How accurate was Dog Green From Saving Private Ryan at Omaha.
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 17 ก.ค. 2020
- Join me and lets compare the real Dog Green with the one seen in Saving Private Ryan.
■ History Buffs - / @historybuffs
■ Support me on my Patreon / panzerpicture
■ Or buy me a Coffee on www.buymeacoffee.com/panzerpi...
■ Store: panzerpicture-2.creator-sprin...
■ Information obtained from several sites.
■ Wikipedia
■ tanks-encyclopedia
■ the.shadock.free.fr/Surviving_Panzers
■ preservedtanks
■ pantser.net
■ the.shadock.free.fr/Tanks_in_France
■ Some music is from the TH-cam Audio Library.
■ Music used:
EpidemicSound.com
Copyright fair use notice
All media used in
this video is used for
the purpose of education
under the terms of
fair use.
All footage and images
used belong to their
copyright holders.
Correction on the maps of WN 72 and WN 73, at 6:14 it shows the correct number, later on in the video at 6:33 I re-edited and re-painted my map and applied the wrong number "WN73" this should be 72.
well... if you allow me, I'd like to suggest a review on the Band of Brothers mini-series from HBO
10:24 Lol
Love the video bro, but I don’t like the Nazi sympathizers spewing historical lies in the comment section.
@@rexthedog4 you will always have nazis in the comments.
My grandfather was there her father..he survived to go on to korea..he never spoke of it even after Korea..he was a real to life badass..🦈
My great uncle was there at Omaha...had a foot blown off in the first wave...he's still alive in NYC
Thank you for your comment, your uncle is one of the last still alive from this amazing generation of brave men.
God bless him. Tell him thank you for me.
Can I ask how was he able to survive the first wave?
I honor him
Salute .
My grandpa stormed Normandy, he’s still alive and is going to be 99 next month. Thank you everyone who has left a comment and thumbs up. My grandfather passed away two weeks ago.
I know it’s early but tell him happy b day
As a fellow servicer member please wish him a happy birthday and thank him for his service and sacrifice
Words can’t express my gratitude of thanks to your grandpa and all of those brave men. May we as a nation never forget their service and sacrifice.
I can never repay your grandpa for what he did, all those years ago. Thank you, and God bless him forever.
Happy birthday to him, without knowing your grandpa, I have a lot of respect for him.
My cousin Richard is buried there. 325th GIR, Hq Co. KIA 6/14/44 We visited him in 2019 for the 75th anniversary of the landings. I brought dirt from his home, Buffalo NY and spinkled it onto the grass over where he rests. RIP
I served with 3rd Bn 325th Infantry, 82nd Airborne Division as an Infantryman from 1981-1985.
RIP to your cousin. Thank you for his sacrifice to this country.
What a fitting tribute to your family member.
I’m also from Buffalo New York. May he Rest In Peace.
I was there d-day 2019. Such a warm day and full of poignant memories. I salute the fallen heroes
"The only people who think war is an adventure have never been in one", said my dad as an old man.
A lesson we should teach leftist always calling for revolutions. Revolutions are wars on neighbors in which your homes and streets turn into Utah beaches.
War is hell
"Only the dead have seen the end of war."
"He who wishes for peace, prepare for war."
So very true. my dad told me the same things. He served in Vietnam but I still would fantasize about it as a youngster and then joined the USMC and quickly realized the reality of it all.
Ramadi and Sangin Vet.
@@duewhit310 on Earth.
I was an extra in beach scenes. Great experience. Spent most of that time as a German MG-42 gunner in the main pillbox. It took over 6 weeks to shoot those scenes. Cant imagine being in those beaches for real.
How did you get the role? I would like to have that oportunity one day
@@DaSaintDemon I was a member of the reserve Irish defence forces. So we were already trained in firearms and military tactics. Reserve Irish defence forces took part in Brave Heart, which was filmed in Ireland 2-3 years before S.P.R.
Thats awesome. Well im from Honduras, im far to be in a movie
There was a few lads from Templemore there as well. 9th Battery 3rd FAR. I was a member for a few years as well.
My father was a UN peacekeeper in the Congo.
My father was a combat engineer in the 147th Engineer Battalion, 6th Engineer Special Brigade. He was the only member of his team not killed on Omaha beach. He never talked about his experiences. When Saving Private Ryan came out, I asked him if he planned to see it. "No," he said, "I saw it with the original cast." I later learned from my mother that he'd sneaked out to see the movie. I asked him later if the movie was accurate. He said that's just how it was.
Thank you for your story, your dad was the greatest generation, it's great that he got to see the movie, probably pretty hard to watch for him.
I've watched this movies hundreds times.. Really loved it. And I really appreciate the sacrifice that made by the allied for worlds peace..
I know it's not supposed to be funny, but "I saw it with the original cast" is great.
@@pistonar I think tsmgguy's dad must have been about the coolest old soldier ever.
tsmgguy Your dad was a brave man and a true hero. He could face anything after living through that hell.
That statement at the end has never been so true.
It’s soul crushing and so touching being there in those war memorials
I remember being a child, I was maybe 7 or 8, I went over to France with my grandfather. We did a WW1 and WW2 tour, we stopped at a number of cemeteries, even at such a young age it stuck me how I'd never need to be as brave as these men where because of their sacrifice. It has been a memory that I've kept with me for years, and still get the same feeling as I did all those years ago as a child.
Unless you're Chinese, then its a fun swimming pool
And it doesn't even end at the bravery... another insane aspect is so many of these soldiers were really just kids. There was an interview with a war vet, recently uploaded I think. He mentioned seeing a 17 year old boy on D-Day laying there dying, crying out for his mama but instructions were to leave men behind/alone since the priority was to go back and bring more men to the beach. Heart-breaking stuff.
How true
@@AIKnowYou
People die every day, dude, so chill out.
I'm a French war in Afghanistan vet. I went to the 70th anniversary of D-Day in full dress uniform. Just to thank all the heroes that participated in this battle. One of them, veteran of Pointe du Hoc, in a wheelchair, cried as I insisted on shaking his hand to thank him. I'll remember it for all my life.
I am going to the D day anniversary in 2023, what are the chances I would have the honor of meeting a WWII VET?
The people who maintain the graveyards around Normandy and also Northern France do a very good job, very respectful.
I visited it with my father. The place was very peaceful and as Frenchs we were also moved because the lives of those mens changed our life.
I'll forever be greatful to those remaining in this graveyards and hope I could meet them in Heaven someday
The American cemetery is maintained lovingly by veterans working for the American Battle Monuments
@@johnl3239 and the love does show.
I was deeply affected by a visit with my daughter to the Canadian Cemetery at Beny-sur-Mer. It is beautifully kept and a man in town made sure we'd find it when we got a little lost....they have the reminders of the cost of freedom around them everyday. In a way I wish we were exposed to those reminders more often. Some do not understand or appreciate it.
‘Lafayette, we are here’
My grandfather wouldn't go see the movie. I understood and miss talking with him. He was one of the Rangers that climbed the bluffs on Utah beach
That would have been Point du Hoc. Utah Beach was very flat.
@@melvinbennett444 it was were the Germans had artillery. I remember him telling me about having to climb by rope up a cliff. He said when they got there the guns weren't there but further back than where they were supposed to be.
@@jasonhayden5077 Yep that was Point du Hoc. The Rangers scaled the cliffs with ropes and ladders. Only to get up there and the artillery guns were either gone or never mounted. They did find them down the road, as you said and blew them up.
@@melvinbennett444 I wish I could have gotten more details from him. There's alot of things I would have loved to ask him that I didn't think of when I was younger.
@@jasonhayden5077 I use to work with the VFW and talked with many of the WW2 vets at length about their overseas service. Some were receptive while others were not.
One VFW post i worked with a lot, a lot of the vets were part of Patton's 3rd Army, 2nd Armored Division. The Hell on Wheels Division.
I’m French. I’ve been to Omaha beach several times. And every time : I feel humble when I see the cost of freedom paid by those young men
Thank you.
Thank you, that means allot.
Thank you. My dad was 83rd Infantry, 329th Regiment, survived the hedge rows, Sainteny, Carentan, St. Malo, St. Lo. I visited Omaha Beach about 6 years ago. I spoke with a young docent at the museum. She described some of the battles in Normandy and Brittany, Sainteny being the bloodiest for the 83rd. I said there must have been a lot of civilian casualties. Without skipping a beat, the young woman said, "That's the price of freedom."
Not the 18 year old young men and women I know here in good ol' Alabama.
@DC dude you have no idea what socialism is 🤣
My late Dad was at D Day .He drove a Sherman tank .Tank was hit .Dad was the only one who survived .Bless you dad .Hope you are at peace now x
Is wasn't his time yet, that is why he the only one survived.
Lucky guy he was!
Great Uncle (grandpa's oldest brother) was also a tanker. He drove off the ramp and into Normandy on D+1, with the rest of the heavy armor. They threw a track in the bocage and had to bail out. Months later, their tank was hit and caught fire, and they bailed out again. Both times, the crew made it out clean. He never talked about losing anyone, but he did say that both times, they didn't lose anybody bailing out. But he said that you had to bail out and get away from the tanks. He saw a crew have their tank disabled and take shelter behind it, only for a second shell to hit it and create a giant fireball. He ran over to help the men, but was too late. "Gasoline burns worse than diesel. German tanks never burned up like ours did - whooosh"
He's probably sitting around with everyone else that was on that beach having drinks with all the soldiers from both sides
I can't imagine how traumatizing it would be to be the sole survivor of a tank crew.
I am a British veteran of modern actions and when I saw this film for all that scene of the D-Day landings there was a lump in my throat and a tear in my eye. That was only a small section of the whole thing that was happening at that time, a mere glimpse into the whole horror. People today have forgotten what was given to them by the sacrifice of those brave men.
To quote the Kohima address: 'When You Go Home, Tell Them Of Us And Say,
For Your Tomorrow, We Gave Our Today.'
It is and will always be, to me, the most poignant part of the Remembrance Sunday Parade that I attend every year. Ubique.
Greatly said my friend. Thank you 👍 👍 👍
I'm a desert shield/storm, and OIF/OEF veteran with five desert trips. I was out when this movie was released, saw it in the theater. It sucked me in, I felt like I was there, even checked myself for what was left of the guy who exploded with the sticky bomb on the tank. It wrecked me for weeks and brought back the nightmares I had since I got the PTSD. The military enhanced my PTSD, it did not give it to me. I got it from a rather difficult and dangerous life growing up. My wars were nothing like Pvt Ryan, they were more like Hurt Locker but without the goofy story. The visuals in that one made me feel like it was 130F inside where I was watching it in 65F, I could smell it, feel the sand blowing in my face. Only watched HL once.
I reenlisted back in 2000, and knew I needed to fix some stuff in my head so I could fit in again. I watched about 5 minutes of Pvt Ryan, then ten minutes, and fifteen, flooding myself with it for days then doing something different. Now I can watch it and its no problem, its just a movie for me. My last two deployments were very different from the others, in Kuwait for 9/11, and then living in the Hilton on the waterfront in Kuwait City and getting paid $86 a day to be there in 2004.
Its been a long road getting to the point where I am not constantly on edge, but I still watch everything around me, and live alone in the woods... with a rather large pile of guns and ammo. Movies and video games seem to help me cope, they allow me to rewrite synapses in my mind, and create new memories that dilute the old ones. Most of the WWII guys crawled in a bottle or pushed it all down and tried not to think about it. Even the guys in the rear who were moving stuff had it rough in WWII, the horrors of it all can't be comprehended until you see it first hand, movies and video games don't do it justice... which is probably why video games seem to be a good coping mechanism.
I wish nobody else would ever have to know what we know, see what we saw, do what we did. I am not delusional enough to believe humans will ever get to that point unless we go extinct.
Watch the Tarawa documentary. It's raw unedited unredacted and declassified footage from Tarawa.
Why settle for a little dramatic theater when you can actually watch the real thing?
Here th-cam.com/video/dB1ICJPGmD4/w-d-xo.html
@@IDNeon357 why watch film footage when you have lived or seen something similar.. honestly though, the raw footage from places like Tarawa and Iwo are hugely appreciated.
A good friend of mine and my father's was a Marine in the 2nd wave to go ashore at Iwo. He never really talked about it. When I got back home after my first war he was different towards me, not treating me like a dumb kid anymore. Its like we were in the same club, but what he did made my time look like I never left home.
I learned so much about cars from him, and until he died I could call him any time and he had answers, even for my Pontiacs when he was a Dodge nut. I think about all the brilliant minds we lost to stupid shit like useless wars that could have been avoided... if humans didn't tend to suck.
I remember a lovely day on Omaha beach, we were having a picnic and our kids were playing in the sand, it was lovely.
We then started to question if this was wrong and in some way showing disrespect to the young men who died there.
However after some discussion we decided that this was exactly what these guys would have wanted.
The best way we could celebrate what they had done was to watch small kids having a lovely day in the sand.
I agree. They fought for liberty against tyranny, and you got to enjoy the fruits of their success.
I had a similar experience when I visited and watched some French people parasailing.
Yep that's what they fought for. So you me and everyone else could enjoy the beaches and more.
Yep, I agree. I once shot a young German man there a few years ago and remember thinking, it's what Easy Company would have wanted.
I disagree, utterly disrespectful what you did.
My uncle landed on Omaha, D-day +3, he said the carnage was beyond anything anyone could ever imagine. Bodies, blood, body parts as far as the eye could see.
Is he still alive?
As bad as the d-day landing was the trench warfare of the first world war would have been even worse. There's a few videos that show soldiers running through trenches filled with bodies. Those guys were under immense artillery bombardment plus mustard gas attacks. One soldier said that at times the artillery was coming in so fast that instead of individual blasts all you heard was a constant roar.
@@nicerides9224Maybe but given the carnage of both it seems like a mute point.
My dad was a BAR man and fought in the Korean war, so I took him to see this. He needed to leave after the Omaha beach landing and get some air. Once we got into the lobby, his hands were shaking and his shirt was soaked in sweat. He just said "That was too close to home." and we had to leave. In 2016, my wife and I went to Omaha beach, and the cemetery, Its amazing, and humbling.
When I was a kid, I went with my dad to see this in the theater, and there were several war veterans getting up and leaving, some sobbing. I'll never forget it.
In the summer of 2016 my 17 year old (at the time) son and I flew over from the US and spent a month in Europe with a very ambitious self-guided itinerary that stretched from England to Italy and back. Our plan was to include WW1 and 2 sites along with many non-war elated sites all across Europe, which we did, but it didn't leave us with a lot of time in any one place. We had only two nights and one day in Normandy, which we spent in and around Vierville and walking Omaha Beach. We could have easily spent a week there but it would have been at the expense of other incredible things we saw and did on that trip. I'm glad my son got to see it and hopefully begin to appreciate what young men his age experienced and sacrificed just a couple of generations ago. I hope to return to Normandy someday and spend more time there. The local people are wonderful and we noticed many homes in Normandy flying US, UK, and Canadian flags. They remember.
Thank you for your story.
If you have a chance, it would be worth your while to to watch Ken Burns' "The Civil War" and then do a tour of the US Civil War battlefields.
And here's an odd thing I'll say: I'm a veteran, and I enjoy visiting military museums and battlefields. But for some reason, the place that affected me the most, the place that made me feel almost disconnected from myself, was The Alamo.
My dream could do this someday.
I took my father when the movie came out. He whispered to me , “That is why I joined the Army Air Corps.” He said that in the first 20 minutes. On the way home, he told me he knew he could get killed in the air or shot down, but if he survived the mission, he would have a decent meal and a warm bed.
I joined the USAF because I didn't want to be stuck on a ship for months, or sleeping in mud. Instead I was sleeping in trucks on the parking ramp waiting for the next plane to block in so I could go to work. Five desert trips, three in 91, one in 01 and again in 04. The last two were the easy ones, in a safe place, Kuwait. In 1991 Kuwait wasn't the safest place to be. Turns out even being ground crew can get you in a two way rifle range, dodging mortars, and other things these days. Throwing 900+ bags out of the belly of a 747 in 130F heat isn't like getting shot at, but its not something people look forward to doing. I make it sound like thats all we did, but its about the most people who haven't been there can comprehend. Some jobs seem safe, but end up being crazy dangerous every damn day.
My brother drove trucks in the Army, HETs that hauled fully armed, crewed and running tanks on trailers, he did one year in Kuwait, and two tours in Iraq doing that. Stopped counting bullet holes in his truck at 150 in 2005. Says he is glad they can't shoot as well as our family. Then he decided he didn't get shot at enough, so he went to fly UH60s for the Army, two tours in Afghanistan, then became an instructor. Now he flies medevac choppers in the midwest. He stays incredibly busy so he doesn't think about it all. We barely talk about it, I write about some of mine because it helps to do so.
For the most part, USAF life is decent, but then when it isn't so great its still better than what the Jarheads and Army have to deal with. I have lots of Jarhead friends, great guys. Most people who get killed in my job get crushed, we move heavy stuff, lots of it, and its a constant thing. Working with things that weight 10,000lbs or more means its very easy to get killed. Working around planes is inherently dangerous. A maintenance E6 was killed while working on the wing spoilers of a C17 while I was on my last deployment, someone flipped a switch and it crushed him. Simple things like that can get you killed. The first US death in Desert Storm was an AF NCO run over by a truck on the ramp at night. In Vietnam an entire unit of people doing my job at a forward airstrip was overrun and everyone killed. You can think you are safe, but then you lose friends in Khobar Towers and realize, death can come to anyone, at any time so you watch for it. Some jobs are very safe, and physically easy, not all of us go kick in doors and assault hard points.
I never had anything even close to what was depicted in this movie happen to me, still lost people. Some days I can still smell the desert, feel the sand on my face, smell the jet and diesel fuel, and burning bodies is something you never forget. If I watch a movie about my wars it can be 65F in my house, but it feels like 120F-130F. I don't watch many of them. Pvt Ryan jacked me up for weeks when I saw in the theater. I felt like I was there. I wonder how many guys who assaulted beaches and did the infantry thing went to see it. If it bothered me that much, what would they think?
The Eighth Air force was the most dangerous assignment in all WW2. 24percent casualties. Far worse than Iwo or D day.
@@williamhanley2566 The Mighty Eighth were predominantly stationed around my home city of Norwich in England. They, and the RAF, had airbases all over Norfolk and other East Anglian counties. There's a permanent memorial to them in our city library. Needless to say there are plenty of other memorials to them in the surrounding countryside. And American cemeteries.
They are fondly remembered here, and we honour their memory.
@Logan Stroganoff my family live in Norfolk. They often talk about the Americans here during WW2.
That's exactly what Andy Rooney said... he covered the war, and he said the airmen lived a nice relatively nice life in the service compared to the foot soldier, but the trade off was that it was highly likely they would not make it
If you trigger an 80 year old case of PTSD from a movie, that's more of an authenticity badge than any film critic can give.
Critics be saying “the movie tried to hard to be real“
@@b_Loopy Critics do be thinking they know everything
When I seen this movie in the the theater, 6 times, I seen plenty of people walk out, mostly elderly women, most likely reminded of the love that they lost decades ago. A few older men, who were military age at that time period did too...but most of them stayed.
@@frederickfitzgeraldfazbear7154 same with historians and veterans
thinking they know everything (:
Throwing a video together about questioning the historical accuracy of a movie and putting it on TH-cam doesn't make you a film critic anyways lol. Most proper film critics praise the shit out of this film because it's a terrific blend of accuracy and storytelling. It's hard to put those two together, accuracy is usually boring is shit, even in real history the stories that probably didn't happen (like the Black Dinner in Scotland) are way better than what actually happened.
I visited Belgium in 2007. One day, near the border with Germany, I stumbled across a memorial to the battle of the bulge. I walked from the parking lot to an elegant yet conservative vista looking down on to meticulously manicured grounds. I was shocked and nearly wept at the thousands upon thousands of crosses blanketing the fields. What was more heartbreaking was learning that memorial was only for allied soldiers in that battle. There was no such memorial for the thousands of German soldiers or civilians lost in that battle. People who likely just wanted to be safe in their homes and going to their job the next day.
To this day it breaks my heart to reflect on that memory.
I understand what you are saying, but imho, no nazi deserves a memorial.
Really shows how the humanity of the losing side is so callously plucked away, leaving only a caricature for those on the winning side to pick apart post hoc. It's truly a tragedy what took place in the first half of the 20th century. All for bankers and industrialists' benefit. No more brother wars!
@@sonofabookkeeper8382 well said sir.
My father was a sailor on an LST that delivered tanks to Omaha beach. He told me that it was the most frightening day of his life.
I recall speaking to a P-38 recon pilot at an airshow in Pennsylvania around 2000 or so, who was flying missions over Normandy on D-Day and the weeks after, he told me that he was on a recon flight around midday on June 6th, it was his first sortie since the landings began. He was assigned to photograph a suspected 88 battery along the Douve river, as he was passing over Omaha Beach, there was a pretty decent break in the clouds so he could see the beach, he noted how many bodies, smoke plumes and equipment were littering the beach in its entirety, what struck him was the pinkish red tinge that the sand had become and how the water just off shore had huge plumes of red in it stretching for nearly a mile, with hundreds of little black dots floating all over. this was seen from 8,000 above the beach.....He knew what it all meant, and it shook him to his core till the day he died
@Kevin Collver it's weird that a lot of comments here claim that the sea was never red and there weren't so many bodies in the water and it's all over-dramatized, in there opinion.
I attended the opening of the WWII D Day memorial in VA. There I met one man who was singling the man on the LST to send in the tanks. Just a few minutes later I met another man who was on the LST taking the single to send the tanks. I took him to where the first man was sitting. They did not know each other until that chance meeting with me.
If your father is still alive, and if he hasn't been awarded the French Legion d'honneur, please contact me. I can help him receive France's highest honor.
It was the coast guard the drove them
No background music. That alone is enough to make it the most realistic depiction of battle I have ever seen on film.
What, your telling me that they didn’t have grand and patriotic music playing on loudspeaker or on their iPods?
My grandfather fought in Dieppe so this hits home. For those that don't know it was just Like Omaha but the Germans won and thousands died, my grandfather was one part of one of two regiments who successfully captured their objectives that day. He later retreated from the position and was one of the last soldiers to evacuate the beach.
Your grandpa was a Ranger, then?
My grandfather stormed Juno Beach on D-Day with the North Nova Scotia Highlanders. He passed in 2010. Great man with a great sense of humor.
In 1988, I walked on Omaha Beach and Utah Beach. From Pointe du Hoc (still surrounded by an uncleared mine field), I looked out upon the channel and imagined myself a German commander seeing over 5000 ships and landing craft. As I walked among the graves above Omaha Beach, I felt small and unworthy to be among them, even though I'm a military veteran.
Same here in 1992..uncleared mines and signs everywhere to keep on tracks
Felt that way when I went to Gettysburg Pa.
Is it still surrounded by a minefield?
In a scene of "The Longest Day" a German officer is calling his CO to report the armada. He's asked where is it headed. He shouts "RIGHT AT ME!" I'm sure it felt that way, especially to the large number of soldiers who were boys or old men or members of an Ost unit.
I visited the beaches when I was 14 years old, on Utah, on the cliffs between the bunker debris there was an old man (veteran) who collapsed unto a bunker piece in tears, I was so moved by that moment... I will remember it for the rest of my life.
Your story brought me to tears
My dad was a combat engineer on Omaha beach, 19 years old and his first esperience of war tasked to clear the barbed wire on the beach exits. I tried for years to get him to tell me what it was like being in combat. He would only tell me the funny things that happened in his year of combat, obviously trying not to recall the horrors. I finally got him to tell me about what it was like assaulting the beach and what he described to me when I was 17 years old, about to register for the draft,. It was exactly what you see in the beach scene of the movie. Body parts, heads blown off, men cut in half, and one of his buddies disappearing from a direct shell hit while running next to him.....Imagine for one minute....at 19 years old! He told me to ride something if I joined up..... I did..... Nuclear Fast Attack submarines during the 70"s.... countering the russians threat to the USA. God bless all those men who have fought in war. They are Heros.
Thank you for posting this . Two uncles I never got to meet died in that war. Uncle Roy died at Pearl Harbor and he is still entombed on the USS Arizona. Uncle Joe directly after Omaha June 7th. My dad was too young to serve but went to Korea in 1950.
I’m a 33yr old American, grandson of a WW2 vet. I had the pleasure of going to Omaha in 2007. I was backpacking in Europe with my 4 buddies and for some reason they voted to stay in Paris instead, before moving on, so I only got 2 days in Normandy. I made it to Omaha and the cemetery and got to walk the shore and hike up and down the cliff. One thing that instantly strikes you when you’re on the beach, it’s like, 1/4 mile at least from the waterline to the sea wall. It’s not just 1-200 yards like I thought. You’d be absolutely gassed if you were to run it healthy and rested, and it would be unimaginable soaking wet after a 3 hour departure rally on a landing craft and under the ya machine gun and mortar fire. I took careful survey of WN 72/73 and 65. The bunkers, Tobruk pits, and trenches containing machine guns were carefully pre sighted and staggered, so the machine gun that would be firing on you as a soldier on the beach, wouldn’t be directly in front of you, but actually a 1/4-1/2 mile down the beach on your left or right. A lot of the machine guns the static Heer divisions used at these emplacements were older or captured French guns that didn’t need continued supply lines since they were static. A lot of French Hotchkiss M1914’s, FM 24/29’s, MG-13’s, and MG-34’s. There were MG42’s but they didn’t dominate the way we imagine. The German 8cm Grenatenwerfer mortar was a real killer as well as the variety of mines. If you are interested in the particulars of German Wiederstandsnests, beach obstacles and defensive armament, I highly suggest “Hitlers Atlantik Wall” by Anthony Saunders and “German Artillery of the Second World War” by Ian V. Hogg. I consider both of these required reading for anyone who wants to really dive deep into the German defenses at D-Day. Great Video! 👍🏻
Thank you for the comment and to bad you had to stay in that overrated dirty city of Paris :)
Glad you made it to the beach, but the beach wasn't that long on the time they landed, the area has extreme High and Low tide, and when they landed it would have been High tide.
Panzer Picture
That’s true, I forgot about that.
Ditto your comment about the distance from waterline to the bluffs. I was fortunate to visit Omaha Beach at the same low tide condition as the actual landing. Amazing anyone made it to the bluffs at all much less had the courage to fight forward.
Check out the book "D-Day Through German Eyes" by Holger Eckhertz, (available in parts 1 and 2 on Amazon, last I checked) contains a chapter entitled "Utah Beach: The Tobruk Soldier," a first-hand account of one German soldier (Stefan Heinevez) manning one of the small cupola-capped tobruks. He was stationed just behind the beach, with an MG34 and cannister mags. He had a metal shield in front of the gun and it traversed 360 degrees on a rail around the cupola. Check it out -- his story will definitely make those structures come to life. If memory serves there are also accounts from a machine-gunner in one of the Widerstandsneste (WNs) and from the British and Canadian beaches (Gold, Sword and Juno) and some of the fortifications there both on the beach and inland.
@@PL-rf4hy
Ok, I don’t want to be crass or abrasive here, but It’s important for others who comes across in this in the future. “D-Day Through German Eyes” by Holger Eckhertz is complete fiction. Not a single individual in any of the stories included in his books can be substantiated or verified.
Despite what people think, there are very complete unit combat journals and rosters from these German units.
We have excellent records on WN’s, including those at Normandy and none of Eckhertz technical descriptions or position functions add up. For those interested in the types of bunkers, pillboxes, casemates, Tobruk’s, and trenches used along the normandy coast, I highly recommend ‘Hitler’s Atlantik Wall’ by Anthony Saunders. He includes wonderful text, lots of blueprints and incredible photos from private collections.
As for “Eckhertz”, he is specifically vague where it counts and it was found that the actual author, the author of “The Last Panther” and the company that published these are all the same man.
It’s fiction, unfortunately, but just masked in a semi believable veil. I actually took it for nonfiction at first, and then when I was researching the 2nd Panzer Division I attempted to make reference and verify a crewman in his book which snowballed Into me looking up others. Axis history forum came to the same conclusion. There technical details within his books that are sound, just not the instances involving them. Good for a read where you keep in mind that non of the stories are true, and enjoyed as a sort of, D-Day fan fiction, but other than that, it’s good for toilet paper and fire tinder.
I have an uncle buried there. I want to get there before I go. We owe him a lot, for all he never got to do after his 24 years that ended that day.
im belgian and when i was 14, my dad took me in Normandy. we visited a lot of museum.. we walked on the beach, visited the pointe du Hoc.. but when i walked in that field with all the graves around.. i cannot explain. i don't know what my dad felt that day... but me? im infinitly grateful. and before going out the cemetary i saw 2 old persons together. i approached them and they was veteran!! i couldnt resist but present myself and thanks them. with my little knowledge in english, i tried my best to understand what they said. they was parachutist troops and i couldnt understand the rest of their conversation with me :( and im so sad about that..... but i have a nice epic picture of me, being between these great men. you can see a little teen, embarassed and all shy, and them smilling and happy to see a teen being gratefull for what they done for us... its been 20years now, i hope they are fine where they are
My uncle Eddie was such a calm man. A classical pianist actually and it's hard to imagine him so young and scared storming that beach. I wish they all could know how much we all appreciate them.
God bless your uncle and all others who fought in this horrible war.
Being a classical pianist makes perfect sense to me, it was probably one of the few places he could find peace after something like that.
My father didn't go to Omaha. He was 82nd and they dropped behind the beaches, as everyone knows. He never spoke about his experiences during WW2 until he only had a few months left to live and told me the most amazing stories for what he did and saw.
I've heard similar stories that your father told told you that I heard from my grandfather Thomas B. Walsh he was a Sargent in 101st and from what he told me was the 7th American soldier on foreign soil since he pushed the first 6 out the plane at 2 am night before D-Day while be shot at the whole time. I'm getting chills watching this and writing. Hardcore men back then salute to your old man they broke the mold.
@@no-pl6jc The 82nd was the first division to liberate a town on D-Day. Ste. Mer Elis. Dad was a pathfinder - 82nd/505. He was a private on D-Day. He retired in 1972 as a Sgt. Major. I'm not an "Army" brat, I'm an 82nd brat.
Yes I was in awe when I visited the cemetery at Omaha beech. Everyman in that cemetery sacrifices just hit me at once. It's a very weird feeling. I advise everybody to visit Omaha once in your life and I promise it will change you forever.
I always get so choked up at that part of the movie when Matt Damon's character ask his wife in front of Captain Miller's grave if he has led a good life and "earned" his life being saved. I'm tearing up just thinking about it now.
Yes I also visited the beach and the cemetary... the ones that got me were the crosses that said "Here rests in honored glory a comrade in arms known but to God"... the boys who were so torn up they couldn't even give them a name. Imagine being a loved one back home and being told that they THINK your loved one died on Omaha but they aren't sure.
I was 13 when I visited Omaha Beach. 25 years later I’ve never forgotten how it felt to look over the rows of crosses and see what freedom cost.
Went there for the 50th anniversary of D Day in 1994 with my wife and father-in-law who land on Utah Beach with the 1st Engineer Special Brigade. His picture was featured in Time Magazine in 1944 standing next to the monument the Brigade built to honor it fallen members shortly after the landing. The monument is still there on Utah Beach and looks exactly the same.
@@brianwalsh1401 That part gets me. Every. Damn. Time,
Being there was extremely moving. Standing on the beach looking up at the hills I was left with how completely open the whole beach was. I can't imagine coming off those landing craft into the water and facing the fire coming at you. Those men were beyond heroes. To walk the cemetery was something I will never forget. The sacrifices made by all those fine people is something I can barely put into words. Thank you
I visited Normandy on June 7th, 2012. I still remember the silence in the memorial at the cemetery. I forget the words inscribed inside on the wall, but I remember the only sound was the hushed sighs at the words followed by sobbing. A humbling experience to say the least.
Edit: it was a chapel, and inside are the words: “I GIVE UNTO THEM ETERNAL LIFE AND THEY SHALL NEVER PERISH”.
That’s very true when you walk in that field. Can’t help but tear up.
I can't help but tear up evet time I see this scene.
I think if a person wouldn't tear up they must not have a soul.
I've never seen anybody who did a critique of this movie take us to Omaha Beach and show where these events actually happened. I always thought they replicated the actual beach in the movie and was surprised that there were so many differences. Excellent!
That's what I thought to, but the exit is a big road and not just a small path.
I could not find any video, so I thought why not make a video, I want to do the same with Carentan and Band of Brothers, but people did make videos about that.
@@PanzerPicture Your info is misleading a little when showing and talking about the PAK 43 you showed the position marked as WN73 when in fact it is WN72 as WN 73 is on the Western side of the D1 Exit/Draw in Charlie Sector on the bluff as WN71 is on the Eastern side of D1 with WN70 past that in Dog White Sector,
50mm cannon mention is correct however it was a 5.cm Kwk 39 L/ 60 (50mm) cannon not the 5.cm kwk 38 l/42 (50mm) cannon to be specific.
sorry that i'm nitpicking i am very grateful that your info was pretty much as accurate as it gets on TH-cam so far as it has bugged me for years that everyone thinks this movie is so Authentic when it really isn't and yes i get spielberg was just going for dramatic effect but it is taken as fact by so many and it's awesome to hear someone did there research.
Actually Omaha beach is very big at low tide about 800m wide, also that section has a grey tight compacted sand with pebbles banks, those pebbles stopped those tanks
In Sep 2015 I visited Normandie on a break on a business trip to Paris from Tokyo, then back to the states. I was with 2 pilots of my airline, all three of us are vets, one Navy flew Tomcats, one Marine who flew Harriers, and myself USAF as a linguist. Walking Omaha beach the tide was low and I went as far out as I could, the sand was hard packed; the beach scenes of SPR flooded my mind. What blew me away on our drive up to the beaches past Bayeux, in every little French farm ville, someone was flying either a US Flag, the Canadian Maple Leaf, or the British Union Jack. This wasnt a weekend around the anniversary of the invasion, just some shmoe weekend of Sept 2015. Normandie remembers. Around seemingly every curve of those roads was a memorial to something that happened there during the invasion. You can still feel the heaviness. The American cemetery at that overlooks Omaha blew me away.
I’ve been there and, more importantly, my Grandfather landed there. He was a doctor on a Navy LST, and was sent ashore late on the first day of the invasion to help treat the wounded.
Went to the cemetery and the beach a couple of years back. You're very right in saying you feel dwarfed when going past all those graves. It really puts it into perspective the amount of human lives lost and the sacrifice made. Lest we forget.
It’s a damn crying shame that we are about to lose what these guys fought and died for simply because of a cadre of corrupt career politicians and a population that cannot be bothered to question them.
@Hydin Biden That's funny, actual nazis voted for and endorsed Trump. You're rhetoric is better than your logic.
You are correct, but if it is lost, as you state, then it is lost. So, there is not much that can be done about it.
@@Eid-yy3ot That's what the sound of one licking his chains is like.
@@CSUnger
With all due respect, I have been hearing pretty much exactly the same type rhetoric, which was mentioned by you in your original post, for a good many years. You state "about to lose," sir, the situation was lost years ago (my opinion). Just a suggestion: you might do a bit of research and ask yourself just exactly "what these guys fought and died for?"
@@Eid-yy3ot I think that you might be missing a much larger and more immediately relevant point.
I first watched the film about 15 years ago and it quickly became my favourite. I’ve always had questions about how real to life the beach landing was, particularly when you compare it to the little footage of the actual landings. This video addressed everything I’ve questioned about the movie and I love it. Thank you
Nicely done....Thank you for your videos Panzer Picture! I would love to see that area some day.
Thanks for the comment 👍 and I hope you have a chance to see it.
Of all the times I've seen this movie, I've never noticed that Sherman in the background.
Missed it too
Tanks usually sunk before they got to the beach
My uncle was an Army private in D-Day's second wave, said there was still lots of firing as he waded in. He had a 40-lb. pipe bomb to use against bunkers but things were so bad that he threw it away. "Thing could have killed me!" he said.
Hey! The government said it would only kill Nazis! Didn't you watch Private Snafu?
My father was British and landed on Omaha beach with the Americans.
He was part of a RAF base defence / radar unit who also took heavy casualties on D-Day . He never spoke about the landings much but was forthcoming about what he described after D-Day. I have lots of his photos which I treasure greatly.
Mark Felton uploaded a video called the Brits who fought on Omaha which filled in so many gaps for me and accuractly described why they were there , I think most people are un aware that British units fought along side the US infantry on that beach landing zone .
I`ve been to Omaha beach, and struggled up the hill just carrying a jacket, without being shot at too. Those men were incredibly brave.
My Uncle (Dad's older Brother) was there, he was in the second wave of troops to land and he never talked about the war very much. He suffered from PTSD for the rest of his life. I'm still trying to get his Military records but from the bits I could gather, my Uncle Mike enlisted in the Army just after 7 Dec 41 and his enlistment papers state "For the Duration". He was in North Africa, Sicily and Italy, but from what I could gather they needed combat experienced Officers and NCO for the D-Day Invasion, Mike was an NCO that had combat experience so he was sent to England to train for it. Again, I do know he was in the Normandy Invasion but I can't confirm some of the timelines. Mike was an NCO and had done and seen some bad stuff that he had to live with until his death fittingly on Veterans Day 2013. On his way back to the States after the war on a Troop Ship, at about the half way point, he through all his metals overboard. They included a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster. His mother sent away for them and he got mad, telling her that if he found them he would burn them. If she did get them they were not found after she passed away, so he may have kept his promise. He felt that he did not deserve them and as he told me, the others that didn't come home deserved them far more than he did. My Uncle did open up to me about the war after I was in the USAF and home on leave just before he passed. I wish he would have written down what he did in the war. I know it was hard for him to even watch a war movie or TV show and he never did watch them. It is a shame too as so much history went to the grave with him. I believe many of the youth today would appreciate more of what they have today if they knew what he had been through. My Dad and his two brothers grew up dirt poor after their father abandoned them during the depression. My Grandmother did all she could, but there wasn't much she could do for work during those times.
Thank you for your story. it's sad that your uncle had so much trouble from his PTSD, it's sad that they didn't really had anything to help people with PTSD back in the day, because talking about those really help a lot.
My two brothers took our father to see the movie. He was a combat veteran in the 28th. Inf. Div. They came ashore around a month later. He was wounded twice in the war . Seeing combat in Normandy, Hurtgen Force, Battle of theyBulge, Comar Pocket, and others up to the end of the war . He served 20 years in the Army, and another 20 in civil service working for the Army and the Air Force. My brothers and I had planned to take him back to England, France, and Germany. But we lost my older brother to cancer in 2006. Then my father passed away at 93 in 2016. My youngest brother no longer expresses interest in going. And well I no longer have the money. Cancer has taken it up.
Thank you for your story, and I'm sorry for your lose, cancer is really a terrible decease and I hope you get better soon and maybe have a change to visit in the future.
Saddens me but in darkness there is light. Your friend, Kent
Thank you for posting.
I have been to several beaches including Omaha.
It was impressive to be there as well as in the hedgerow lands more inwards.
Tome stopped there as I could still see remains of the heavy fights.
Cannot forget this brave young men, risking their lives far away from home.
I was at Omaha Beach about 10 years ago. We drove down that road at Dog Green with the Baily Bridges along side. The beach is now high priced beach houses. Not a historical landmark. They wouldn't let the tour bus stop hence we disturb the wealthy French that were sunbathing there. We slowed down at the sight of the original cemetery. At least there was a sign there. We drove down and got off the bus further east. From there, I walked to the cemetery and the museum. I got a big lump in my throat when I saw all the headstones.
Last year I was at the National World War 2 museum in New Orleans. I bought my dad a 75th D-Day anniversary polo shirt. He was in the 8th Air Force. He said thanks, but won't wear the shirt. He said he was sound asleep in his bunk at his airfield in Britain when this was going on. He didn't know the invasion had even started until about 11:00 in the morning.
He is old now and has trouble getting around. He can't remember how to get from the kitchen to his bedroom, but he remembers every day of '43, '44 and '45. I tried to show him the pictures I took but he wouldn't look at them. I know he has survivor's guilt. It took a long time for me to figure out why my old man was such a hard ass.
Loved the description of the types of bunkers. As a kid I was nearly obsessed with the huge bunker seen in the movie. I made models of it for my toy soldiers. Later when I was old enough to do my own research o realized that it didn’t really exist as seen in the movie. I had really hoped it did. But it was really nice to see someone else explain this. Thank you
You're welcome, I'm glad you liked the video.
I visited Omaha beach back in September last year. I couldn’t believe I was actually standing in the place where the landings had happened. I want to go back.
I have not been there. My dad was. 2nd wave, about 10:30-11 AM. He went ashore in one of the red zones, Dog Red 1 or Fox Red 1. He mentioned there being an 88 there, so I imagine it was probably Dog Red, between Vierville and Colville. His words were: "We'd been up since about 2 AM. The first wave loaded up starting around 3 and headed for shore around 4:30. The landing craft came back. We started loading up around 9. When that gate went down and I saw the beach, I knew I was a dead man. We got dropped in waist-deep water. I waded ashore and then ran for the bluffs in full pack. I often wish someone had had a stopwatch on me. I hit the base of the bluff, amazed I was still alive, found a rope, and started to climb. I got to the top and was surprised to find I was still alive and there was little resistance. We headed inland, leaving other groups behind to neutralize the bunkers and resistance there. At the end of the day, I headed back to the top of the bluffs, as they were largely pacified. I looked up and down, and I'm sure I could have walked the length of what I could see, 5 miles, without ever once touching sand."
I have his original European Campaign ribbon with Normandy arrowhead and 3 battle stars in his flag display box.
They were truly the Greatest Generation. We since are mere shadows.
I went to see it with my father, Korean War and Vietnam War veteran, the theater had a fire alarm go off and we had to exit. There was no emergency, I could see he had been affected by the film. I asked if he wanted go back in to see the rest of the movie. “Not if I have to sit thru the last 25 minutes again”! I asked the manager to please que the movie where it left off. We live in Fayetteville NC, next to Ft Bragg, the manager completely understood and he did. I had to agree, my 2 combat tours were mild compared to his; but we made it and it helped him to heal as it gave us something to use as base to get us both assistance in recognizing and getting treatment for our PTS(d).
Let’s never forget war is hell. My heart goes out to all these young men at the time, so many who would never return home to their families.
I was there in Oct 2008. Got super lucky, I wound up with a free day in France. It was s beautiful day . I have always wanted to visit those beaches, and finally had the chance. I took trains from Paris through the beautiful French countryside all the way to Caen. From there ( It was a Sunday - everything was closed ! Not like in the USA.. ) I found a taxi driver who took me to Omaha Beach. I was there for almost the whole day. It was absolutely incredible to be there.
One thing that really struck me, was there was indeed a concrete bunker on the West end of Omaha Beach.. From there, you could see the ENTIRE crescent shaped beach. There was simply no place to hide.. What a killing field :-( I hope it's OK to do this on TH-cam, as I would like to highly recommend this book, it was about the landings on the East side, which don't get the same attention. I thought it was one of the best WW2 books ever written - it explains how the US Naval Destroyers shelled some extremely stubborn German strong points, and how the Americans miraculously and with incredible leadership worked their way off that bloody and horrible beach.. I would say "it's a MUST READ."
www.amazon.com/Dead-Those-About-Die-D-Day/dp/1524745502/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1BSMXNE7UETBN&dchild=1&keywords=those+about+to+die&qid=1609043964&sprefix=those+abut+%2Caps%2C172&sr=8-3
At every turn the French people I met were polite and helpful.. I flew back to the USA the following day. It was a day I will never, ever forget..
I finally just got the opportunity to visit Omaha beach this week. Seeing it in person, it was still so hard to comprehend what those men had to go through and what happened at that place. There’s still massive craters in the ground at Pointe de Hoc not far from Omaha beach from artillery shots. Then seeing the cemetery in person and getting and idea of how many lost their lives in the Normandy area leaves you lost for words.
My grandfather was in the USN, and drove landing craft for D-Day. He never talked about it until this movie came out -- like it gave him permission, in a way. I was able to visit the beach myself in 2018, and as soon as I walked out onto the sand an incredible wave of emotion swept over me. Like the echo of the enormity of that day. I teared up.
Thank you for the comment and story about your grandfather, they were the greatest generation and every story brings a tear to my eye. They will be missed.
When I visited Omaha beach last year, the bunker was the most confusing part. I was expecting this massive bunker in the bluffs. The bunkers are so much smaller and they face the beach diagonally. I had to do a bunch of research to find out that Spielberg depicted them this way for dramatic effect. The main bunker on Dog green is now where the monument stands.
I've been there a few times having always found the time when I was in Paris to get to the beaches. I've also taken people there to experience what you have shared and it is always incredibly powerful. My last visit I was looking at the graves and crying at the sacrifices as my kids were now the ages of those who were killed when a group of French students approached me. They introduced themselves and I spoke with the teacher - their comments were genuine, honest, and extremely respectful. What stuck w/ me is the comment from the teacher who said her entire life and that of her family was possible because of what that generation represented and by their actions they freed France - and Europe - of the Nazi's.
I've been to Normandy several times and will be spending two weeks there again next summer. We never run out of places to explore. Thanks for finally pointing out that the telephone pole obstacles were pointing in the wrong direction on the beach. I could never believe they got that detail so wrong. When I was stationed in Germany, my next-door neighbor was a Wehrmacht veteran who'd been at Omaha Beach. It was fascinating, to say the least, to listen to his experiences of that day.
"You can be the biggest man alive, but once you set foot on that grass between all those men you will instantly dwarved and small in comparison"
Your father is a wise man. I recently visited Luxembourg and the Ardennes, mainly Vianden in Luxembourg and Bastogne in Belgium. Once i set foot in the Bois Jaques between Bastogne and Foy i really felt dwarved. What the men of Easy Company went through is hard to fathom from the series Band of Brother. Being in that small patch of pine forest made me realise just that.
Those brave souls who liberated Europe from tyranny are mostly deceased now and we must never forget and I truly hope schools over the world do not follow the call to remove this history lesson because it might be offensive. Being offensive makes young people learn from mistakes made decades before they were even born. We need to and we need to keep learning from mistakes so we can become better men and women.
Thank you for your great comment 👍 👍 and I agree with you.
@ Dave Kelders: The central tragedy of history is the humanity refuses to learn from it. Every eighty or so years, roughly the span of a typical human life, humanity repeats the errors and calamities which have always pursued the human race - war, famine, pestilence, deprivation. The cycles of history repeat over and over.
I visited Arnhem and Nijmegen and visited the war graves there. The Paras died there surrounded without ever surrendering after they landed on top of a Panzer division. All massive heroes.
Strong men make for good times, weak men make for hard times.
Unfortunately, our skools care more about not hurting someones feelings than telling it bluntly, like it was when I was in school.
I was there in July 2019, you cannot help but be awestruck and emotionally touched by the experience. The beaches are majestic, we visited Omaha Beach Dog Sector, Utah Beach and Point Du Hoc. It is ironically a very peaceful place. We also visited the American cemetary and when you step onto the grounds and see the thousands of crosses it will bring you to tears I guarantee you will be emotionally overwhelmed by the experience. And while it is a protected historical site it is also an active recreational beach destination for many people which was the goal for those who gave their all in the liberation of France to restore the country back to the way it was before the occupation. As an American, I felt very welcomed by the French citizens especially along the Norman coast. June 6th is still recognized to this day, 75 years later, with celebrations and parades to commemorate D-Day. I would have visited again this year had it not be for the COVID-19 pandemic. Hopefully in 2021, we shall see.
Thank you for your comment and story.
I was there in October 2019 and had the same experience you did - unbelievably moving to see the beach and all the crosses at the cemetery - we took part in a wreath laying ceremony and all the veterans participated. Many were moved to tears. At Omaha Beach we ran into a couple of old Brits who were kids during the war - they thanked us Americans for coming to their aid. They said "We were afraid when the war started, but we knew once the Americans came, we would be all right".
I am blessed to have made two trips to Omaha Beach, the first was in 1984 with my dad and the last time was in 2016 where I rewalked where my father and I were years before. Sadly, most Americans do not know that African Americans were on that beach that morning and for some strange reason written out of that history. It really affected my dad up till he went over in 1984 with 19 other members of the 761st BTN where some were former truck drivers and signalmen - he told me he spent his first days removing bodies from the beach. A small bit of history my uncle was killed there - his name is enshrined on the wall at the memorial. I shared the western union telegram my grandmother received about her son. Great post.
Thank you for the amazing story, I would have loved to have met your father I'm absolutely amazed with the history of the 761st Tank Battalion, I knew they landed on Omaha, but I thought they landed after the capture of the beaches?
I knew Alan tomkin, he was an amazing guy with so many stories of what happened when he worked on this movie.
RIP my friend.
From UK, my father was in the Royal Engineers and worked on the building of the Mulberry Harbours in England and then on their installation on the Normandy beach. He never talked about his experiences there and died at 68
When will we ever learn that nobody wins a war.
Yea the elites always win and wars are massive profit events for them.
Thank you for the story, these stories are the greatest to read, your father was really the greatest generation.
My father, former Green Beret and West Point graduate took us there when I was 16. Amazing experience that I won't ever forget! I would like to go back one day with my own children so they can see for themselves the sacrifice of freedom. Had family on both sides during the war. My cousin on my father's side dropped in that morning with th 101st Airborne. I still have his bayonet.
That would be an amazing experience to be there with your father, hear his stories, that's something you will never forget.
@Jakor Killudge Have it on an M1 Garande manufactured in April or May of 1942 according to the serial numbers. Not my cousin's rifle, but I thought they would go well together. My father was given his jump wings as a good luck charm when he deployed to Vietnam. He couldn't wear them as they had 2 combat stars on them, but carried them in his pocket throughout his tour. My cousin told him that those wings got him through D Day plus 105 days of combat without a scratch and would bring my dad luck on his combat tour, but wanted them back when he came home. Sure enough my father came back from Vietnam without a scratch as well. He gave them back and now nobody seems to know where those wings have gone. I did however find some similar wings on ebay a few months back from ww2 with 2 combat stars that now are an addition to my little ww2 collection.
@Jakor Killudge I had 2 Uncles and my Grandfather on the German side. They were from Latvia. My Uncle Harold was killed in Russia, but my other Uncle Ernst survived the war as did my Grandfather. My Grandfather and Grandmother escaped from the Soviets after the war with my Uncle and Mother. They immigrated to NY in the early 1950's. I am in the process of writing a book of their story about how they escaped from Europe before the Communist clampdown.
Kingspeakbackcountry Hopefully, an opportunity presents itself to read such a story when its available as I really do enjoy learning of peoples crazy adventures and their grit and determination to escape!
@@klausvonschmit4722 I will notify you when it is finished and published! Thanks for your interest.
Eventually, I want to visit and stand just inside the waterline looking at the landscape.
I did exactly that mate at 6am on june 6th in 2019. Just after I did, two blackhawk helicopters flew over. A very poignant moment, I can tell you..
I was there this summer 2022 and it was a Big experience seeing it all. Thank you for this video.
Saw this movie in a big screen theater. As a vet of more than I care to remember, I left the theater feeling like I had been in a 2hr. fist fight. I had two great uncles who fought in WW2. One at Anzio and the Italian campaign the other at Omaha beach. Neither would speak of anything they experienced. When I joined the Army they both said one thing, "When you get home ,learn to forget." I did.
Thank you, and thank your Uncles too.
My Grandfather was in the Coast Guard and took troops ashore on Omaha Beach. He'll be 99 in December. Has dementia now and struggles, but when I ask about the war, he can tell me stories in detail about what he went through..
🙏🏻
Thank you for your story, these stories people share here are really the best, and I'm glad your grandfather is still alive, he is truly the best generation and I hope he will live past 100.
And by size of service, the Coast Guard lost more men than any other branch of service. Not good odds for small landing craft personal.
I think you should ask him, to tell his story. Record it, and share it with a researcher, before its too late.
@@ferencpusztai5201 Not a bad idea. He has photo albums and can name every person in them and where he was.. name those that died in the war and how they died and those after the war. He stayed in touch with a lot of his shipmates, but eventually someone would answer the phone and say “such and such” passed away however long ago. He used to run every day up until he was 92.. very healthy all his life. Eventually his mind started to deteriorate though. He’s the last one alive from his ship apparently. Again, he’s very reluctant to talk about the war, but maybe I’ll see if I can film him talking to me about it (with his permission of course) .
@@MithradatesVIEupator If he understands you, tell him, however our countries fought on opposite sides( im Hungarian), i know, they gave their best to make this world better, so, i wish him a good health! Tell him each days, how much you love him, how proud you are of him! And yes, if hes ok with it, record the interview, or at least his voice. If he dislikes it, at least just make him, to tell his story. Your country is full of researchers, and make him, to share his story, before its too late...
I cry every time I see the last part of the movie where Ryan is talking at the grave. We all need to earn the sacrifice that these men made to keep us free and safe.
I have been on the beaches and the cemetery. Its amazing! And like you have mentioned at the end. Yes you feel small on the cemetary! Great video!
Visited Omaha beach along with other key areas of the Normandy landings back in 1994 for the 50th D - Day commemorations, drove my friends GMC on it, completely moved after visiting the cemetery afterwards, RESPECT.
Two of my uncles were in Normandy on D-Day. Hank was a platoon sargeant with the 82nd Airborne while Sam was a combat engineer sargeant with he 4h Infantry on Utah Beach. Both lived into their late eighties and were he best uncles a boy could have. Hank became a major figure in the California dairy industry . Sam became the assistant post master of El Monte California. Oh, both were immigrants from the Netherlands.
Thank you for your story.
Loved the movie and your review.
Loved the movie and your review. I had an uncle there on first wave. My father was in Pacific and landed in Phillipines at Languyin Bay, I could never get either to talk of their experiences. Thanks again for great review.
My dad went in on D-Day +29. Staff Sgt, 1st Army Headquarters. He got the battle ribbon which he said he didn’t really earn. All bodies and body parts were removed from the beaches at that time, that is the ones that were found. There were still a lot of dead rotting fish on the beach. The smell and flies is what he remembered. He carried a rifle but never fired it. He heard artillery rounds but that was it.
A part of me feels it would be an even more terrifying experience to not even know where you were being shot at from. Then coming across those side firing pak bunkers would just add to the chaos.
I have had the Honor of walking these beaches and even now I get a tear thinking of standing on that Hallowed sand. You did an excellent job with this video.
Thank you for the comment, glad you enjoyed the video.
I was on a tour bus with my high school back in the early 70s as we approached the war memorial. I was awe struck and blurted out that there was a small town buried there as we stepped off the bus. Something I'll never forget...even as a snot-nosed teenager.
Glad you pointed out that the anti-boat structures were facing the wrong direction. Hats off to you!
Great description of the events from the movie . A great one with a great distribution . Thank you again for posting !
Thank you for the comment.
Thank You for sharing 🇺🇸 my father(now past) was in the Army 82nd AB during the day of days. My Best to you
My wife’s uncle was 82nd AB. Fought on D-Day, Normandy, Market Garden, and Battle of the Bulge where he was killed. Greatest generation.
My great grandfather was 82nd Airborne as well! Was wounded in the bulge.
These men were indeed the greatest generation, thank you so much for your comment.
Hi I’ve been a DDay battlefield guide for about 10 years and I live in Ravenoville, 3 km north from DZ A but I’ve been to Omaha many times we would have a lot to talk about. Great video. 🇫🇷🤘🏻🇺🇸
Geweldig filmpje man. Toevallig. Ik keek afgelopen weekend toevallig deze film (voor de 20e keer). En vroeg me af hoe reëel dit was. Nou hierbij het antwoord. Dank!
Mooi dat je er wat aan had en het jw vraag beantwoorden, dankjewel voor je reactie.
@@PanzerPicture fijn weekend broeder!
I've been to the normandy beaches and also the surrounding towns such as Caen and Bayeux. The graveyards are very moving. I've always been a history buff and to get to those places was brilliant, just being able to pay tribute.
I was there on the beach, in the cemetery and many other places. Chilling feeling walking the beach where these men fought and died. As I was growing up my father had a friend a nice old man walked with a cane and owned a bar. Later I found out he was shot in both legs on d-day on the beach. He could not get up so all he could do was float in the water and hope to survive. I was too young to understand or I would have listen to him alot more.
Thank you for your story. Wish we could take a time machine and listing to these men and there stories.
@@PanzerPicture i only wish i vould have meet my grandfather. To me he is my war hero winner of 2 bronze stars and the battle of the bulge alone behind enemy lines. He died of cancer when i was 2. I served myself mostly i felt i should serve like he did and like my uncle and dad. And i hope he would have been proud of my and my war time Service.
At 10:15 , that Bazooka was rented for the movie from a gun store here in New Hampshire. It's still there, hanging on the wall with other weapons that can be rented (bring your own ammo.
What a good video!! Thank you for pointing out the changes and how the machine gun nests were not even visible. My Uncle Mac landed on Omaha in the first wave. Hit in both legs he managed to be saved by a medic. He lived to be 88 years old. I would like to visit Normandy!!! My Dad was a Marine who survived Okinawa. They were the Greatest Generation!!!
I went to Omaha beach, it is indeed a very sobering place when you stop and think about it. Pointe du Hoc was also quite impressive. What shocked me was the average age I saw on the tombstones. I was 29 when I visited and I got to live more than many of these young men in part because of their sacrifice. As I said, very sobering.
Well done. Yes, I have been to all 5 Normandy beaches back in 1969 when I was 13. My family was transferred from the US to France in 1967 and lived in Le Vesinet, France for three years. In that time we took quite a few vacations to Normandy and Britanny and visited many of the surrounding towns. They did not have all those museums as they do now and if I remember correctly only Arromanches-les-Bains had a museum at that time. Additionally, there were still many wrecks of landing craft littering the beaches there as well as Danger Mine signs on the dunes in certain places. Thanks for sharing. Cheers!
That would have been an amazing time to visit, a lot of it was on touch by mass tourism.
The lack of museum etc was due to, the French government wich didn't recognize the sacrifice of these guys because of the AMGOT program and the fact that De Gaulle wasn't in the D Day organization, our veterans from the Commando Kieffer were decorated very late...
I truly enjoyed watching this video. It was quite moving and heart felt. I’ve always wanted to travel to these battle fields.
Glad you enjoyed watching, thank you for the comment 👍 👍
For how accurate and dedicated Spielburg is. How could he miss the log ramp obstacles facing the wrong direction.
Right? Someone must have told him
Filming that scene was already heavily delayed, he probably couldn't push it out any further to have them all turned around.
Went to Normandy in 2019 for the 75th remembrances with my WW2 reenacting group. What a monumental place, so much history, so much to see and learn. There was a fantastic atmosphere among the reenactment groups and the locals and other visitors. Due to the ceremonies we never got near any of the beaches, but we thoroughly explored Carentan and Dead Man's Corner. Plan to go back next year to visit Omaha and Utah.
Those brave men gave away all their tomorrows so that you could have your today.
They were not heroes, just victims.
These guy were obliged to do that.
Nobody gave them the choice
- Hey young guy, would you prefer to stay with your familly, wife and children, or go making war in Europe ?
Speak for yourself. I have blond hair and blue eyes. So I'd have gotten along with the Nazis just fine. heh
@calvacoca you do realize curtain man had honor and duty, they did this for there country and not for Europe.
And what have we done with it. It makes me weap just to think what we have done with it
@@richardcurtis2469 you weep what you blow.
Nice video. I was in Normandy for the 75th anniversary of dday. Amazing experience! Thanks for sharing!
Will Definitely Buy You A Coffee. Great Video