Free Republic

“I wrote a story about it.” It is a phrase Jack Beritzhoff says a lot. And when you consider the San Rafael resident, and former Merchant Mariner, is about to celebrate his 97th birthday, that adds up to a lot of stories. In fact, Beritzhoff compiled many of his favorite one into a book he published in 2012: Sail Away, Journeys Of A Merchant Seaman. Still, there is one story he is most eager to share these days, about an oversight of history he would like to see corrected. “I think it’s an injustice,” said Beritzhoff. Beritzhoff is referring to...

This color footage of the Japanese surrender ceremony on board the battleship USS Missouri (BB-63) on 2 September 1945, was filmed by Commander George F. Kosco. In 2010, the Kosco family had the film restored, and the footage is presented now for viewing by the public. Source: Naval History and Heritage Command, Photographic Section. (Note: The original footage is silent. The 2010 restoration of the film by the Kosco family includes overdubbed music by the United States Navy Band, which has been removed to avoid possible YouTube copyright violations).

Lt. Col. James N. Methven, USAF (Ret.) recalls an encounter with Japanese soldiers who are unaware World War II has ended.

Mel Gibson is returning to his Australian roots to direct his first film in a decade, the true story of a conscientious objector who saved 75 men during the Battle of Okinawa in World War II.

With the hint of a smile, Simone Segouin stares nonchalantly into the camera with a submachine gun slung over her shoulder. It is a startling image of the young French freedom fighter – and it would soon become iconic. It comes from a colour film, shot by Hollywood director George Stevens in August 1944. It immortalises an 18-year-old Simone shortly after she helped capture 25 German soldiers in her home village of Thivars, south west of Paris. The defiant teenager gazes back at the lens, dressed in blue shorts, a black-and-white top with a red sash and a khaki cap,...

'Significant find' confirmed in Poland as speculation builds it could be lost Nazi train carrying gold - follow latest updates. SNIP--- 23.02 At a press conference Zygmunt Nowaczyk, deputy mayor of Walbrzych, said “the discovery was in the town’s district”. The Polish state treasure and culture ministry have been informed in case the find contained anything of value, Matthew Day reports. SNIP-- All we know for sure so far from today's developments is a press officer in the Polish town confirming a military train has been found and the Walbrzych's deputy mayor saying there was "formal information".

Treasure hunters have searched for it since the end of World War II, but it may have never existed in the first placeTw wo treasure hunters are claiming they have discovered a train full of Nazi gold and jewels hidden under a mountain in Poland. As much as it sounds like a movie plot, the lost train is a bit of a local legend around the city of Wroclaw. The story goes that towards the end of World War II, as the Soviet army marched on eastern Germany, a Nazi train loaded with gold, valuable art and jewels disappeared into...

Theirs is the previously untold Australian side of the 'The Great Escape' - best mates who surfed together, flew RAF missions together and finally tunnelled out of Stalag Luft III prison camp together in the most daring breakout of the Second World War. The brief flight to freedom by 76 prisoners of war, in which Australians John Williams and Rusty Kierath played a pivotal part, was immortalised by Hollywood - although the film largely glossed over a key part played in the daring ploy by Australian captives. Now there's a book that reveals details of their role and events that...

Japan's role in World War II gets a whole new perspective in this consisting entirely of full color footage, including color films from Japan that were recently discovered. As the visuals of the world war take on a new vivid immediateness, the story of the rise of the militarists in Japan is told through the personal writings of the Japanese themselves. From the first overconfident tastes of victory, to the devastating losses that led to an unthinkable defeat amidst the ruins, the Pacific Theater of World War II is told through the Japanese's eyes. It was assumed no color films...

LITTLE ROCK -- As the country observed the 70th anniversary of V-J Day, a new generation may have to be reminded what V-J stands for -- Victory Over Japan -- and all it took. The years of personal sacrifices and national unity, the courage and perseverance ... all the costs of war to the living and the dead. Arkansas's governor, Asa Hutchinson, presided over this year's observance of the anniversary at the state Capitol, and looked back at a different time when war united instead of dividing us: "That is what was unique about World War II," the governor told...

Wayne Edward Carr, of San Diego’s Imperial Beach community, served 34 years in the U.S. NavyA San Diego-based U.S. Navy veteran celebrated his 100th birthday Thursday and, without a hint of hesitation, said his favorite memory of his long life will always be the day he married his wife. “I was only married once, you know,” centenarian Wayne Edward Carr told NBC 7 proudly, remembering his wedding day. Carr, who still has a sharp sense of humor, then joked that he got arrested on his wedding day. “I was charged with theft for robbing the cradle,” the Imperial Beach resident...

On Friday, August 14, Arizona Senator John McCain was confronted several times by Native activists and elders while visiting the Navajo Nation. McCain and Arizona Governor Doug Ducey were meeting with the Navajo at the Navajo Nation Museum in Window Rock for an event honoring the Navajo Code Talkers of World War 2. The governor and senator were also meeting with local Navajo officials to discuss their concerns about a new proposal regarding the Little Colorado River rights. Navajo Nation President Russell Begay told the Navajo Times that water was going to be a part of the talks.

LONDON, United Kingdom – Today HM The Queen attended a memorial service in central London to mark the 70th anniversary of victory over Japan in World War II. She was guest of honor despite the media having uncovered a plot to blow up the event and kill her. Her attendance at St Martin-In-The-Field church was in sharp contrast to President Barack Obama who did not appear to be commemorating American efforts to defeat the Japanese. Instead he chose to release a list of his favorite songs on the music website Spotify. A move that is likely be seen as disrespectful...

This new amazon show called 'The Man in the High Castle' explores what would have happened if the Allies had lost World War II. It's based on a Philip K. Dick novel from 1962. The hour-long drama stars Alexa Davalos (Mob City), Luke Kleintank (Pretty Little Liars), Rupert Evans (The Village), Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa (Mortal Kombat Legacy), and Rufus Sewell (Eleventh Hour). Ridley Scott is Executive Producer. It streams on Amazon prime this fall.

On July 16, 1945, the United States Army detonated the world’s first nuclear weapon in New Mexico’s Jornada del Muerto desert. The test, code-named “Trinity,” was a success, unleashing an explosion with the energy of about 20 kilotons of TNT and beginning the nuclear age. Since then, nearly 2,000 nuclear tests have been performed. Most of these took place during the 1960s and 1970s. When the technology was new, tests were frequent and often spectacular, and they led to the development of newer, more deadly weapons. Since the 1990s, there have been efforts to limit the testing of nuclear weapons,...

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A New Zealander who was the last surviving pilot from the specialized World War II "Dambuster" mission targeting German infrastructure died Tuesday. Les Munro was 96...

Published on Aug 23, 2013 Freely downloadable at the Internet Archive, where I first uploaded it. "On overseas activities of the Coast Guard in World War II. Includes views of the amphibious invasions of Guadalcanal, North Africa, Anzio, Tarawa, Saipan, Luzon, Iwo Jima, Okinawa, Normandy, and South France. Cutters shoot down an airplane, patrol a Persian port, deliver supplies and men to Greenland, release depth charges, and sink a German boat. Coast Guardsmen place buoys in a port, load supplies on B-24 plane, load wounded Marines aboard transports off Tarawa, and rescue sailors of ships sunk by Japanese suicide planes...

Invading the North American mainland can be safely left in the realm of bad Hollywood films. And that's even today, with larger ships, jet cargo aircraft, and more people. While it makes for a great strategy, in the end, it's just a nonstarter. Why? The Germans had no forward base in the New World. If they had seized Iceland, any of the French protectorates in the Caribbean, or northern South America, then an invasion, while still a stretch, could have been conceivable. Without forward bases to deploy to and from, an invasion isn't going to happen.

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LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Saying they felt a "deep sense of ethical responsibility for a past tragedy," executives from a major Japanese corporation gave an unprecedented apology Sunday to a 94-year-old U.S. prisoner of war for using American POWs for forced labor during World War II.At the solemn ceremony hosted by the Museum of Tolerance at the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles, James Murphy of Santa Maria, California, accepted the apology he had sought for 70 years on behalf of U.S. POWs from executives of Mitsubishi Materials Corp.