Big A Loc: Mesa, Arizona

New topic - This photo I'm sure many of you will recognize from
movie "Sands of Iwo Jima" ! How many of our vets (or seniors) can name the figures in the photo ?

EasternOZ Loc: Kansas City Metro

3rd from the left the Duke?

Big A Loc: Mesa, Arizona

Yeah, but name the other three !
Hint: they're part of a famous statue in D.C. !

plumbob Loc: New Windsor Maryland

Faces very familiar but names not coming to mind

audigger53 Loc: Severn, MD

Far Left is Ira Hayes, Pima Indian from Arizona. The other 2 are supposed to be the other 2 Flag raisers still alive at the time of the movie of the 5 that raised the Flag.

audigger53 Loc: Severn, MD

Ira hays was unset that they gave him the Medal of Honor. He felt that others had deserved it more. So when he got back home he drank. He passed out drunk and drowned in a small puddle of water on the Pima Indian Reservation. Johnny Cash made a song about him. The reservation was about 10 miles from where I went to High School in Florence, Arizona. The Medal was given to them more for Politics. Not saving they were NOT Hero's, they were. They just didn't think that they deserved it as much as their live and dead buddies at Iwo Jima. Some of the bloodiest fighting in the War. Lots of hand to hand fighting, both day and night. Now days it would be called PTSD.
After WWII a law was passed in the 50's that when any Medal of Honor was pawned, the Pawn Shop Had to call the closest military base. The base would then go to the Pawn Shop and buy back the Medal and take it back to the man that Pawned it.
The Government was shamed into doing that, as people would buy them from the Pawn shop and try and say they "Won it". They also started a pension for the men that had won it. Most of them drank or did drugs to try and forget all they had done to earn it and the friends that did more and didn't get it. PTSD
So the next question is how long did it take for the US to start to believe about PTSD ?
Sorry to take so long on this, but it has bothered me my whole life. Kipling said it best with Tommy.

I went into a theatre as sober as could be,

They gave a drunk civilian room, but ‘adn’t none for me;

They sent me to the gallery or round the music-‘alls,

But when it comes to fightin’, Lord! they’ll shove me in the stalls!

For it’s Tommy this, an’ Tommy that, an’ “Tommy, wait outside”;

But it’s “Special train for Atkins” when the trooper’s on the tide,

The troopship’s on the tide, my boys, the troopship’s on the tide,

O it’s “Special train for Atkins” when the trooper’s on the tide.

plumbob Loc: New Windsor Maryland

Thanks Au, very interesting and actually never knew that.

Spiritof27 Loc: Lincoln, CA

Clint Eastwood's film "Flags of Our Fathers" addresses most of that. If you're not familiar with it, check it out.

Big A Loc: Mesa, Arizona

Since you seem to be the only response, albeit well-versed on
the matter, I'm going to 'spill the beans' ! You are, of course, right about Ira Hayes, plus the fact
that the first movie made on this subject was mostly a biopic that came out around 1961 about
him called 'The Outsider,'
starring Tony Curtis ! In the left rear of the photo, between him and the 'Duke' is John Bradley,
the Navy corpsman who won several medals of valor for
saving some Marines despite being severely wounded himself from schrapnel ! There is some recent controversy regarding his being mis-identified, and now
also the other Marine in the
photo, René Gagnon ! As of last year (2019), it has been determined that the Marine in Bradley's place in the iconic photo/statue was actually
Harold Shultz, and that the one
in Gagnon's place was
one Harold 'Pie' Keller ! Now it seems that Bradley's son James, who's a co-author of the book
'Flags of Our Fathers' and his
partner are being sued for this
fiasco ! The first flag-raiser mis-
identified was Hank Hansen,
who was mistaken for Harlon Block, the man squatting at the base of the flag in the photo !
Both movies told of Ira Hayes hitch-hiking from Arizona to
Texas to tell Harlon's parents about the mix-up, which was a great relief to his mother who
had steadfastly maintained that
it was her son in the picture, and not Hansen, despite ridicule and critcism from friends and
family !

Spiritof27 Loc: Lincoln, CA

I'm not that sure about my facts, but wasn't there a cover-up of the fact that the "famous" picture that we're all familiar with was actually staged and not taken at the moment of the flag raising? Kinda like that NFL player that was killed in Afghanistan by friendly fire and they tried to cover that up and portray it as an act of the Taliban.

audigger53 Loc: Severn, MD

The Flag was raised twice. But the first time the flag was not big enough and under fire. They had to do it a second time for the photo. Then they were used as an advertising for the selling of War Bonds and getting the people back home again behind the troops and the War. Remember there was still rationing and lots of women working jobs. It may not have been Billions that they needed for the war effort, but they did need money for both fronts. Japan and Germany. Remember politicians lie a lot.

Big A Loc: Mesa, Arizona

There was no cover-up, just
a mix-up ! The FIRST (group) photo with the first (smaller) flag WAS staged; but Rosenthal (the
photographer) catching the
raising of the second (much bigger) flag was strictly
serendipitous on his part, just a prime example of a 'right place,
right time' scenario ! Other screw-ups followed, however; Harlon Block (the Marine squatting at
the base of the flag-pole, back to the camera) as Hank
Hansen ! Now, nearly 75 years later, someone is claiming that John Bradley (the Navy 20-in
corpsman) was actually a
Marine by the name of Harold Shultz, and that René Gagnon
(the Marine who delivered the
new flag) was actually one
Harold Keller ! Why would someone want to stir the pot at this late date ? Who knows ?

audigger53 Loc: Severn, MD

No idea, so many lies about true history. Because the japanese were imbarased about the Declaration of War getting to the White House after the Pearl Harbor attack, the second prong was called back. They were to attack the Panama Canal also to stop us from bringing ships from the East Coast. If it had then we would have had to go around one of the Horns to get to the Pacific.

Gordon Loc: Charleston South Carolina

Enjoyed the history lesson. Thanks

Sitn Loc: Osyka, MS.

Yes, thanks for the history lesson. I a 76 going on 77 years old. I remember being in Germany in the 40’s right after the war. I am still learning by reading and watching movies that were made about the different events that happened. Some are really horrific that not only the Japanese did but the Germans and not to forget that some of the U. S. Guys did as well. War is War. No doubt about it. One problem today is those who want to forget about it is depriving the young folks the knowledge for not repeating it. If you know what happened, you should know what to not do again. I guess I should shut up and slip into the mist of the winter and not be heard. Some might like it better that way as I get carried away with my assumptions of being, aw shit. Mike. Keep quite. You might offend someone that is more knowledgeable than you are.