thedrifter
01-22-07, 09:49 AM
01/22/2007
Gebhart: See 'Flags of our Fathers' and think of 'Scrapple' Leonard
Ed Gebhart , Times Columnist
The last book report I wrote was turned in almost six decades (sounds better than 60 years) ago. The assignment was given by that legendary Chester High School English teacher, Dr. Leah Jordan. To say that my work was met with great disdain by the good doctor would be an understatement.
Nonetheless, I'd like to report on a book which I recently completed. It's called "Flags of Our Fathers" and deals with the bloody struggle when the U.S. Marines captured the tiny Japanese island of Iwo Jima in the closing days of World War II. In particular, the book traces the pre-war, war and post-war exploits of the men who raised our flag atop Mount Suribachi.
When they raised the flag, an Associated Press photographer, Joe Rosenthal, snapped a picture, almost by accident. The result was probably the most famous picture ever taken, one that has been reproduced more than any picture in history. Certainly you have seen it. If you're a Marine, you probably have your own copy.
The book was written by James Bradley. He is the son of John "Doc" Bradley, one of the flag raisers. His book is, in a word, riveting. It would take a far less emotional person than I to read it without an occasional trace of a tear.
Bradley gets it all - the fanatical, savage and frequently brutal resistance of the Japanese garrison, the heroic-beyond-belief actions of the young Marines, the split second difference between living and dying.
For too many of our young people, World War II is as ancient as the Napoleonic Wars. If they didn't see "Saving Private Ryan" in the movie theater, they'd know even less. I recall seeing that movie with a Navy veteran of D-Day. As we handed over our tickets, I jokingly told the young lady taking them that my friend should get in for free since he actually was there on D-Day.
Her response: "Oh, wow! Were you in Vietnam?"
"Flags" was especially poignant because the main character, "Doc" Bradley, reminded me of a Marine I knew from Parkside, Bob "Scrapple" Leonard. Bradley and Leonard had a lot in common. Both were very young during the battle, neither was a Marine and both were medics.
Bradley joined the Navy because someone - erroneously - told him he'd always have a war bed and plenty to eat.
Leonard opted for the Navy because he didn't like the idea of having to wear a necktie, as stateside Marines did. This even though his older brother, John "Monk" Leonard, was fighting with the Marines 1st Division on Guadalcanal.
The Navy decided Bradley, a future undertaker, and Leonard, who one day would be a rigger at Sun Oil's Marcus Hook Refinery, would make excellent corpsmen. As a result, both trained with the Marines, shipped out with the Marines and dressed in Marine combat gear during battle. Both were assigned to the Marines' Fourth Division that led the assault on Iwo Jima.
For Bradley it would be his baptism of fire. Not so for Leonard. He had survived the hell of Saipan and Tinian, enough war for anyone.
There are more comparisons. Both corpsmen were wounded. Both won commendations for bravery under fire. Neither one ever talked about it. Bradley's family never knew he had been awarded the Navy Cross until they found the medal while searching some old cartons after his death.
Leonard also kept his wartime heroics secret. "I knew 'Scrapple' for almost 60 years," said co-worker Jack Prendergast. "In all those years, he never said one word about what he did in the war."
On Leonard's seventh day on Iwo Jima, his body was shredded with shrapnel, so much shrapnel that 50 years later he'd still set off the alarm when going through airport security detectors. Even more comparisons. Both Bradley and Leonard, though wounded, refused to leave the battlefield. Here's what Leonard's citation for his Bronze Star with "V" for valor has to say: "Leonard was wounded by shrapnel during enemy mortar, machine gun and rifle fire so intense that any uncovered position was extremely dangerous. With complete disregard for his own safety, Leonard refused to have his wounds treated and refused to be evacuated until he had treated the wounds of eight others and directed their evacuation to a place of safety.
"As a result of his courageous, unselfish action, the lives of three men were saved and the evacuation of five others, including the company commander, were materially expedited. His courage and conduct were in keeping with the highest standards of the United States Navy." And I also would add, "and the United States Marines."
John "Doc" Bradley just happened to be in the right place when the Marines raised the flag on Suribachi. Thanks to the book and Clint Eastwood's movie of the same name, Bradley's name will become known, if it hasn't already, across the land. There's nothing wrong with that.
So read the book. See the movie. And when you learn of "Doc" Bradley in action, remember that you may just as well be learning about "Scrapple" Leonard.
Ellie
Gebhart: See 'Flags of our Fathers' and think of 'Scrapple' Leonard
Ed Gebhart , Times Columnist
The last book report I wrote was turned in almost six decades (sounds better than 60 years) ago. The assignment was given by that legendary Chester High School English teacher, Dr. Leah Jordan. To say that my work was met with great disdain by the good doctor would be an understatement.
Nonetheless, I'd like to report on a book which I recently completed. It's called "Flags of Our Fathers" and deals with the bloody struggle when the U.S. Marines captured the tiny Japanese island of Iwo Jima in the closing days of World War II. In particular, the book traces the pre-war, war and post-war exploits of the men who raised our flag atop Mount Suribachi.
When they raised the flag, an Associated Press photographer, Joe Rosenthal, snapped a picture, almost by accident. The result was probably the most famous picture ever taken, one that has been reproduced more than any picture in history. Certainly you have seen it. If you're a Marine, you probably have your own copy.
The book was written by James Bradley. He is the son of John "Doc" Bradley, one of the flag raisers. His book is, in a word, riveting. It would take a far less emotional person than I to read it without an occasional trace of a tear.
Bradley gets it all - the fanatical, savage and frequently brutal resistance of the Japanese garrison, the heroic-beyond-belief actions of the young Marines, the split second difference between living and dying.
For too many of our young people, World War II is as ancient as the Napoleonic Wars. If they didn't see "Saving Private Ryan" in the movie theater, they'd know even less. I recall seeing that movie with a Navy veteran of D-Day. As we handed over our tickets, I jokingly told the young lady taking them that my friend should get in for free since he actually was there on D-Day.
Her response: "Oh, wow! Were you in Vietnam?"
"Flags" was especially poignant because the main character, "Doc" Bradley, reminded me of a Marine I knew from Parkside, Bob "Scrapple" Leonard. Bradley and Leonard had a lot in common. Both were very young during the battle, neither was a Marine and both were medics.
Bradley joined the Navy because someone - erroneously - told him he'd always have a war bed and plenty to eat.
Leonard opted for the Navy because he didn't like the idea of having to wear a necktie, as stateside Marines did. This even though his older brother, John "Monk" Leonard, was fighting with the Marines 1st Division on Guadalcanal.
The Navy decided Bradley, a future undertaker, and Leonard, who one day would be a rigger at Sun Oil's Marcus Hook Refinery, would make excellent corpsmen. As a result, both trained with the Marines, shipped out with the Marines and dressed in Marine combat gear during battle. Both were assigned to the Marines' Fourth Division that led the assault on Iwo Jima.
For Bradley it would be his baptism of fire. Not so for Leonard. He had survived the hell of Saipan and Tinian, enough war for anyone.
There are more comparisons. Both corpsmen were wounded. Both won commendations for bravery under fire. Neither one ever talked about it. Bradley's family never knew he had been awarded the Navy Cross until they found the medal while searching some old cartons after his death.
Leonard also kept his wartime heroics secret. "I knew 'Scrapple' for almost 60 years," said co-worker Jack Prendergast. "In all those years, he never said one word about what he did in the war."
On Leonard's seventh day on Iwo Jima, his body was shredded with shrapnel, so much shrapnel that 50 years later he'd still set off the alarm when going through airport security detectors. Even more comparisons. Both Bradley and Leonard, though wounded, refused to leave the battlefield. Here's what Leonard's citation for his Bronze Star with "V" for valor has to say: "Leonard was wounded by shrapnel during enemy mortar, machine gun and rifle fire so intense that any uncovered position was extremely dangerous. With complete disregard for his own safety, Leonard refused to have his wounds treated and refused to be evacuated until he had treated the wounds of eight others and directed their evacuation to a place of safety.
"As a result of his courageous, unselfish action, the lives of three men were saved and the evacuation of five others, including the company commander, were materially expedited. His courage and conduct were in keeping with the highest standards of the United States Navy." And I also would add, "and the United States Marines."
John "Doc" Bradley just happened to be in the right place when the Marines raised the flag on Suribachi. Thanks to the book and Clint Eastwood's movie of the same name, Bradley's name will become known, if it hasn't already, across the land. There's nothing wrong with that.
So read the book. See the movie. And when you learn of "Doc" Bradley in action, remember that you may just as well be learning about "Scrapple" Leonard.
Ellie