Seventy Years Ago - February 23, 1945

[Phineas Bluster]

Deleted

[fatnhappy]

Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori.
Saepius Exertus, Semper Fidelis, Frater Infinitas.

[DIRT Farmer]

Twenty years after it happened I studied it in highschool.
Has it really been that long.

[cobroller]

my brother was there when it was returned to the Japanese in 1968.

[DoubleAdobe]

my brother was there when it was returned to the Japanese in 1968.

That had to have been bitter-sweet, or maybe just bitter.

[wv109323]

Bless that that gave us our freedom.
I read that the photographer that did the filming of the second flag raising was KIA just a few days after filming the event. It was not until some time later that the film was discovered and developed. The photographer volunteered to fight with the men on the front line, instead of his duties as a photographer.

[Plate plinker]

Sounds like he was a Heck of a real man. Heard he was killed also but didn't know that part of the story. Often wonder where all the real men are anymore. I feel I am surrounded by clowns.

[fatnhappy]

Joe rosenthal died in 2006

[paul h]

My uncle was one of the many thousands of marines that never returned from Iwo Jima.

[wv109323]

I stand corrected on my earlier post. The still photograph of the second flag raising was by Joe Rosenthal. It is his picture that is iconic. He passed in 2006. The event was filmed (motion picture) by Bill Genaust. Rosenthal and Genaust photographed and filmed the flag raising from the same vantage point. Genaust was KIA 9 days after the flag raising.
The first flag raising was around 10:20 am and was photographed by Lou Lowery. History says that the first flag was small in size and the Marines decided to raise a larger size flag. The second flag was raised around 12:00 noon.

[jaystuw]

The camera man, Bill Genaust , was felled inside the mouth of a cave. The cave proved to be impervious to frontal assault and was finally sealed with explosives. His body could not be recovered and is entombed where he fell.

Several modern attempts to find the cave have been fruitless. Jay

[jaystuw]

Also, from what I understand, Bill Genaust was in fact killed while in the role of marine infantryman. Jay

[45workhorse]

Before I retired, I was privileged to visit Iwo Jim. It was an eerie feeling place, knowing the history.

[MtGun44]

My nephew was a latter day Marine, lived the motto and
like so many before him, did not survive his war, not WW2.

Brave men all, they have my profound respect, Marines
are the real deal.

[fatnhappy]

Rene Gagnon's Ka-Bar goes up for auction tomorrow (February 26, 2015).

PB

umm, yeah....... No chance of fraud there.