Posted on 09/12/2013 11:19:27 AM PDT by jmaroneps37
Fully sixteen years after the State of Texas began honoring its military heroes with the Texas Legislative Medal of Honor, the most decorated combat soldier of World War II was finally recognized by Governor Rick Perry and the Texas legislature.
Born in the Lone Star State in 1924, the 5’6″, 130lb Audie Leon Murphy was told he was too small to make it in the Navy or as a United States Marine. So the baby-faced, underage Texan enlisted in the Army and in early 1942 was shipped to North Africa as part of the Third Infantry Division.
And in 3 years of war, Audie Murphy performed feats of bravery unequaled by any American soldier.
On January 26th, 1945, then Lieutenant Murphy was one of just 19 soldiers remaining from a company of 128 men. He had been ordered to hold the important Colmar Pocket area near the village of Holtzwihr in France.
Faced by an approaching enemy force of 3 infantry support companies and 6 heavy Tiger tanks, Murphy ordered his men well back into a defensive position while he climbed behind the 50 cal machine gun mounted on a burning M-10 Tank Destroyer.
Though the M-10 threatened to explode at any moment, for a full hour Murphy called down a withering artillery barrage on the German position using his OWN map coordinates to provide firing instructions. When one of the artillery crew asked how close the enemy were to his position, Murphy is said to have responded, “Hang on the line and I’ll let you talk to one of the bastards.”
After 60 minutes, so many German soldiers had been killed by American artillery and Murphy’s 50 caliber gun that the Tigers were forced to withdraw due to the critical loss of ground support.
(Excerpt) Read more at coachisright.com ...
I read his biography “To Hell and Back.” I highly recommend it.
Great guy - had a good movie career. And pretty handsome, too.
America’s forgotten hero’s. Or should I say “ignored” - the media today doesn’t like the word “Hero” ....
I did too, the movie is great and he stars in it.
“And in 3 years of war, Audie Murphy performed feats of bravery unequaled by any American soldier.”
I can’t imagine Audie Murphy agreeing with that statement. And when did Texas not honor him? He was a media darling from the get-go, and it made him really uncomfortable. Honors were heaped on him, including the MoH. Texans were justly proud of their native son.
True heroes usually are like that.
For as long as I can remember I have been struck but the similarities between childhoods of Lt. Audie Murphy and Sgt. Alvin York. Both backbreaking poor. Both had to learn to shoot to feed their families.
And the huge differences. One tried to avoid military service and the other was not wanted by the military.
I cried when each died.
US troops (Operation Torch) didn't arrive in North Africa until November of 1942. Early 1942?
Yup. Awesome. One tough man for sure. He should have been honored a long time ago. Outside the medals he earned of course. Someone a kid could look up to instead of the likes of snoop lion, j z or our current COOTUS the lyin’ king.
I have visited the Audie Murphy/American Cotton Museum in
Greenville, TX and the Texas Heritage Museum at Hill College in Hillsboro, TX. The Greenville museum has exhibits about his movie career and the Hillsboro museum has his gun collection.
http://www.civilwaralbum.com/misc16/txheritage1.htm
http://www.lone-star.net/mall/txtrails/hillsboro.htm
Yes, people don’t realize that he actually became a very successful actor, with more than 20 years in movies.
Murphy, "Hang on! I'll let you talk to 'em!"
Third Infantry Division was one hell of an outfit, suffering the highest casualty rate of any division in the war. They saw action in North Africa, Sicily, Italy (including Salerno and Anzio), Southern France, and across Germany.
Like my Dad (45th ID), this bit about North Africa is misleading. Operation Torch was from 8 November 1942 to mid-May 1943 at which time the battle had moved east to Tunis.
The 3rd was there (Algeria) to train and stage for Operation Husky, the invasion of Sicily in July 1943. In January 1943, Murphy was processed through Camp Kilmer, New Jersey, and he arrived at Casablanca, in French Morocco on February 20. From Don Graham's "No Name on the Bullet" - 1989.
Brought to Hollywood by James Cagney. Went right to work for the great filmmaker John Huston who called Murphy a “killer angel.”
Murphy grew up in the worst poverty imaginable. I actually believe he was born in an abandoned railroad car, if I remember correctly.
Not to take anything away from Audie Murphy, I’ll bet there were many, many heroes during WWII who went unrecognized do to conditions at the time...
To me, they were all heroes...(Except for maybe an uncle of mine who claimed he drove his tank into Russia and partied there for two weeks...)
The movie was filmed at Ft. Lewis, WA. It served as North Africa, Italy, and Southern France for the battle scenes. The assault on the Italian farm house was very realistic. It was so realistic that several of the actors experienced PTSD episodes (including Audie Murphy).
In realty, Murphy won his Medal of Honor while fighting from a burning M10 tank destroyer. The movie could not locate any M10 vehicles to use and so the M4 Sherman tank was substituted. At the time (10 years after war’s end), the M4 was nearly out of Army service and the production company managed to scrounge two for the battle scene. The “Germans” used Korean War-era M41 tanks.
Murphy's private life was beset by undiagnosed PTSD. He habitually slept with a loaded .45 under his pillow. He had violent nightmares and it led to the break up of his first marriage [1949-1952]. His second marriage was more permanent and lasted until his untimely death in 1971 (small plane crash). Murphy and his wife Pamela had two sons.
After her husband died, Pamela Murphy was obligated to pay his debts. She moved into a small apartment and got a clerk position at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Los Angeles, where she remained employed for 35 years. In 1975, a court awarded Murphy's widow and two children $2.5 million in damages due to plane crash.
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