Recital presented at the UNT College of Music Kenton Hall in partial fulfillment of the Master of Music (MM) degree.

Transcript of an oral interview with Nila Jackson Alderson. Born in 1925, Alderson describes life before and during the war in rural Texas as well as in the town of Burnet, Texas . Her husband, Joe Alderson, served in the military in Europe. They both discuss the mail service during the war. The interview includes information about her parents and siblings.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with John Kana. Kana joined the Navy in April of 1944. He served aboard the USS Dennis (DE-405). He visited the Marshall Islands and the Philippines. He provides vivid details of a battle off Samar. He was discharged in February of 1946.

Orchestral concert performed at the UNT College of Music Concert Hall.

Recital presented at the UNT College of Music Concert Hall in partial fulfillment of the Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) degree

Recital presented at the UNT College of Music Recital Hall in fulfillment of the Doctor of Music Arts (DMA) degree

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Edward Kozak. Kozak provides some details of his family’s history as professional musicians, including his experience on the piano, marimba, harp and drums. Kozak served as the head of the department in the Shreveport Symphony, and served as a music teacher at a number of schools, including Juilliard School of Music in New York. He joined the Navy in 1943. He graduated from the Washington D.C. School of Music and was assigned as a Coxswain on a Higgins boat. He served as a marimba soloist in a band that played for Admiral Chester Nimitz throughout the war.

Brass band concert performed at UNT College of Music Winspear Hall.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Michael Tostik. Tostik tried to join the Navy in 1939 but was turned away. He joined the Civilian Conservation Corps instead and worked for civilian contractors building materials for the military. After training with an aviation unit, he was assigned to the USS Gambier Bay (CVE-73). Tostik served as a mechanic aboard ship. He was aboard when the Gambier Bay sank off Samar and describes the day. He describes abandoning ship and being in the water for just over two days. He was rescued and transferred to an LST that got caught in a typhoon. He returned to the US via the Panama Canal and was discharged in New York.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Bobby Meyers. Meyers was drafted into the Navy in June of 1943. He completed boot camp in Farragut, Idaho. He was assigned to a service school in Wahpeton, North Dakota. Beginning in 1944 he worked in the engine room as a machinist mate aboard the USS Dennis (DE-405). They traveled to Pearl Harbor, and escorted carriers throughout the Pacific. They traveled to Iwo Jima, Eniwetok and participated in the Battle of Leyte Gulf. The Dennis rescued 434 survivors from the escort carrier USS St. Lo (CVE–63), which had been sunk by a kamikaze. He shares his experience going through a typhoon. Meyers was discharged in late 1945.

Recital presented at the UNT College of Music Recital Hall in partial fulfillment of the Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) degree

Concert presented at the UNT College of Music Concert Hall.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with J.D. Tanner. Tanner was born 20 August 1924 in Jasper County, Indiana. He quit school in the seventh grade and worked with his father on a dairy farm. In August 1944, he was drafted into the US Army and had basic training at Camp Wolters, Texas. After four weeks of training he went to San Francisco and departed on a twenty-one day trip to Leyte. There he was assigned as a rifleman in the 37th Infantry Division. He describes being on patrol and seeing a friend killed by a Japanese sniper. He was hospitalized with dysentery and recalls meeting General MacArthur’s wife, Jean, as she visited the hospital. After the surrender of Japan, he was assigned to the Military Police for a period of time and also drove a truck. He returned to the United States and was discharged 1 August 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Henry Osburn. He begins with an anecdote about his birth and a mix-up on his birth certificate. In 1944, he was draftred into the Navy at 18 years of age. Osburn went to boot camp in San Diego for four weeks of intense training. His pay was $32 per month. When he finished Basic Training, Osburn was attached to Carrier Aircraft Support Unit 53 in Hopeville, California. Two months later, he was sent to Philadelphia for more training, this time with catapult and arresting gear. From there, Osburn reported to the USS Hornet (CV-12) operating in the Pacific. Osburn then speaks about the job he had working with aircraft arresting gear and life aboard ship. He mentions the ship being involved in operations at Iwo Jima and Okinawa.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Fred Graziano. Graziano was drafted by the Navy in October of 1943. He was immediately assigned to the USS Dennis (DE-405), beginning in December. They traveled to Hawaii for gunnery practice and prepared for engagements. Their first engagements were off of New Guinea and Australia. They escorted a carrier to the Marshall Islands. In 1944 they participated in the Battle of Leyte Gulf. Graziano provides vivid details of this battle, including his job of laying out smoke screens to hide the carriers. In February of 1945 he was transferred off the Dennis to complete advanced torpedo training. He was then shipped out to Mandi Candi island in the Pacific for 9 months serving shore patrol with the Seabees. He was discharged around December of 1945.

A faculty and guest recital performed at the UNT College of Music Recital Hall.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with John Turner. Turner joined the Navy in early 1942. He completed his flight training and received his commission in December of 1943. In March of 1944 he traveled to Pearl Harbor, where he joined the Grim Reapers of Fighting Squadron 10 (VF-10) aboard the USS Enterprise (CV-6). Turner served as a F6F pilot. They completed escort and strafing missions, and participated in the Marianas Turkey Shoot in June. He later joined Composite Squadron 10 (United States. Navy. Composite Squadron 10 (VC-10)) aboard the USS Gambier Bay (CVE-73), where they participated in the Battle of Leyte Gulf. Turner was discharged in August of 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Bob Floyd. Floyd was on track to become as a ship builder, but was drafted into the Navy before graduating from high school. He was assigned to the USS Midway (CVE-63), which was renamed the USS St. Lo (CVE-63) one year later, without the sailors even knowing it. Floyd’s early voyages were to Australia and Pearl Harbor, and he recounts becoming a shellback. Upon joining a large task force at Pearl Harbor, he sailed to Saipan, Tinian and Guam. Floyd observed the Marianas Turkey Shoot, which felt to him like watching a movie. In general quarters, he was a gun captain on two 20mm guns, passing orders from the bridge to his gunners. Otherwise, he was a 40mm gunner. In the Philippines, Floyd was hit by shell fragments, earning him a Purple Heart. During the Battle of Leyte Gulf, Floyd and crew abandoned ship after a kamikaze strike. Upon being rescued, he felt fine apart from having no appetite, and he consequently lost thirty pounds. During recovery, Floyd was reassigned to an ammunition depot, where he remained until the end of the war.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with William Kennann. Kennann joined the Navy in 1942 at age 21. The first time he saw the ocean was at boot camp in San Diego. He was selected for aviation machinist’s school in Chicago and went on to study hydraulics. After graduating in June 1943, he was assigned to Alameda Naval Air Station as part of Composite Squadron 65 (VC-65), which then boarded the USS St. Lo (CVE-63). There Kennann performed maintenance work in the hangar deck and checked planes on the flight deck for leaks. When the St. Lo was struck by a kamikaze at the Battle of Leyte Gulf, Kennann climbed down a cargo net to abandon ship. After waiting in the water for an hour, he was rescued by the USS Dennis (DE-405). By that time, he was already so weakened that he could not pull himself out of the water without assistance. Kennann rejoined his squadron and headed toward Japan, ceasing operations after the first bomb was dropped. Following his discharge, Kennann surprised his family by returning home early.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Sam Palermo. Palermo was born in 1924 in Melrose Park, Illinois. His parents came from Italy in 1902. He was drafted into the Navy in June 1943 and sent to Farragut, Idaho for boot training. Upon finishing, he went to Wahpeton, where he studied engineering at the North Dakota State College of Science for six months. In March 1944 he reported aboard the USS Dennis (DE-405) as a motor machinist in the engine room. The Dennis was part of Taffy 3 and participated in the Battle of Leyte Gulf off Samar during which the ship was hit five times by Japanese gunfire. After the battle, the Dennis picked up 434 survivors from the USS St. Lo (CVE-63) and Palermo describes burials at sea of five shipmates and a casualty from the St. Lo. After dropping off the injured at Peleliu, the ship returned to Alameda for repairs. Returning to the Pacific, the Dennis provided support during the invasion of Iwo Jima. After twenty-seven days on station at Iwo Jima the ship went to Ulithi for provisions and to prepare for the next invasion. After participating in the invasion …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Alfonso Perez. Perez was born in Maxwell, Texas 11 September 1923. After finishing the fourth grade he went to work in the agricultural fields as a laborer. In January 1942 he joined the Navy and entered boot camp at San Diego. Upon completion, he was assigned to the USS Midway/USS St. Lo (CVE-63) as a plane captain with VC-65. He recalls the ship taking part in the invasion of Saipan and Tinian and going to Eniwetok for replacements and provisions. On 25 October 1944 the St. Lo was involved in the Battle off Samar when the Japanese attacked as planes from the St. Lo were being launched for submarine patrol. Perez remembers the Japanese ships being so close he could see enemy sailors on deck as they passed. He recalls seeing a kamikaze diving toward his ship and crashing approximately thirty feet from where he was. Upon receiving orders to abandon ship he went overboard and remembers being taken aboard a raft. The survivors were picked up by the USS Dennis (DE-405) and he recalls the compassion shown by the crew. After being treated for superficial wounds he …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Lester Shodo. Shodo joined the Navy in July of 1942. He completed boot camp at Great Lakes. He completed schooling for aviation machinist mate at Navy Pier in Chicago. He went on to complete Navy gunner training in Florida. Beginning in April of 1944 Shodo served aboard the USS Midway (CV-41) with Composite Squadron VC-65. They traveled to Hawaii, then to Saipan, Tinian and the Marietta Islands. Shodo worked as a turret gunner aboard a TBM, supporting ground troops during landings, bombing and rocket missions. He was then transferred to the USS Gambier Bay (CVE-73), where he served on missions with Composite Squadron VC-54 to Peleliu and Midway. He was later transferred back to the Midway, and VC-65, and traveled to the Philippines. Shodo was discharged in April of 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Louis Vilmer. Vilmer joined the Navy in April of 1943. He completed aerial gunnery school and trained as an aviation radioman. He traveled to Pearl Harbor around May of 1944 and transferred to the Naval Air Station at Barbers Point in Hawaii. From there he traveled to Majuro and Eniwetok awaiting assignment in a replacement pool. He served aboard the USS Braine (DD-630) before being assigned to the USS Gambier Bay (CVE-73). They traveled to the Palau Islands and to Leyte Gulf, supporting troop landings. He provides some details of life aboard the Gambier Bay and his work as a dive bomber. In the summer of 1945 he completed photography and radar bombing school. He traveled to Guam and finally Alaska when the war ended. Back in the United States he was assigned to a military office processing travel reimbursements. He was discharged in March of 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Harry Longerich. Longerich was born in Germany in 1917 and immigrated to the United States. He attended the Stanton Military Academy and was an amateur radio operator. After opening a successful radio service store with celebrity customers, he sold the business in 1938 and enlisted in the Army in anticipation of the war. He attended basic training and learned CW operation at Fort Monmouth. He was stationed on Hawaii during the attack on Pearl Harbor. Days later, Longerich overheard Admiral Kimmel lamenting the loss so many young men. Because of his fluency in German, he was chosen for several offensive and defensive counterintelligence operations with the Sixth Army, broadcasting false information to Germany leading to a diversion of Hitler’s divisions on the Eastern Front, and attaching an antenna to a balloon to eavesdrop in hard to reach locales. He was so adept with radio equipment that he was called upon to repair Patton’s personal radio, and he hand-delivered eyes-only communications to Eisenhower. He later joined the Army Security Agency as an electronic countermeasures specialist and R&D engineer. After attending Command and General Staff College, Longerich retired in 1963.