone and the jump was rushed, resulting in scattered men and equipment. Part 1 of 2.

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  Frank Pomroy - Marines +35 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  It was an old tub the Marines boarded for the trip to the Pacific. In New Zealand they unpacked the ship and repacked it for combat though they didn't know yet where it would be. Frank Pomroy recalls that the locals were ready to party. (Second interview)

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  Clyde Burnette - Army Air Corps +13 Total Videos

  713th Squadron, 448th Bomb Group, 8th Air Force

  It was their third mission over Berlin and they were heading home. Four German fighters pounced on the B-24 and it was engulfed in flame and going down. Clyde Burnette fought for consciousness as the other crew in the back of the plane bailed out. He woke in free fall with no idea how he had made it out, and soon he was in German custody. Everyone made it out of the plane except George "Danny" Daneau, the nose turret gunner, who went down with the aircraft.

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  Frank Pomroy - Marines +35 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  Frank Pomroy was painting his sister's house when someone drove up and said Pearl Harbor had been attacked. He and another seventeen year old boy hitchhiked to the recruiter who told them they were too young. A ruse was required.(Second interview)

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  Harold Barber - Marines +14 Total Videos

  7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  Once the airfield on Peleliu was secured, US aircraft could land and take on fuel and ammunition to take part in the battle for the high ground. Harold Barber recalls that some noncoms were issued shotguns to resist any Banzai charges but the Japanese didn't use that tactic there.

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  Frank Pomroy - Marines +35 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  Frank Pomroy remained on the transport while his unit made the unopposed landing on Guadalcanal. He was helping unload the weapons and supplies but, before they could get much off the ship, a Japanese air raid bore down on them. Part 1 of 2. (Second interview)

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  Harold Barber - Marines +14 Total Videos

  7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  The Italian Marines were a breed of their own. Harold Barber describes how they would receive food from home with a surprise inside. He also recalls that age old soldier's tradition, coming up with some alcohol in a war zone.

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  Frank Pomroy - Marines +35 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  Frank Pomroy and his fellow Marines were so tired and wracked with malaria that, when they shipped out, they were unable to climb the cargo net. Frank has a novel theory that there were three fronts in the war, the German Front, the Japanese Front and the Douglas MacArthur Front. (Second interview)

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  Harold Barber - Marines +14 Total Videos

  7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  Harold Barber was only fifteen years old when he enlisted in the Marines with the help of his mother. At Parris Island, the dentist deduced that he was not old enough to be there but he didn't blow the whistle. Boot camp was tough but there was a good reason for that.

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  Frank Pomroy - Marines +35 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  Chesty Puller was a legendary Marine leader. Frank Pomroy describes his encounters with the man, from getting caught fermenting Jungle Juice to holding court at reunions. (Second interview)

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  Nollie Carpenter - Army +11 Total Videos

  8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division

  Nollie Carpenter's platoon was assigned a Filipino guide for their patrols. One day, he took Nollie to his home for a meal and, guess what? He had sisters!

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  Harold Barber - Marines +14 Total Videos

  7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  After a short time on a smaller island, Harold Barber joined the rest of the 1st Marine Division on Guadalcanal. The initial invasion had been largely unopposed but the Japanese were pouring back in and their Navy relentlessly shelled American positions.

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  Frank Pomroy - Marines +35 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  It was called the Battle of Coffin Corner because of all the Japanese dead left in the aftermath. Frank Pomroy recalls how a friend of his died after the battle and how he actually made friends with a couple of Japanese prisoners. Part 2 of 2. (Second interview)

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  Harold Barber - Marines +14 Total Videos

  7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  Harold Barber was baptized three times, twice on his way to battle and then again after he was married. His homecoming from the Pacific was memorable as he was greeted by crowds on the West Coast.

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  Frank Pomroy - Marines +35 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  The Japanese had another battalion on the way but they attacked the Marines at Tenaru River without waiting for them. They should have waited. Frank Pomroy was manning a 37mm gun and that was a big reason that Banzai charge after Banzai charge failed. (Second interview)

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  Harold Barber - Marines +14 Total Videos

  7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  Harold Barber was lucky during the landing at Cape Gloucester. There was no enemy fire but that didn't last. It was a tough fight and movement was difficult because of the terrain. His friend George White was wounded in the fierce battle for Hill 660. Part 1 of 2.

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  Frank Pomroy - Marines +35 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  In combat, you have tunnel vision. Frank Pomroy experienced that when he faced waves of Banzai charges on Guadalcanal. They were intended to frighten you enough that you turned and ran but it didn't work on the young Marines. (Second interview)

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  Harold Barber - Marines +14 Total Videos

  7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  When Harold Barber saw combat on Guadalcanal, he became very appreciative of his thorough Marine training in firing and movement. He was never really scared but he was hungry and thirsty. When the Army's Americal Division joined the battle, their new M-1 rifles held more bullets per clip and this confused the Japanese who had been up against the Springfield rifle used by the Marines.

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  Frank Pomroy - Marines +35 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  He was on the 37mm gun and he only had 55 rounds to last the night. Frank Pomroy chose his targets carefully and the grapeshot he was firing was really an anti-tank weapon mowing down the charging enemy. Finally the Banzai attacks ended. This was the first defeat for the Japanese in the Pacific. (First interview)

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  Frank Pomroy - Marines +35 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  In an artillery barrage, if you're out in the open, you have to lay flat. Frank Pomroy tried to tell his friend that but the man was on his knees and got hit with shrapnel. This battle on Peleliu was the end of the line for a lot of Marines but not Frank. He joined in a patrol hastily organized by a lieutenant he encountered and they set out through a swamp. Part 3 of 4. (Second interview)

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  Frank Pomroy - Marines +35 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  During the battle on Peleliu, Frank Pomroy encountered a group of Marines who asked him if he knew how to operate a flamethrower. Why yes, I do. (Second interview)

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  Frank Pomroy - Marines +35 Total Videos

  2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

  Frank Pomroy was on a raft with another Marine after their troop transport was consumed by fire. They were fortunately rescued by a US destroyer just in time to witness the Battle of Savo island, a disastrous defeat for the US Navy. Part 2 of 2. (First interview)