Sands of Iwo Jima is a 1949 war film starring John Wayne that follows a group of United States Marines from training to the Battle of Iwo Jima during World War II. The film, which also features John Agar, Adele Mara and Forrest Tucker, was written by Harry Brown and James Edward Grant, and directed by Allan Dwan. The picture was a Republic Pictures production.
Tarawa is an atoll and the capital of the Republic of Kiribati, in the Micronesia region of the central Pacific Ocean. It comprises North Tarawa, which has 6,629 inhabitants and much in common with other more remote islands of the Gilberts group, and South Tarawa, which has 56,388 inhabitants as of 2015, half of the country's total population. The atoll was the site of the Battle of Tarawa during World War II.
The 2nd Marine Division is a division of the United States Marine Corps, which forms the ground combat element of the II Marine Expeditionary Force. The division is based at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina and headquartered at Julian C. Smith Hall.
James Roosevelt II was an American businessman, Marine, activist, and Democratic Party politician. The eldest son of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt, he served as an official Secretary to the President for his father and was later elected to the United States House of Representatives representing California, serving 5 terms from 1955 to 1965. He received the Navy Cross while serving as a Marine Corps officer during World War II.
William Deane Hawkins was a United States Marine Corps officer who was posthumously awarded the United States' highest military honor – the Medal of Honor – for heroic actions and sacrifice of life during the Battle of Tarawa in World War II.
The Battle of Midway is a 1942 American short documentary film directed by John Ford. It is a montage of color footage of the Battle of Midway with voice overs of various narrators, including Johnny Governali, Donald Crisp, Henry Fonda, and Jane Darwell.
To the Shores of Iwo Jima is a 1945 Kodachrome color short war film produced by the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps. It documents the Battle of Iwo Jima, and was the first time that American audiences saw in color the footage of the famous flag raising on Iwo Jima.
Marine Fighter Squadron 113 (VMF-113) was a fighter squadron of the United States Marine Corps during World War II and in the Marine Forces Reserve until 1965. Known as the "Whistling Devils", the squadron participated in aerial combat over the Marshall Islands in 1944 and took part in the Battle of Okinawa in 1945. It was decommissioned on April 30, 1947 following the end of World War II but was reactivated in the Reserves a few years later only to be deactivated for the last time in 1965.
Marine All-Weather Fighter Squadron 114 was a squadron of the United States Marine Corps that was originally commissioned during World War II. Nicknamed the “Death Dealers”, the squadron saw the most action during the war providing close air support during the Battle of Peleliu. The squadron remained on active duty until being decommissioned in 1963.
Marine Aviation and Training Support Group 21 (MATSG-21) is a United States Marine Corps aviation training group that was originally established in 1922 as the 2nd Aviation Group. During World War II the unit was known as Marine Aircraft Group 21 (MAG-21). Squadrons from MAG-21 fought in many of the opening battles of the war to include the Battle of Wake Island, Battle of Midway and as part of the Cactus Air Force during the Battle of Guadalcanal The group was deactivated following the end of the war and was not reactivated until 2000 when the Marine Aviation Detachment at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida was renamed MATSG-21. The core of the MATSG personnel is derived from 175 officer instructors and 550 student naval aviators/naval flight officers.
The Fighting Lady is a 1944 documentary film directed by Edward Steichen, produced by the U.S. Navy and narrated by Lt. Robert Taylor USNR. It is not to be confused with the 1954 war drama Men of the Fighting Lady, starring Van Johnson.
The National Board of Review Award for Best Documentary Feature is one of the annual awards given to the producer of the film by the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures.
Beyond the Line of Duty is a 1942 American short propaganda film, directed by Lewis Seiler. The documentary film reenacted the life and career of United States Army Air Corps Captain Hewitt T. "Shorty" Wheless.
William Homer Genaust was a United States Marine Corps sergeant who was missing in action during the battle of Iwo Jima while serving as a war photographer in World War II. He is best known for filming the second U.S. flag-raising on top of Mount Suribachi on February 23, 1945, which was immortalized in Joe Rosenthal's famous photograph Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima. Genaust operated a then-modern and lightweight 16 millimeter motion picture camera which used 50-foot color film cassettes. His motion picture of the flag-raising became one of the best-known film clips of the war, and documents the event famously depicted in the Marine Corps War Memorial in Arlington, Virginia. Genaust was reportedly killed in action nine days later, and his remains have not been recovered.
War Department Report is a 1943 American documentary film directed by Carl Marzani. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.
Robert Lee Sherrod was an American journalist, editor and writer. He was a war correspondent for Time and Life magazines, covering combat from World War II to the Vietnam War. During World War II, embedded with the United States Marine Corps, he covered the battles at Attu, Tarawa, Saipan, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. He also authored five books on World War II, including Tarawa: The Story of a Battle (1944) and the definitive History of Marine Corps Aviation in World War II (1952). He was an editor of Time during World War II and later editor of The Saturday Evening Post, then vice-president of Curtis Publishing Company.
World War II in HD is a History Channel television series that chronicles the hardships of World War II, using rare films shot in color never seen on television before. The episodes premiered on five consecutive days in mid-November 2009, with two episodes per day. The series is narrated by Gary Sinise and was produced by Lou Reda Productions in Easton, Pennsylvania.
Norman Thomas Hatch was a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps who filmed much of the combat footage used in the documentary film With the Marines at Tarawa.
Assault Air Warning Squadrons were United States Marine Corps aviation command and control units formed during World War II to provide early warning, aerial surveillance, and ground controlled interception during the early phases of amphibious landing. These squadrons were supposed to be fielded lightweight radars and control center gear in order to operate for a limited duration at the beginning of any operation until larger air warning squadrons came ashore. Four of these squadrons were commissioned during the war with one, AWS(AT)-5, taking part in the Battle of Saipan. All four squadrons were decommissioned on November 10, 1944 because the Marine Corps was unable to field the required mobile radars. The "first in" capability that the Assault Air Warning Squadrons were supposed to provide was transferred to the Early Warning Teams that were added to the tables of organization for the regular air warning squadrons.
