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Lee Marvin seved as a Marine in the South Pacific during WWII. He saw extensive action and was wounded at Pelilu ... Lee Marvin never set foot on Iwo Jima. This story circulates on the internet from time to time ... there is no truth to it, aside from the fact Lee Marvin is buried at Arlington.

Huh, my father-in-law saw duty at Pelileu...he was a Marine fighter pilot, flew F4U Corsiars....He was one of the Marines who was involved in the Battle of Bloody Nose Ridge....a real mess. We controlled the take off part of the runway and the Japanese the other end of the runway....he'd land and jam the brakes turn around quickly...load a bomb and take off dropping the bomb just at the end of the runway and up the hillside, where the Japanese had a big gun hidden in a cave. It was really hairy and one of the few things he ever talked about. Very calmly described how the Marines that day were really taking it on the chin....Those men and the men fighting today are not much different. They are simply magnificent people doing a difficult job. My father-in-law dies three years ago and I miss his quiet, sureness......something I am certain he learned in the war and in the Marines....