While CPT Miller is indeed one of the most compelling characters in Saving Private Ryan, the real guy who inspired him is all the more extraordinary. Tom Hanks’ character was based on 24-year-old CPT Ralph Goranson. Born, appropriately enough, on the 4th of July, 1919, CPT Goranson was the commander of C Company, 2d Ranger Battalion.
War Hero
Bishnu Prasad Shrestha: The Indestructible Gurkha
Published: March 26, 2023 { 14 comments }I have reliable information that movies are not technically real. This story about Bishnu Prasad Shrestha is very much real and as cool as any movie.
LT Norman “Puddle” Poole: The Quiet Professional
Published: February 18, 2023 { 4 comments }Poole had joined the British Army in 1939 and gravitated toward the hard jobs. With the invasion of France looming, LT Poole volunteered for one of the most dangerous missions of the war.
The Unkillable Adrian Carton de Wiart: “Frankly, I Had Enjoyed the War”
Published: February 5, 2023 { 13 comments }Carton de Wiart was raised in a world of privilege, but he was never soft.
“Hoss” from Bonanza was a Real Life War Hero
Published: December 31, 2022 { 17 comments }The fact that he was 6’4″ and weighed 320 pounds didn’t hurt his gridiron prospects.
Montgomery Scott Goes to War: LT Jimmy Doohan on D-Day
Published: June 3, 2022 { 6 comments }Over the years Doohan played a wide range of roles on screens both large and small. However, the one part for which he is best remembered is that of Montgomery Scott, the chief engineer on Star Trek’s starship Enterprise.
MG Maurice Rose: The Division Point
Published: May 28, 2022 { 17 comments }Maurice Rose was born in 1899 in Middletown, Connecticut, the son of Samuel and Katherin Rose. The son and grandson of rabbis from Poland, MG Rose was ultimately the highest-ranking Jewish officer in the United States Army. From the very beginning, Maurice Rose was a warrior.
Alexander Prokhorenko: The Russian Rambo
Published: March 4, 2022 { 14 comments }Why do soldiers fight? The movies and government propagandists would have us believe it is for grand causes. Young folk go to war to free people from oppression or defend their homeland against soulless invaders. To a degree that is true. Soldiers may indeed go to war for such stuff as this. However, what keeps them in the suck is invariably their friends.
LTC Robert Dawson and Operation Infatuate
Published: November 14, 2021 { 13 comments }The British Commandos helped lay the foundation for modern Special Operations.
Miracle at Mirbat: When an SAS Operator Singlehandedly Held Off an Army with a Howitzer
Published: August 8, 2021 { 6 comments }Labalaba spent his childhood on an island and craved adventure. He initially enlisted with the Royal Ulster Rifles and also served with the Royal Irish Rangers. He was a stone-cold warrior.