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(bright music)
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(dramatic music)
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(gentle music)
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(upbeat music)
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- [Bill] My name is Bill Belichick.
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I've been very fortunate
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to be a professional football
coach for many years now.
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It's a career I continue to
feel very passionate about
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and one that I became interested in
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at a very early age thanks to my father.
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The biggest influence in my
life has been my dad, Steve,
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who played in the National Football League
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and was also a football coach for 50 years
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at the United States Naval
Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.
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That's where I grew up and
learned much about the game.
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Like millions of other
men of his generation,
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my father who passed away in 2005,
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served his country in World War II.
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Dad was in the United States Navy.
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He spent time in both
Europe and the Pacific.
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The men and women of the
World War II generation,
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such as my father, are
responsible for all we have today
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including my own opportunity
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to be a professional football coach.
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The following is a story
about one day in World War II,
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June 6, 1944, D-Day.
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A time of both heroics
and horror experienced
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by teenagers and young men.
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Many locations still show the
marks of battle decades later.
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This film brings us unique views
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of the landscape of Normandy, France.
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Intertwined are the stories
are the stories of the men
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who fought on these beaches
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and among these French villages
to preserve our freedom.
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(somber music)
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On June 5th, on the
southern coast of England,
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in towns, villages,
seaports and airfields,
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tens of thousands of men are about
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to board planes and ships,
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ready to begin the
liberation of Western Europe
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from the Nazis.
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- We'd had briefings for several days,
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so we knew that this was
the invasion of Normandy.
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- General Eisenhower visited our unit
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down in the marshaling area.
46
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We were in a compound
behind barbed wire fences,
47
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couldn't talk to anyone.
48
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- In our training we were told, you know,
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the old story, look to your right,
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look to your left, only one
of you is gonna survive.
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- I'm only 18 years old,
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what the hell did I know about anything.
53
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And, so I really, I had no idea that this,
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how big an invasion this was.
55
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(bright music)
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- [Bill] The paratroopers
were among the first to leave,
57
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heading across the English Channel
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in the late hours of June 5th,
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taking a route that would drop them
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over Normandy's Cherbourg Peninsula.
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Below them, thousands of ships filled
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with American, British, Canadian
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and other Allied landing troops
were also headed for France.
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- [Announcer] Soldiers, sailors and airmen
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of the Allied Expeditionary Force,
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I have full confidence in your courage,
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devotion to duty and skill in battle.
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We will accept nothing
less than full victory.
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- I was sitting where I
could look out the door
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00:05:03,940 --> 00:05:07,440
and as far as I could
see there were ships,
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battleships, cruisers, PT boats.
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I told someone, I said,
that's where I think there are
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even some canoes in the bunch.
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All they ever, everything
heading towards France.
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Everything England had.
76
00:05:22,110 --> 00:05:25,090
And then when I could look up,
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the sky was full of airplanes.
78
00:05:28,430 --> 00:05:30,770
- Yes, it looks like he
could walk over there
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on those ships.
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- When I went on the plane,
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there was very little noise,
no talking whatsoever.
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You hear people say,
well I wasn't a'scared,
83
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don't let them kid ya.
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When your life is on the line,
85
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everybody's excited and scared.
86
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- [Bill] The Pathfinders were
the first to jump on D-Day.
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Over 300 of this special force parachuted
88
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around villages and towns with names
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like Chef-du-Pont, Amfreville,
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Sainte-Mere-Eglise and
Sainte Marie-Du-Mont.
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Men such as the 82nd
Airborne's Bill Hannigan,
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headed for fields and villages
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behind Utah Beach in support
94
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of one of D-Day's first missions.
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The early arrivals jumped into Normandy
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to help guide in C-47 planes
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carrying their fellow paratroopers
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in the early morning hours of June 6th.
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- [Bill] They just told us
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it would be a dangerous mission.
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- [Duke] And a Pathfinder
goes in a few hours ahead
102
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of the rest and sends up a homing device.
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It's a device that's you put in the ground
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and when you put it in the ground
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and set it you can't see it
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but that palace could in the distance.
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- We came in low and fast, too fast,
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and too low and we hit the
ground you know quickly
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00:07:00,290 --> 00:07:03,623
and which we liked but it was dangerous.
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This is not a fuzzy arrangement
this is the real McCoy
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and you wonder if this
was your wisest move.
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Maybe it wasn't.
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(dramatic music)
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- [Bill] One vital objective on D-Day
115
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for American paratroopers was
the 11th century French town
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of Sainte-Mere-Englise which
was a key road junction.
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Henry Duke Boswell of 82nd
Airborne was bound for the town,
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as was fellow paratrooper Emmett Nolan
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of the 101st Airborne Division.
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It needed to be taken to
prevent German counter-attacks
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from reaching Utah Beach to disrupt
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the eventual troop
landings there at 6:30 a.m.
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00:08:06,940 --> 00:08:08,740
- [Bill] Just before we
got to Sainte-Mere-Englise,
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00:08:08,740 --> 00:08:11,767
they had a big cloud
bank thousands of feet up
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and all the planes just
disappeared into it.
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- The pilots that were flying us,
127
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this was their first mission.
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- Our original drop zone
was Sainte-Mere-Englise.
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- We parachuted into Normandy landing
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about two o'clock in the morning
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not too far from Sainte-Mere-Englise.
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- [Bill H.] I jumped
and of course you jumped
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with a group of people
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but then when you started coming down,
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you're all by yourself.
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There's no one right near
you, the wind scatters you.
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- By the time you got up
15 men traveled probably
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from a half a mile to a mile.
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So we were strung out all
over that Cherbourg Peninsula.
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- [Bill H.] They were shooting at us,
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machine guns, anti-aircraft,
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00:09:01,460 --> 00:09:04,100
we could see the tracers coming up.
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00:09:04,100 --> 00:09:07,533
I got out of my shirt,
got my rifle assembled.
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00:09:08,705 --> 00:09:12,320
- And we missed Sainte-Mere-Englise.
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00:09:12,320 --> 00:09:17,010
- I can remember I, when I
landed I landed in a tree
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and I didn't know, it was pitch black.
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- I understand that we were
the only unit that landed
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on our correct drop zone, 505,
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the others had missed theirs,
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00:09:29,660 --> 00:09:31,353
some by a little, some by a lot.
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- [Bill] Scattered all over,
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00:09:34,750 --> 00:09:38,640
soldiers from different
divisions, regiments and units,
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gathered into small groups and headed out
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for the nearest objective.
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- [Ted] And we were involved
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in a battle right away with the Germans.
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- [Duke] One of the
companies had jumped right
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over Sainte-Mere-Englise and
they came down over the town.
159
00:10:03,810 --> 00:10:06,140
Some of them landed in the trees,
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00:10:06,140 --> 00:10:09,600
they were shot by the
Germans who were right there
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before they could get
out of their harness.
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- [Ted] Walked into Sainte-Mere-Englise
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and saw John still hanging on the tower.
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I thought he was dead, he'd been wounded
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and they later got him down.
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- At 4:30 in the morning,
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the battalion commander raised a flag
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over Sainte-Mere-Englise
over the City Hall.
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So that was quite an accomplishment,
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so we had that time to breathe,
then we had to hold it.
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Our job was to block the
cross roads and the bridges
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and keep more Germans from
getting down to the beach
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to drive our people off.
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00:11:00,530 --> 00:11:03,080
- There were several attacks
on Sainte-Mere-Englise
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00:11:04,007 --> 00:11:06,933
by the Germans and the
3rd battalion '05 was able
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00:11:06,933 --> 00:11:09,825
to repulse the attacks.
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00:11:09,825 --> 00:11:12,408
(somber music)
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- [Bill] All around Sainte-Mere-Englise
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and the small hamlets
and towns of Normandy,
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00:11:20,160 --> 00:11:22,060
were what the French called the bocage
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00:11:22,910 --> 00:11:25,763
also referred to as the hedgerows.
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The majority of villages in
the region were surrounded
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by farmland and these ancient hedgerows,
184
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dense vegetation and trees growing up
185
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from mounds of soil sometimes
rose to 30 feet in height.
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Dating back to the 16th century,
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the hedgerows were natural borders
188
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that kept the cows in the fields
189
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and defined property lines of the farms.
190
00:12:02,250 --> 00:12:06,513
- [Ted] They were so thick
you couldn't see anything.
191
00:12:15,790 --> 00:12:18,090
- [Bill] The bocage in
Normandy was so dense
192
00:12:18,090 --> 00:12:20,830
that an American paratrooper
could be standing
193
00:12:20,830 --> 00:12:24,890
just a few feet away from a
German soldier on the other side
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and have no idea each other was there.
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It was an unnerving way to fight.
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- [Bill H.] You had to fight your way
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00:12:36,260 --> 00:12:38,580
through a century or two
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00:12:38,580 --> 00:12:41,220
of growth on 'em.
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00:12:41,220 --> 00:12:44,400
- [Bill] 82nd Airborne
paratrooper Bob Chisholm
200
00:12:44,400 --> 00:12:46,570
was bewildered by the bocage.
201
00:12:49,246 --> 00:12:50,260
- The hedgerows was quite difficult
202
00:12:50,260 --> 00:12:53,563
and our intelligence hadn't
really briefed us on it
203
00:12:53,563 --> 00:12:55,393
so I don't think they even knew about it.
204
00:13:22,628 --> 00:13:23,461
(dramatic music)
205
00:13:23,461 --> 00:13:26,420
- [Bill] Among the hedgerows
and just about five miles
206
00:13:26,420 --> 00:13:29,680
from Sainte-Mere-Englise
was another key landing zone
207
00:13:29,680 --> 00:13:31,600
for the American paratroopers.
208
00:13:31,600 --> 00:13:34,720
The ancient village of
Sainte Marie-du-Mont
209
00:13:34,720 --> 00:13:38,423
which provided key exits off
Utah Beach for the landings.
210
00:13:40,932 --> 00:13:43,682
(dramatic music)
211
00:13:55,464 --> 00:13:58,960
Dominated by a church that
dates back to the 11th century,
212
00:13:58,960 --> 00:14:00,700
the village was a key objective
213
00:14:00,700 --> 00:14:03,113
of the 101st Airborne on D-Day.
214
00:14:12,210 --> 00:14:14,850
Like nearby Sainte-Mere-Englise,
215
00:14:14,850 --> 00:14:17,410
Sainte Marie-du-Mont had been occupied
216
00:14:17,410 --> 00:14:19,863
by the Germans since 1940.
217
00:14:21,130 --> 00:14:24,760
It needed to be taken to
prevent German counter-attacks
218
00:14:24,760 --> 00:14:26,403
when the beach landings began.
219
00:14:44,030 --> 00:14:46,310
Unknown to Allied planners on D-Day,
220
00:14:46,310 --> 00:14:50,800
was the location of four
German 105 millimeter cannons
221
00:14:50,800 --> 00:14:53,540
just outside of Sainte Marie-du-Mont
222
00:14:53,540 --> 00:14:55,663
at a place called Brecourt Manor.
223
00:15:03,030 --> 00:15:05,420
Brecourt Manor dates back centuries
224
00:15:05,420 --> 00:15:07,590
and to this day is still owned
225
00:15:07,590 --> 00:15:09,550
by the de Vallavieille family
226
00:15:10,430 --> 00:15:12,493
it remains a working farm.
227
00:15:26,220 --> 00:15:29,540
On D-Day the four German guns were located
228
00:15:29,540 --> 00:15:33,620
along this hedgerow
facing towards Utah Beach.
229
00:15:33,620 --> 00:15:35,410
As the landings got underway,
230
00:15:35,410 --> 00:15:38,300
the German guns began blasting away.
231
00:15:38,300 --> 00:15:40,043
They needed to be silenced.
232
00:15:41,180 --> 00:15:42,680
The difficult mission was given
233
00:15:42,680 --> 00:15:44,880
to First Lieutenant Richard Winters
234
00:15:44,880 --> 00:15:46,883
of the 101st Airborne Division.
235
00:15:53,760 --> 00:15:56,700
Winters led 11 other soldiers
in the initial attack
236
00:15:56,700 --> 00:15:58,840
to knock out the guns defended
237
00:15:58,840 --> 00:16:01,933
by roughly 100 Germans
in and around this field.
238
00:16:04,200 --> 00:16:08,330
A trench that once ran along
the hedgerow was the only route
239
00:16:08,330 --> 00:16:09,683
to attack the guns.
240
00:16:11,150 --> 00:16:13,233
It was early on D-Day morning.
241
00:16:19,520 --> 00:16:23,130
- Take out those guns is
the way it was put to me.
242
00:16:23,130 --> 00:16:25,740
The first thing I did
was go off by myself,
243
00:16:25,740 --> 00:16:28,980
crawl out this one
hedgerow to scout it out.
244
00:16:28,980 --> 00:16:33,210
After I scouted it out I could
see where a machine gun was
245
00:16:33,210 --> 00:16:37,500
and I thought there was a
gun in that hedgerow there.
246
00:16:37,500 --> 00:16:40,280
I knew enough about where the trench was
247
00:16:40,280 --> 00:16:44,250
and where these guns were came
back and I gave my orders.
248
00:16:44,250 --> 00:16:45,980
Was Compten, you go up this hedgerow
249
00:16:45,980 --> 00:16:47,463
and I'll go up this hedgerow.
250
00:16:49,610 --> 00:16:52,270
I split up what we have here so that
251
00:16:52,270 --> 00:16:55,030
if we do get pinned down we
both won't be pinned down
252
00:16:55,030 --> 00:16:58,410
at the same time and we
got everybody together
253
00:16:58,410 --> 00:17:02,750
and set up the two machine guns we had
254
00:17:02,750 --> 00:17:04,650
to lay down a base of fire
255
00:17:04,650 --> 00:17:09,650
and had Compton, Popeye Wynn
and Malarkey go out there
256
00:17:09,880 --> 00:17:12,030
and try to put some hand grenades on them,
257
00:17:12,030 --> 00:17:13,910
so that with the instructions
258
00:17:13,910 --> 00:17:15,720
as soon as you throw those hand grenades,
259
00:17:15,720 --> 00:17:18,210
we'll all charge which we did.
260
00:17:18,210 --> 00:17:21,100
And we were fortunate
enough to get in there
261
00:17:21,100 --> 00:17:23,460
as those hand grenades are going off
262
00:17:23,460 --> 00:17:28,460
and we got on top of them
and we got in the trench.
263
00:17:28,540 --> 00:17:31,623
(somber tense music)
264
00:17:39,945 --> 00:17:42,612
(gentle music)
265
00:17:58,923 --> 00:18:00,990
- [Bill] Just a short
distance from Brecourt Manor,
266
00:18:00,990 --> 00:18:03,350
where the four German guns were silenced,
267
00:18:03,350 --> 00:18:06,470
is a monument recognizing
Richard Winters' bravery
268
00:18:06,470 --> 00:18:08,163
and leadership on D-Day.
269
00:18:11,290 --> 00:18:13,600
The Richard Winters leadership monument
270
00:18:13,600 --> 00:18:15,933
was dedicated in 2012.
271
00:18:18,060 --> 00:18:21,730
The monument not only honors
Dick Winters' own D-Day efforts
272
00:18:21,730 --> 00:18:24,860
which resulted in the
Distinguished Service Cross
273
00:18:24,860 --> 00:18:27,440
but those of all American junior officers
274
00:18:27,440 --> 00:18:31,073
who displayed so much
courage on June 6th, 1944.
275
00:18:40,770 --> 00:18:45,173
Damian Lewis played Dick Winters
in HBO's Band of Brothers.
276
00:18:47,460 --> 00:18:49,333
- Dick was very, very skeptical.
277
00:18:50,326 --> 00:18:52,745
He was suspicious of Hollywood
278
00:18:52,745 --> 00:18:54,137
and he said, "I don't want my story,
279
00:18:54,137 --> 00:18:58,497
"the story of my war, the
men I shared the war with
280
00:18:58,497 --> 00:19:01,880
"turn into some sensationalist
Hollywood thing."
281
00:19:01,880 --> 00:19:06,880
And Tom had to talk him
down and you know, just say,
282
00:19:07,040 --> 00:19:09,360
we guarantee you will do everything we can
283
00:19:09,360 --> 00:19:11,820
to make this social document
284
00:19:11,820 --> 00:19:16,055
not a bit of sort of
sensationalist storytelling.
285
00:19:16,055 --> 00:19:17,530
And Dick was won over
286
00:19:17,530 --> 00:19:22,349
and he was very, very proud
to be associated with it.
287
00:19:22,349 --> 00:19:24,930
(dramatic music)
288
00:19:24,930 --> 00:19:28,957
- [Bill] Around 6:30 a.m.
on Tuesday, June 6th, 1944,
289
00:19:30,660 --> 00:19:33,640
the Allied beach landings got underway.
290
00:19:33,640 --> 00:19:36,680
Utah Beach on the very western end
291
00:19:36,680 --> 00:19:39,810
of all the invasion
beaches was the objective
292
00:19:39,810 --> 00:19:42,900
of the American 4th Infantry Division.
293
00:19:42,900 --> 00:19:47,700
both Bill Miret and Jim Gaff
were in on the first wave
294
00:19:47,700 --> 00:19:49,970
as the Navy began approaching the beaches
295
00:19:49,970 --> 00:19:51,790
and began to receive fire
296
00:19:51,790 --> 00:19:54,733
from German gun
emplacements and pillboxes.
297
00:19:57,390 --> 00:19:59,230
- Everything is seemed calm until
298
00:20:02,230 --> 00:20:06,653
all of a sudden you had taken
troops to go to the beach.
299
00:20:07,493 --> 00:20:08,420
- It's hard to look back out there
300
00:20:08,420 --> 00:20:12,020
and think that we've brought
our boats in as close as that.
301
00:20:12,020 --> 00:20:13,130
- [Announcer] This is a special bulletin.
302
00:20:13,130 --> 00:20:16,360
The long awaited British
and American invasion began.
303
00:20:16,360 --> 00:20:18,020
- [Jim] They were everywhere. (laughs)
304
00:20:18,020 --> 00:20:23,020
I mean all kinds LCIs,
LCTs, LSTs, destroyers
305
00:20:24,050 --> 00:20:28,271
and they were just covered with ships.
306
00:20:28,271 --> 00:20:29,104
- [Announcer] We interrupt our program
307
00:20:29,104 --> 00:20:30,844
to bring you a special broadcast.
308
00:20:30,844 --> 00:20:31,770
- [Announcer] Eisenhower's headquarters
309
00:20:31,770 --> 00:20:33,682
announces Allies land in France.
310
00:20:33,682 --> 00:20:34,620
- [Announcer] This is D-Day.
311
00:20:34,620 --> 00:20:36,000
- [Announcer] Allied troops began landing
312
00:20:36,000 --> 00:20:38,260
on the northern coast
of France this morning,
313
00:20:38,260 --> 00:20:40,410
strongly supported by
naval and air forces.
314
00:20:41,930 --> 00:20:46,350
- [Jim] My LST was just
loaded with wounded soldiers
315
00:20:48,356 --> 00:20:51,011
and the tank deck was full of cots.
316
00:20:51,011 --> 00:20:53,676
- [Announcer] A landing
was made this morning
317
00:20:53,676 --> 00:20:56,261
on the coast of France.
318
00:20:56,261 --> 00:20:57,094
- [Jim] When you think about it,
319
00:20:57,094 --> 00:21:00,370
you know an entrenched enemy in pillboxes,
320
00:21:00,370 --> 00:21:04,622
looking down on the beach
with machine guns and cannon
321
00:21:04,622 --> 00:21:07,660
and those soldiers crossed that beach,
322
00:21:07,660 --> 00:21:09,113
took an awful lot of guts.
323
00:21:10,810 --> 00:21:13,120
- [Announcer] The British
American landing operation
324
00:21:13,120 --> 00:21:14,980
against the western coast of Europe,
325
00:21:14,980 --> 00:21:16,860
from the sea and from the air,
326
00:21:16,860 --> 00:21:19,260
are stretching over the entire area
327
00:21:19,260 --> 00:21:20,953
between Cherbourg and Le Havre.
328
00:21:23,330 --> 00:21:27,260
- [Bill] Today a museum dedicated
to the Utah beach landings
329
00:21:27,260 --> 00:21:31,320
stands just off one of the
key exits soldiers took
330
00:21:31,320 --> 00:21:36,210
on June 6th, 1944, to move
inland from the beach.
331
00:21:36,210 --> 00:21:39,810
The Utah Beach Museum, built
from an old German bunker
332
00:21:39,810 --> 00:21:42,150
that faced out towards
the English Channel,
333
00:21:42,150 --> 00:21:45,120
was the vision of Michel de Vallavieille,
334
00:21:45,120 --> 00:21:48,410
wounded on D-Day as a
teenager during the fight
335
00:21:48,410 --> 00:21:51,963
around his family-owned Brecourt Manor.
336
00:21:58,717 --> 00:22:01,217
(tense music)
337
00:22:02,960 --> 00:22:05,390
At about the same time
the landings were going on
338
00:22:05,390 --> 00:22:08,430
at Utah Beach, 30 miles to the east,
339
00:22:08,430 --> 00:22:10,820
two American divisions
were also coming ashore
340
00:22:10,820 --> 00:22:15,360
on Omaha Beach to secure that
part of the Normandy coast.
341
00:22:15,360 --> 00:22:19,230
Walter Szura was with the
1st Infantry Division,
342
00:22:19,230 --> 00:22:22,330
Mort Kaplan was a Navy Beachmaster,
343
00:22:22,330 --> 00:22:24,283
tasked with traffic control.
344
00:22:27,250 --> 00:22:30,280
The eastern end of Omaha
was the responsibility
345
00:22:30,280 --> 00:22:32,223
of the 1st Infantry Division.
346
00:22:39,760 --> 00:22:41,060
- Yeah, you're scared.
347
00:22:41,060 --> 00:22:42,670
You tighten up and you don't think,
348
00:22:42,670 --> 00:22:45,220
I didn't think about it,
says what happens happens.
349
00:22:48,800 --> 00:22:51,240
- [Bill] Several hundred
yards of open beach
350
00:22:51,240 --> 00:22:54,573
and murderous German fire
awaited their arrival.
351
00:22:55,950 --> 00:23:00,950
- [Walter] A lot of firing,
ships, planes and strafing.
352
00:23:04,510 --> 00:23:05,680
How are you gonna explain this
353
00:23:05,680 --> 00:23:07,630
and machine guns coming from the beach.
354
00:23:13,440 --> 00:23:17,630
- Climbing across little
fences things of that sort,
355
00:23:17,630 --> 00:23:18,800
there was some in the water,
356
00:23:18,800 --> 00:23:22,080
bodies which had been cut in pieces.
357
00:23:22,080 --> 00:23:27,080
- I saw a lot of bombardment on this shore
358
00:23:28,520 --> 00:23:33,520
and after the second day we
served as a hospital ship
359
00:23:35,240 --> 00:23:38,210
and carried casualties off of this beach
360
00:23:38,210 --> 00:23:40,223
into London, England.
361
00:23:47,170 --> 00:23:49,250
- Then there was a cement wall,
362
00:23:49,250 --> 00:23:51,920
when you hit the beaches there's
a cement wall still there,
363
00:23:51,920 --> 00:23:54,730
part of the cement wall a
lot of us guys hid in it,
364
00:23:54,730 --> 00:23:58,363
we land up in there and
that's where I headed for.
365
00:23:59,400 --> 00:24:01,080
- [Bill] Today a monument
366
00:24:01,080 --> 00:24:05,170
to the 1st Infantry Division's
heroism stands guard
367
00:24:05,170 --> 00:24:07,763
over the eastern end of Omaha Beach.
368
00:24:09,810 --> 00:24:12,880
Nearby the remnants of
several German bunkers
369
00:24:12,880 --> 00:24:15,350
and machine-gun nests stare coldly back
370
00:24:15,350 --> 00:24:16,763
at this part of the beach.
371
00:24:23,879 --> 00:24:26,462
(somber music)
372
00:24:29,910 --> 00:24:32,040
On the western end of Omaha Beach,
373
00:24:32,040 --> 00:24:33,970
the fighting was just as fierce
374
00:24:33,970 --> 00:24:35,543
as it was on the eastern end.
375
00:24:36,510 --> 00:24:40,070
Hal Baumgarten of the
29th Infantry Division,
376
00:24:40,070 --> 00:24:42,003
came ashore in the second wave.
377
00:24:46,180 --> 00:24:49,220
The inexperienced 29th fought their way in
378
00:24:49,220 --> 00:24:52,433
just below the French village
of Viereville-sur-Mer.
379
00:24:56,950 --> 00:24:59,610
Crossing 300 yards of open beach
380
00:24:59,610 --> 00:25:03,670
was the challenge facing
Baumgarten and his fellow soldiers
381
00:25:03,670 --> 00:25:06,503
on their pre-assigned
landing zone on Omaha.
382
00:25:13,690 --> 00:25:15,343
- I got shot in the rifle.
383
00:25:16,520 --> 00:25:18,990
It vibrated, I turned it around,
384
00:25:18,990 --> 00:25:23,293
my seven bullets in the
magazine section saved my life.
385
00:25:25,230 --> 00:25:29,270
So I didn't get wounded
until after I hit the ground.
386
00:25:29,270 --> 00:25:34,120
I looked up at the pillbox
number 73 on the right flank
387
00:25:34,120 --> 00:25:36,820
and a 88 went off in front of me.
388
00:25:36,820 --> 00:25:41,310
Ripped this cheek off,
ripped the upper jaw off,
389
00:25:41,310 --> 00:25:44,803
holding the roof of the mouth,
teeth and gums on my tongue.
390
00:26:01,420 --> 00:26:03,300
- The men had not seen combat yet
391
00:26:03,300 --> 00:26:06,350
and consequently you know they had
392
00:26:06,350 --> 00:26:11,350
that innocent high morale
393
00:26:11,818 --> 00:26:15,380
and exceptional training
and if anybody could do it,
394
00:26:15,380 --> 00:26:16,530
they knew they could.
395
00:26:16,530 --> 00:26:17,730
I mean and it was interesting
396
00:26:17,730 --> 00:26:21,520
because they combined that rawness
397
00:26:21,520 --> 00:26:23,750
with their landing partner to the east,
398
00:26:23,750 --> 00:26:27,060
the 1st Infantry Division
which was exactly the opposite
399
00:26:27,060 --> 00:26:28,560
and you know they had already been
400
00:26:28,560 --> 00:26:29,990
in two amphibious assaults
401
00:26:30,957 --> 00:26:32,757
and were highly, highly experienced.
402
00:26:33,601 --> 00:26:36,050
And so it was a good
combination of the two units
403
00:26:36,050 --> 00:26:38,260
because they brought two
different perspectives
404
00:26:38,260 --> 00:26:39,683
to the whole operation.
405
00:26:48,730 --> 00:26:51,000
- All these guys that
you knew as your friends,
406
00:26:51,000 --> 00:26:54,210
you trained with them and
they're there laying dead.
407
00:26:54,210 --> 00:26:57,343
When I look at Dog Green
Sector I see all the bodies.
408
00:27:00,397 --> 00:27:02,823
It's kind of sad each time.
409
00:27:03,920 --> 00:27:08,920
For example on Dog Green
Sector we lost 85% casualties
410
00:27:10,570 --> 00:27:12,033
in the first 15 minutes.
411
00:27:21,460 --> 00:27:24,130
- [Bill] As is the case on
the eastern end of Omaha,
412
00:27:24,130 --> 00:27:26,560
time stands still on
this part of the beach
413
00:27:26,560 --> 00:27:28,230
with German gun emplacements
414
00:27:28,230 --> 00:27:31,973
and bunkers still intertwined
with the landscape.
415
00:27:33,590 --> 00:27:36,340
(dramatic music)
416
00:27:57,722 --> 00:28:00,060
(gentle music)
417
00:28:00,060 --> 00:28:02,290
While the Americans
fought their way ashore
418
00:28:02,290 --> 00:28:04,280
on Omaha and Utah
419
00:28:04,280 --> 00:28:06,660
over on Gold Beach the British began
420
00:28:06,660 --> 00:28:09,600
to land close to 7:30 that morning.
421
00:28:09,600 --> 00:28:12,640
Frank Amalfatano was an American assigned
422
00:28:12,640 --> 00:28:14,650
to a landing craft responsible
423
00:28:14,650 --> 00:28:17,623
for bringing British
troops into Gold Beach.
424
00:28:27,324 --> 00:28:32,324
- All I can remember that in
front of us was a big hill
425
00:28:32,380 --> 00:28:36,310
then there was a lot of
resistance up in front of us
426
00:28:38,470 --> 00:28:40,383
and then we got into trouble,
427
00:28:41,810 --> 00:28:45,160
that the soldiers didn't
want to get out of the boat.
428
00:28:45,160 --> 00:28:47,300
We used some rough language
429
00:28:47,300 --> 00:28:50,573
but then we finally got them off.
430
00:28:55,110 --> 00:28:56,930
- [Bill] Within range of Gold Beach
431
00:28:56,930 --> 00:28:59,840
and Frank Amalfatano's British troops
432
00:28:59,840 --> 00:29:03,623
were the large German gun
emplacements at Laurent-sur-Mere.
433
00:29:09,272 --> 00:29:14,270
- [Frank] And there was a lot
of booming, banging going on
434
00:29:14,270 --> 00:29:19,270
and I think to myself
that we were 18 years old
435
00:29:21,217 --> 00:29:23,763
and we didn't know what
the heck we were doing,
436
00:29:24,932 --> 00:29:26,082
know what was going on.
437
00:29:28,870 --> 00:29:30,580
- [Bill] By 6:20 that morning,
438
00:29:30,580 --> 00:29:33,730
three of the four long-range
guns had been knocked out
439
00:29:33,730 --> 00:29:35,283
by British naval fire.
440
00:29:36,240 --> 00:29:38,250
The fourth would not be silenced
441
00:29:39,258 --> 00:29:40,658
and captured until June 7th.
442
00:29:51,853 --> 00:29:54,436
(gentle music)
443
00:29:56,430 --> 00:29:59,730
Roughly halfway between
Omaha and Utah Beach
444
00:29:59,730 --> 00:30:03,700
in the American sector lies
the 100 foot high cliffs
445
00:30:03,700 --> 00:30:05,053
of Pointe du Hoc.
446
00:30:09,690 --> 00:30:12,580
On D-Day, the 2nd Rangers were facing
447
00:30:12,580 --> 00:30:15,370
what was considered to
be a suicide mission,
448
00:30:15,370 --> 00:30:17,720
climbing the cliffs under German fire
449
00:30:17,720 --> 00:30:21,663
to eliminate six big guns
believed to be on the Pointe.
450
00:30:33,150 --> 00:30:35,690
The mission was called the
most important on D-Day
451
00:30:35,690 --> 00:30:38,920
by Supreme Allied Commander
Dwight D. Eisenhower,
452
00:30:38,920 --> 00:30:42,420
as the enemy cannons had
Utah and Omaha Beach,
453
00:30:42,420 --> 00:30:45,493
and the ships in the English
Channel within range.
454
00:30:58,760 --> 00:31:01,030
- When we got to Pointe do Hoc
455
00:31:01,030 --> 00:31:03,153
and landed and our ramps went down,
456
00:31:04,850 --> 00:31:08,350
we got on the beach and
made our way to the bottom
457
00:31:08,350 --> 00:31:11,660
of the cliffs where we
had fired our ropes up
458
00:31:11,660 --> 00:31:13,560
over the tops of the cliffs
459
00:31:13,560 --> 00:31:16,750
and they were draped down
in front of the cliffs.
460
00:31:16,750 --> 00:31:19,010
And it's 100 feet straight up.
461
00:31:19,010 --> 00:31:20,730
We had to run to the rope
462
00:31:20,730 --> 00:31:24,423
and climb that rope with our gear and all.
463
00:31:26,240 --> 00:31:30,380
And all the way up the 100
foot cliff was being shot at
464
00:31:30,380 --> 00:31:34,810
at the same time by the Germans
along the top of the cliffs,
465
00:31:34,810 --> 00:31:36,930
and they were dropping grenades on us
466
00:31:36,930 --> 00:31:40,690
and trying in every
way possible to keep us
467
00:31:40,690 --> 00:31:43,770
from successfully climbing that cliff
468
00:31:43,770 --> 00:31:47,267
and getting up there and
battling it out with them.
469
00:31:47,267 --> 00:31:50,333
And it got to the point of
hand to hand combat at times.
470
00:31:51,320 --> 00:31:54,960
But we did, we were lucky,
a lot of guys weren't lucky,
471
00:31:54,960 --> 00:31:56,343
we had heavy casualties.
472
00:31:59,420 --> 00:32:01,503
- [Bill] It turns out the guns
473
00:32:01,503 --> 00:32:03,190
the 2nd Rangers had been after
474
00:32:03,190 --> 00:32:06,483
had been moved inland to
a nearby apple orchard.
475
00:32:09,030 --> 00:32:13,527
- Only the large gun
positions that is believed
476
00:32:14,500 --> 00:32:18,800
to have housed the coastal
guns at Pointe du Hoc,
477
00:32:18,800 --> 00:32:20,510
they weren't guns at all,
478
00:32:20,510 --> 00:32:25,433
what appeared to be their
barrels were telephone poles,
479
00:32:26,270 --> 00:32:28,940
very dark and they were maybe stained
480
00:32:28,940 --> 00:32:30,930
or painted black or whatever.
481
00:32:30,930 --> 00:32:33,090
And from an aerial photograph,
482
00:32:33,090 --> 00:32:35,270
I don't know how high they took it at,
483
00:32:35,270 --> 00:32:38,820
it looked like the guns were
in these particular positions.
484
00:32:38,820 --> 00:32:43,820
And my platoon and company had
positions four, five and six
485
00:32:45,370 --> 00:32:47,023
on the west side of the Pointe.
486
00:32:49,080 --> 00:32:50,123
They weren't there.
487
00:33:07,950 --> 00:33:11,640
When we found no guns,
we headed for the road
488
00:33:11,640 --> 00:33:13,270
to establish a roadblock.
489
00:33:13,270 --> 00:33:17,090
I only had 12 men, so I told 10 of them,
490
00:33:17,090 --> 00:33:18,060
with their sergeants,
491
00:33:18,060 --> 00:33:20,480
now you guys go ahead, set up a roadblock
492
00:33:20,480 --> 00:33:24,950
and make sure no Germans get
through here to keep contact.
493
00:33:24,950 --> 00:33:27,970
And Jack, you come with
me, my platoon sergeant.
494
00:33:27,970 --> 00:33:30,340
I said, you and I are
gonna go find those guns.
495
00:33:30,340 --> 00:33:33,870
Well, Jack and I could only remember
496
00:33:33,870 --> 00:33:38,350
this one sunken road
that went to the rear.
497
00:33:38,350 --> 00:33:39,460
And we saw what looked
498
00:33:39,460 --> 00:33:44,143
to be the wagon wheel tracks on the dirt.
499
00:33:45,880 --> 00:33:48,340
And this hedgerow,
500
00:33:48,340 --> 00:33:51,600
and it was a hedgerow was
a good nine, 10 feet tall,
501
00:33:51,600 --> 00:33:54,110
with 50 foot trees out of the top.
502
00:33:54,110 --> 00:33:57,600
And there lo and behold are the guns
503
00:33:57,600 --> 00:33:59,540
of Pointe du Hoc, only five of 'em.
504
00:33:59,540 --> 00:34:01,093
There were supposed to be six.
505
00:34:02,030 --> 00:34:06,020
The five were in position,
they were aimed at Utah Beach
506
00:34:06,920 --> 00:34:11,920
and they had their shells all
orderly set up, ready to fire.
507
00:34:17,270 --> 00:34:19,510
And remember further that
the Germans never believed
508
00:34:19,510 --> 00:34:22,030
anybody would be crazy enough
to come up those cliffs at 'em
509
00:34:22,030 --> 00:34:26,030
so they didn't have them
very heavily guarded.
510
00:34:26,030 --> 00:34:29,920
There were no guards
on the guns that I saw.
511
00:34:29,920 --> 00:34:33,593
But I went in and I had his grenade,
512
00:34:33,593 --> 00:34:36,660
a thermite grenade and
my thermite grenade.
513
00:34:36,660 --> 00:34:39,000
Then I took my field jacket off,
514
00:34:39,000 --> 00:34:42,530
I wrapped that around
my submachine gunstock
515
00:34:42,530 --> 00:34:45,800
and I smashed the sights of all five guns.
516
00:34:45,800 --> 00:34:48,323
So I destroyed the sights of the five guns
517
00:34:48,323 --> 00:34:52,190
so they couldn't sight it.
518
00:34:52,190 --> 00:34:56,510
I destroyed two of the guns
with a thermite grenade
519
00:34:56,510 --> 00:34:58,920
and I said Jack, we gotta run back
520
00:34:58,920 --> 00:35:01,730
and get the other guys thermite grenades.
521
00:35:01,730 --> 00:35:04,300
And I was able to take those grenades
522
00:35:04,300 --> 00:35:07,790
and put one each on the
remaining three guns
523
00:35:07,790 --> 00:35:10,320
and repeat what I had done before,
524
00:35:10,320 --> 00:35:12,560
thus putting all five guns out of action
525
00:35:12,560 --> 00:35:14,200
so they could not be used.
526
00:35:14,200 --> 00:35:17,123
That was our mission, that
accomplished our mission.
527
00:35:21,110 --> 00:35:23,950
- [Bill] Of the 225 Rangers
assigned the mission,
528
00:35:23,950 --> 00:35:27,973
135 were dead or wounded
after two days of battle.
529
00:35:28,989 --> 00:35:31,572
(somber music)
530
00:35:34,080 --> 00:35:37,767
- We were successful for
the next couple of days
531
00:35:37,767 --> 00:35:42,767
in the beating off attacks by the Germans,
532
00:35:42,860 --> 00:35:46,800
we accomplished the mission
of D-Day and we were relieved,
533
00:35:46,800 --> 00:35:51,800
D plus two and our
wounded were taken care of
534
00:35:52,410 --> 00:35:54,790
and our dead guys were taken care of.
535
00:35:54,790 --> 00:35:57,240
And why I say that is because
536
00:35:57,240 --> 00:36:01,490
there weren't very many left
of us after that battle,
537
00:36:01,490 --> 00:36:04,023
of D-Day, at that point in time.
538
00:36:09,810 --> 00:36:12,510
- [Bill] Thanks to the
air force, prior to D-Day,
539
00:36:12,510 --> 00:36:14,430
and then shelling by Allied ships
540
00:36:14,430 --> 00:36:16,850
in the channel on June 6th,
541
00:36:16,850 --> 00:36:20,373
the Pointe is forever
scarred with massive craters.
542
00:36:51,160 --> 00:36:55,120
- I came to the area where
they were gathering the bodies
543
00:36:55,120 --> 00:36:56,890
of the men in the battle.
544
00:36:56,890 --> 00:37:01,553
And lo and behold they
had all my guys lined up,
545
00:37:03,330 --> 00:37:06,590
laid out along the roadside,
546
00:37:06,590 --> 00:37:10,030
on the shoulder of the
road with a name tag on 'em
547
00:37:10,030 --> 00:37:14,940
and who they were and
preparatory to taking them
548
00:37:14,940 --> 00:37:19,100
to a cemetery or a morgue
or something, somewhere.
549
00:37:19,100 --> 00:37:20,780
But they had all young men together
550
00:37:20,780 --> 00:37:23,070
and here for the first time,
551
00:37:23,070 --> 00:37:24,510
I was seeing
552
00:37:27,675 --> 00:37:28,853
what happens in war.
553
00:37:40,720 --> 00:37:43,690
We indeed come here
brothers, we still are.
554
00:37:43,690 --> 00:37:45,750
I had brothers in real life,
555
00:37:45,750 --> 00:37:48,740
but I don't think my own blood brothers
556
00:37:48,740 --> 00:37:51,360
or any brother meant more
557
00:37:51,360 --> 00:37:54,070
to me than my fellow Ranger buddy.
558
00:38:00,060 --> 00:38:04,130
- [Bill] Today, a monument
on top of Pointe du Hoc
559
00:38:04,130 --> 00:38:07,423
recognizes the Rangers'
courage and sacrifice.
560
00:38:13,267 --> 00:38:14,130
(gentle music)
561
00:38:14,130 --> 00:38:17,800
Back behind Utah Beach
another fight was raging
562
00:38:17,800 --> 00:38:20,020
just outside of Sainte-Mere-Eglise
563
00:38:20,020 --> 00:38:22,450
in the tiny hamlet of La Fiere,
564
00:38:22,450 --> 00:38:26,500
Ted Morgan, a medic and the
American 82nd Airborne Division,
565
00:38:26,500 --> 00:38:30,170
found himself right in the
middle of the fierce battle.
566
00:38:30,170 --> 00:38:32,520
La Fiere and this bridge and causeway
567
00:38:32,520 --> 00:38:35,040
along the Merderet River had become some
568
00:38:35,040 --> 00:38:37,853
of the most important
real estate in Normandy.
569
00:38:38,750 --> 00:38:41,190
- I think we had to be there on the scene
570
00:38:42,909 --> 00:38:47,100
to understand what a
major objective that was
571
00:38:47,100 --> 00:38:49,780
- Where did the Germans
were trying to get across
572
00:38:49,780 --> 00:38:52,170
and we were trying to push him back.
573
00:38:52,170 --> 00:38:55,250
- [Bill] The Germans needed
the 1600 foot long causeway
574
00:38:55,250 --> 00:38:58,120
to send reinforcements towards Utah Beach
575
00:38:58,120 --> 00:39:00,160
and the American landings there.
576
00:39:00,160 --> 00:39:02,220
The 82nd Airborne was fighting
577
00:39:02,220 --> 00:39:04,070
to prevent that from happening.
578
00:39:04,070 --> 00:39:06,840
- [Ted] Because that was the major bridge
579
00:39:06,840 --> 00:39:11,320
over which the Germans
could send in reinforcements
580
00:39:11,320 --> 00:39:13,350
and they weren't able to do that
581
00:39:13,350 --> 00:39:15,197
once we secured the bridge.
582
00:39:16,100 --> 00:39:18,000
- [Duke] Ive heard it described as one
583
00:39:18,930 --> 00:39:20,800
of the most important battles
of the Normandy campaign
584
00:39:20,800 --> 00:39:22,560
and they lost quite a few people.
585
00:39:22,560 --> 00:39:26,063
- [Ted] there was artillery
fire, small arms fire.
586
00:39:30,550 --> 00:39:32,960
- [Bill] Disabled German tanks symbolized
587
00:39:32,960 --> 00:39:35,583
the fierce fight going
on to hold the bridge.
588
00:39:37,500 --> 00:39:40,030
- [Ted] With their weaponry they had a,
589
00:39:40,030 --> 00:39:43,570
this 88 was just an amazing weapon.
590
00:39:43,570 --> 00:39:46,520
We had to be covered, we had to take cover
591
00:39:46,520 --> 00:39:51,000
and eventually with the reinforcements
592
00:39:51,000 --> 00:39:54,350
with tank reinforcements from the beach,
593
00:39:54,350 --> 00:39:56,657
we were able to secure the bridge
594
00:39:56,657 --> 00:39:59,870
but it took two or three days to do that.
595
00:39:59,870 --> 00:40:01,483
It wasn't a simple task.
596
00:40:02,460 --> 00:40:04,450
- [Bill] The fields
surrounding the causeway had
597
00:40:04,450 --> 00:40:06,230
all been flooded by the Germans
598
00:40:06,230 --> 00:40:09,273
to prevent paratrooper
and glider landings.
599
00:40:10,230 --> 00:40:13,110
- [Bill H.] Some of our
men became casualties,
600
00:40:13,110 --> 00:40:15,610
they drowned in the water
that flooded the fields.
601
00:40:17,310 --> 00:40:19,120
- [Bill] The destruction
of the local manor
602
00:40:19,120 --> 00:40:21,923
and the surrounding
buildings was extensive.
603
00:40:24,760 --> 00:40:27,280
Across the causeway on the German side,
604
00:40:27,280 --> 00:40:31,910
the ancient church in the
hamlet of Cauquigny was leveled.
605
00:40:31,910 --> 00:40:34,850
The entire area had become
the focus of a fight
606
00:40:34,850 --> 00:40:37,900
that may very well determine
the success or failure
607
00:40:37,900 --> 00:40:39,723
of the Utah Beach landings.
608
00:40:42,520 --> 00:40:45,330
- There was one of our troopers injured
609
00:40:45,330 --> 00:40:49,890
on the side of a road going to the bridge.
610
00:40:49,890 --> 00:40:51,920
I remember taking care of him
611
00:40:51,920 --> 00:40:54,400
and while I was taking care of him
612
00:40:54,400 --> 00:40:58,067
there was a German tank coming toward us
613
00:40:58,067 --> 00:41:01,023
and he kept saying Morgan,
there's a tank out there,
614
00:41:01,023 --> 00:41:04,053
there's a German tank coming towards us.
615
00:41:05,160 --> 00:41:08,983
And I wasn't about to leave
him, I couldn't carry him
616
00:41:08,983 --> 00:41:11,820
and I just didn't pay much attention
617
00:41:11,820 --> 00:41:16,200
and all of a sudden the
tank drew up beside us
618
00:41:16,200 --> 00:41:20,510
and a German head popped
out of the turret.
619
00:41:20,510 --> 00:41:24,070
He looked down at us and the casualty,
620
00:41:24,070 --> 00:41:25,627
he says, "They're going to kill us Morgan
621
00:41:25,627 --> 00:41:27,620
"they're gonna kill us both."
622
00:41:27,620 --> 00:41:30,210
All of a sudden the head went back down,
623
00:41:30,210 --> 00:41:32,090
the tank cover closed,
624
00:41:32,090 --> 00:41:34,470
the tank took off up the road
625
00:41:34,470 --> 00:41:38,030
which was probably a miracle I guess
626
00:41:38,030 --> 00:41:40,943
but that was, I remember that vividly.
627
00:41:45,310 --> 00:41:47,250
- [Bill] Finally on June 9th,
628
00:41:47,250 --> 00:41:49,400
after three days of savage fighting
629
00:41:49,400 --> 00:41:50,970
and hundreds of casualties,
630
00:41:50,970 --> 00:41:54,593
La Fiere and Cauquigny
were in the American hands.
631
00:41:57,780 --> 00:42:01,690
Today a monument to the fight
stands near the Merderet River
632
00:42:01,690 --> 00:42:03,970
just yards away from the bridge.
633
00:42:03,970 --> 00:42:06,870
It features an airborne
paratrooper referred to
634
00:42:06,870 --> 00:42:08,533
as Iron Mike.
635
00:42:20,973 --> 00:42:22,380
(dramatic music)
636
00:42:22,380 --> 00:42:24,640
22 miles away from La Fiere,
637
00:42:24,640 --> 00:42:27,390
is the French village of La Cambe.
638
00:42:27,390 --> 00:42:31,710
La Cambe is inland near the
ancient French town of Bayeux
639
00:42:31,710 --> 00:42:34,012
and behind the Omaha Beachhead.
640
00:42:34,012 --> 00:42:36,679
(gentle music)
641
00:42:39,430 --> 00:42:41,510
Just outside of the village can be found
642
00:42:41,510 --> 00:42:45,743
over 21,000 German war dead
from the fight in Normandy.
643
00:42:50,670 --> 00:42:55,170
The German cemetery here is
a quiet and somber place.
644
00:42:55,170 --> 00:42:57,560
Men and young boys who died
645
00:42:57,560 --> 00:43:00,193
because of Adolf Hitler's
vision for Germany.
646
00:43:04,940 --> 00:43:09,390
- He managed to call upon
647
00:43:09,390 --> 00:43:12,340
some nationalist ideas,
648
00:43:12,340 --> 00:43:15,260
you know there was the First World War
649
00:43:16,290 --> 00:43:17,770
which the Germans lost
650
00:43:19,150 --> 00:43:22,905
but the general feeling was
651
00:43:22,905 --> 00:43:27,410
that we had been unjustly treated
652
00:43:28,680 --> 00:43:33,680
so he was welcomed by
the majority as a leader
653
00:43:33,940 --> 00:43:36,520
who takes us out of that misery
654
00:43:36,520 --> 00:43:38,940
after this First World War.
655
00:43:38,940 --> 00:43:43,940
And by the time some people became aware
656
00:43:44,730 --> 00:43:49,480
which way he was going to
lead us, he had enough power
657
00:43:50,510 --> 00:43:53,963
so the resistance was very
difficult to organize.
658
00:43:58,750 --> 00:44:01,730
- One German soldier that I was treating
659
00:44:01,730 --> 00:44:05,590
hauled out a wallet, took
a photograph out of it,
660
00:44:05,590 --> 00:44:07,430
and it was over his family,
661
00:44:07,430 --> 00:44:10,750
his wife and kids back in Germany.
662
00:44:10,750 --> 00:44:15,740
And I thought then and I to
this day I felt sorry for him.
663
00:44:15,740 --> 00:44:18,010
He didn't want to be there you know.
664
00:44:18,010 --> 00:44:23,010
He was forced to be there and
here he is seriously wounded.
665
00:44:23,053 --> 00:44:25,636
(somber music)
666
00:44:38,882 --> 00:44:41,632
(dramatic music)
667
00:44:47,110 --> 00:44:49,500
- [Bill] About 10 miles
from the German cemetery
668
00:44:49,500 --> 00:44:53,720
at La Cambe outside of the
village of Colleville-sur-Mer,
669
00:44:53,720 --> 00:44:57,060
and rising above the cliffs
overlooking Omaha Beach,
670
00:44:57,060 --> 00:44:59,413
is the Normandy American Cemetery.
671
00:45:05,190 --> 00:45:09,490
Over 9,300 white crosses
and Stars of David marked
672
00:45:09,490 --> 00:45:12,660
the resting place of American soldiers,
673
00:45:12,660 --> 00:45:17,000
fathers, sons, brothers and husbands
674
00:45:17,000 --> 00:45:20,693
who also died in the fight
for Normandy, many on D-Day.
675
00:45:21,770 --> 00:45:25,153
It is meticulously
cared for by the French.
676
00:45:40,030 --> 00:45:44,640
- [Ted] Going back there and
standing beside those crosses
677
00:45:46,130 --> 00:45:51,130
and knowing who was buried
there even to this day
678
00:45:51,500 --> 00:45:55,350
it's heart rendering really.
679
00:45:55,350 --> 00:45:56,920
You think of those guys,
680
00:45:56,920 --> 00:46:00,183
you remember them as if it were yesterday.
681
00:46:01,170 --> 00:46:05,323
It's a sad occasion just
to go there to visit.
682
00:46:26,660 --> 00:46:27,493
- Their lives were cut short,
683
00:46:27,493 --> 00:46:31,460
they never got the chance
to realize an adult life
684
00:46:31,460 --> 00:46:33,770
and they were just kids really
685
00:46:33,770 --> 00:46:35,230
and they never had a chance
686
00:46:35,230 --> 00:46:37,167
to have families and children and all.
687
00:46:38,200 --> 00:46:39,033
It's sad.
688
00:46:40,850 --> 00:46:41,683
It's sad.
689
00:46:46,720 --> 00:46:49,810
- [Man] Yeah, it is the common sentiment
690
00:46:49,810 --> 00:46:53,100
that every man you take
back to Normandy says,
691
00:46:53,100 --> 00:46:55,823
you know, the only heroes
are in the cemetery.
692
00:46:56,670 --> 00:47:01,670
And it's unspoken, but
the predominate theme
693
00:47:03,280 --> 00:47:06,080
when then return is that
it's an honor to the men
694
00:47:06,080 --> 00:47:08,557
who never got a chance to grow old.
695
00:47:24,934 --> 00:47:27,517
(gentle music)
696
00:47:51,560 --> 00:47:53,590
- [Bill H.] When I got out I
had to go back to high school,
697
00:47:53,590 --> 00:47:56,360
finish high school and then
I had to get to college.
698
00:47:56,360 --> 00:47:58,988
Those are the key things
that I needed to do
699
00:47:58,988 --> 00:48:00,438
in my life to get on with it.
700
00:48:02,280 --> 00:48:03,560
- [Ted] Thought never comes your mind
701
00:48:03,560 --> 00:48:06,453
what I'm gonna do this because I'm a hero.
702
00:48:06,453 --> 00:48:09,230
It's something you do because
it's what you're trained to do
703
00:48:09,230 --> 00:48:13,333
that never ever entered
my mind that I was a hero.
704
00:48:25,210 --> 00:48:27,700
I was just doing what I was supposed to do
705
00:48:27,700 --> 00:48:28,950
what I was trained to do.
706
00:48:30,180 --> 00:48:32,533
- [Duke] Well you were
proud of your outfit,
707
00:48:32,533 --> 00:48:34,490
'cause you lived up to the
tradition of the outfit,
708
00:48:34,490 --> 00:48:35,540
you know what I mean.
709
00:48:37,020 --> 00:48:40,453
Satisfaction because we had
just accomplished our mission.
710
00:48:41,980 --> 00:48:44,630
- [Rosie] If I contributed
just a little bit
711
00:48:44,630 --> 00:48:48,868
to their success you
know I'm proud of that.
712
00:48:48,868 --> 00:48:49,701
- [Bill H.] There was no way
713
00:48:49,701 --> 00:48:52,910
that I was gonna let my
personal feelings or my fear
714
00:48:52,910 --> 00:48:56,040
interfere with completing the
mission that we were given
715
00:48:56,040 --> 00:48:57,640
and especially if it had anything
716
00:48:57,640 --> 00:49:00,330
to do with my fellow troopers,
717
00:49:00,330 --> 00:49:02,423
I was not going to let them down.
718
00:49:03,383 --> 00:49:04,890
The fear of letting them down was more
719
00:49:04,890 --> 00:49:07,793
of a fear than getting getting
wounded or getting shot.
720
00:49:09,240 --> 00:49:13,590
- [Ted] I was proud to be a military man
721
00:49:14,800 --> 00:49:16,227
during World War II.
722
00:49:20,140 --> 00:49:22,500
- [Duke] I earned one Silver Star,
723
00:49:22,500 --> 00:49:25,263
two Bronze Star for valor
and six Purple Hearts.
724
00:49:27,680 --> 00:49:28,990
- [Bill H.] It was an experience
725
00:49:28,990 --> 00:49:30,620
that I knew would probably be
726
00:49:30,620 --> 00:49:33,640
the most important thing
I did in my entire life
727
00:49:33,640 --> 00:49:35,190
would be part of that invasion.
728
00:49:38,720 --> 00:49:41,560
- [Bill] The legacy of the
men who fought on D-Day
729
00:49:41,560 --> 00:49:43,710
and served in Europe and the Pacific
730
00:49:43,710 --> 00:49:47,440
as my own father did
still resonates today.
731
00:49:47,440 --> 00:49:51,080
Their courage, determination, sacrifice
732
00:49:51,080 --> 00:49:54,950
and belief in their country
and fellow man is unrivaled
733
00:49:54,950 --> 00:49:55,933
in our history.
734
00:49:57,010 --> 00:49:59,230
Despite the passing of my dad
735
00:49:59,230 --> 00:50:02,540
and more and more World
War II veterans each day,
736
00:50:02,540 --> 00:50:06,090
I hope what they humbly
accomplished will always resonate
737
00:50:06,090 --> 00:50:08,190
with future generations.
738
00:50:08,190 --> 00:50:11,270
The men and women of
World War II won as a team
739
00:50:11,270 --> 00:50:13,590
and that's a lesson for all of us
740
00:50:13,590 --> 00:50:16,480
as we too try to accomplish
great and noble goals
741
00:50:16,480 --> 00:50:20,133
in our own lives both
personally and professionally.
742
00:50:25,580 --> 00:50:29,170
Men like my father and
millions of others gave so much
743
00:50:29,170 --> 00:50:31,810
to make sure we have that opportunity,
744
00:50:31,810 --> 00:50:34,343
both on June 6, 1944,
745
00:50:35,210 --> 00:50:38,787
and during the other momentous
days of World War II.
746
00:51:54,169 --> 00:51:56,919
(dramatic music)
747
00:52:07,628 --> 00:52:10,461
(dramatic music)
56344
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