The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Eddie Albert. Albert was born in Rock Island, Illinois on 22 April 1908 and joined the Navy in 1942. Following officer training at Cornell University, he was shipped to the South Pacific. Albert recalls spending a night in November 1943 with Lieutenant Colonel Evans Fordyce Carlson (of Carlson’s Raiders fame) in a hole during the Battle of Tarawa. After the battle he relates that he was called to Washington, DC for duties relating to public relations and was sent around the United States selling war bonds. He recalls that by the end of the war he also had produced at least six war-related training films.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Jack Jacobson. Jacobson was born in 1916. In 1940 he was accepted in the aviation cadet program and graduated in December 1941. He was sent to Fiji where he received additional flight training and was then sent to Guadalcanal. He describes being bombarded for over four hours one night by Japanese ships off the coast. He tells of the experiences of dropping bombs, strafing and escorting bombers during his more than 100 missions and three tours on Guadalcanal. He was selected to be Captain John Mitchell’s wingman during Operation Vengeance. He describes the precise flight plotted by Mitchell for intercept of Admiral Yamamoto’s plane over Bougainville. A vivid description is given of the actions taken by the planes involved in the attack.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Sanford Hunt. Hunt was born in Newark, New Jersey on 18 October 1915 and after graduating from high school in 1934, joined the Naval Reserve as a radioman. In October 1940 he resigned from the Navy Reserves and enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve. He was sent to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba as a radio operator, where he worked with Holland M. Smith. He was next transferred to the newly established Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, and was trained as a cryptographer and cipher machine repairman. He describes his role in setting up and operating a radio transmitter station on Guadalcanal. While there, he worked closely with Major General Alexander Vandegrift and Brigadier General Gerald C. Thomas, Commanding General and Chief of Staff of the First Marine Division, respectively. The three of them were the only Marines on Guadalcanal authorized access to ULTRA message traffic (intelligence obtained by breaking encrypted enemy radio and teleprinter messages). Upon returning to Pearl Harbor he was given a field commission to second lieutenant. Hunt accompanied General Vandegrift to Noumea, New Caledonia as Special Assistant and Chief of Staff for Special Traffic and Messages, until …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Martin Clemens. Clemens was born in Aberdeen, Scotland in 1915 and, after attending Cambridge University, joined the British Colonial Service and was posted to Guadalcanal in 1938. After Pearl Harbor, Clemens became the only British colonial authority on Guadalcanal and, in February 1942, was assigned coast watching duties prior to the Japanese invasion in May. After the Japanese invasion, he was forced to relocate from his village to a location in the jungle, where he describes his activities in conjunction with island volunteers in gathering intelligence and transmitting radio signals to British and Australian listening posts. When the Allied Forces landed on Guadalcanal in August 1942, Clemens provided volunteer scouts and laborers to Colonel Carlson of the Second Raider Battalion. He also recalls his encounters with General Vandegrift, who awarded him a Military Cross following the battle.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral presentation given by George DeLong in 1993. DeLong tells of joining the Navy in January 1941 and of being on the battleship Oklahoma (BB-37) during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He describes the ship turning over and his being trapped, along with 32 other shipmates for one and a half days. DeLong describes the struggle to stay alive before being rescued and spending time in the hospital. He discusses causes of the war with Japan, actions which various admirals and generals took and various battles that were fought. He closes the presentation by answering questions presented by members of the audience.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Raymond Francis Halloran. Halloran was born in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1922. He volunteered for the Air Corps at Dayton in late 1942. He had basic training at Sheppard Field in Wichita Falls, Texas, then initial flight training at College Station. He was accepted for navigation school at Hondo Air Base, Texas; then went to bombardier school at Roswell, New Mexico. He joined his bomber crew in Kansas where they trained in B-17s and B-24s. Finally getting their B-29, Halloran and his crew flew to Saipan via San Francisco, Hawaii, and Kwajalein, arriving 12 December 1944. Their first mission was over Iwo Jima. On their seventh mission on 1 January 1945, they were shot down over Tokyo. Halloran and 4 others bailed out through the bomb bay while 6 others went down with the plane. Initially beaten by civilians on the ground, he was taken by soldiers to a Kempeitai prison. There he was tortured and interrogated. After two months, the prison was bombed by U.S. aircraft and Halloran was moved to the Omori POW camp. He was liberated 29 August 1945. He spent considerable time in the hospital …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Carl Renfroe. Renfroe volunteered for service in the Navy in December 1942. After earning a commission, he served aboard the USS Electra (AKA-4) during the invasion of the Marshall Islands followed by the invasion of Saipan. He was transferred to the USS Rockingham (APA-229), where he served as navigator during the invasions of Leyte and Okinawa. He was discharged from the Navy in 1947 and resumed his career in education administration.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Richard Salter. Salter was born 27 February 1917. After graduating from high school, he attended Texas A&M University. He participated in the Civilian Pilot Training Program while at A&M and received his pilot’s license. Upon enlisting in the Army Air Corps in 1940, he was sent to Santa Maria, California to primary flying school, then to basic flight school at Moffett Field. He completed advanced training at Stockton, California, receiving his commission 15 March 1941. He mentions the various planes flown in each phase of training. After graduation he reported to the 73rd Bomb Squadron at Elmendorf Field, Anchorage, Alaska and began flying B-18 bombers. In early 1942 the B-18s were replaced with B-26 bombers. Salter discusses characteristics of the B-26 that contributed to early crashes leading to the nickname Widowmaker for the B-26. He moved three of the squadrons planes to Adak and discusses bombing missions against Japanese shipping. Salter recalls being wounded by flak and losing his navigator to wounds. After two months in the hospital, Salter returned to Adak in February 1943 and assumed command of the 77th Bomb Group, which had B-25s. During July …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Traute (Gertrude) Manning. Born in 1907 in the East German town of Koenigshuette, she moved, along with her engineer husband, to the Dutch East Indies to build roads. She shares anecdotes of her time in Java and Borneo, the living conditions and living among the Dutch community. When the Japanese invaded the Dutch East Indies, her husband was taken and held in an internment camp and she and her son, Robert, were imprisoned for the remainder of the war. Her infant son, Max, was placed in a Dutch orphanage and was located only hours prior to being shipped to Australia. She describes her time in the prison camps of Werfstraat, Tangerang and Aadek under the Japanese. She was liberated in September, 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Geoffrey Fisken. Fisken joined the Royal New Zealand Air Force in 1939 and by 1941 was in a fighter squadron at Singapore flying Brewster Buffaloes. Fisken recalls the Japanese arrival on the Malay Peninsula and defending the Allied base at Singapore against superior Japanese air forces. He eventually evacuated to Australia, and then returned to New Zealand by April, 1942. In 1943, his new squadron moved up to Guadalcanal. Fisken shares several anecdotes about his time flying combat and patrol missions. In late 1943, Fisken was declared unfit for flying (as a result of previous wounds) and was mustered out of the service. He returned to New Zealand and continued farming.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Eddie Albert. Albert was born in Rock Island, Illinois on 22 April 1908 and joined the Navy in 1942. Following officer training at Cornell University, he was shipped to the South Pacific. Albert recalls spending a night in November 1943 with Lieutenant Colonel Evans Fordyce Carlson (of Carlson’s Raiders fame) in a hole during the Battle of Tarawa. After the battle he relates that he was called to Washington, DC for duties relating to public relations and was sent around the United States selling war bonds. He recalls that by the end of the war he also had produced at least six war-related training films.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Jack Jacobson. Jacobson was born in 1916. In 1940 he was accepted in the aviation cadet program and graduated in December 1941. He was sent to Fiji where he received additional flight training and was then sent to Guadalcanal. He describes being bombarded for over four hours one night by Japanese ships off the coast. He tells of the experiences of dropping bombs, strafing and escorting bombers during his more than 100 missions and three tours on Guadalcanal. He was selected to be Captain John Mitchell’s wingman during Operation Vengeance. He describes the precise flight plotted by Mitchell for intercept of Admiral Yamamoto’s plane over Bougainville. A vivid description is given of the actions taken by the planes involved in the attack.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Sanford Hunt. Hunt was born in Newark, New Jersey on 18 October 1915 and after graduating from high school in 1934, joined the Naval Reserve as a radioman. In October 1940 he resigned from the Navy Reserves and enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve. He was sent to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba as a radio operator, where he worked with Holland M. Smith. He was next transferred to the newly established Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, and was trained as a cryptographer and cipher machine repairman. He describes his role in setting up and operating a radio transmitter station on Guadalcanal. While there, he worked closely with Major General Alexander Vandegrift and Brigadier General Gerald C. Thomas, Commanding General and Chief of Staff of the First Marine Division, respectively. The three of them were the only Marines on Guadalcanal authorized access to ULTRA message traffic (intelligence obtained by breaking encrypted enemy radio and teleprinter messages). Upon returning to Pearl Harbor he was given a field commission to second lieutenant. Hunt accompanied General Vandegrift to Noumea, New Caledonia as Special Assistant and Chief of Staff for Special Traffic and Messages, until …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Martin Clemens. Clemens was born in Aberdeen, Scotland in 1915 and, after attending Cambridge University, joined the British Colonial Service and was posted to Guadalcanal in 1938. After Pearl Harbor, Clemens became the only British colonial authority on Guadalcanal and, in February 1942, was assigned coast watching duties prior to the Japanese invasion in May. After the Japanese invasion, he was forced to relocate from his village to a location in the jungle, where he describes his activities in conjunction with island volunteers in gathering intelligence and transmitting radio signals to British and Australian listening posts. When the Allied Forces landed on Guadalcanal in August 1942, Clemens provided volunteer scouts and laborers to Colonel Carlson of the Second Raider Battalion. He also recalls his encounters with General Vandegrift, who awarded him a Military Cross following the battle.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral presentation given by George DeLong in 1993. DeLong tells of joining the Navy in January 1941 and of being on the battleship Oklahoma (BB-37) during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He describes the ship turning over and his being trapped, along with 32 other shipmates for one and a half days. DeLong describes the struggle to stay alive before being rescued and spending time in the hospital. He discusses causes of the war with Japan, actions which various admirals and generals took and various battles that were fought. He closes the presentation by answering questions presented by members of the audience.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Raymond Francis Halloran. Halloran was born in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1922. He volunteered for the Air Corps at Dayton in late 1942. He had basic training at Sheppard Field in Wichita Falls, Texas, then initial flight training at College Station. He was accepted for navigation school at Hondo Air Base, Texas; then went to bombardier school at Roswell, New Mexico. He joined his bomber crew in Kansas where they trained in B-17s and B-24s. Finally getting their B-29, Halloran and his crew flew to Saipan via San Francisco, Hawaii, and Kwajalein, arriving 12 December 1944. Their first mission was over Iwo Jima. On their seventh mission on 1 January 1945, they were shot down over Tokyo. Halloran and 4 others bailed out through the bomb bay while 6 others went down with the plane. Initially beaten by civilians on the ground, he was taken by soldiers to a Kempeitai prison. There he was tortured and interrogated. After two months, the prison was bombed by U.S. aircraft and Halloran was moved to the Omori POW camp. He was liberated 29 August 1945. He spent considerable time in the hospital …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Traute (Gertrude) Manning. Born in 1907 in the East German town of Koenigshuette, she moved, along with her engineer husband, to the Dutch East Indies to build roads. She shares anecdotes of her time in Java and Borneo, the living conditions and living among the Dutch community. When the Japanese invaded the Dutch East Indies, her husband was taken and held in an internment camp and she and her son, Robert, were imprisoned for the remainder of the war. Her infant son, Max, was placed in a Dutch orphanage and was located only hours prior to being shipped to Australia. She describes her time in the prison camps of Werfstraat, Tangerang and Aadek under the Japanese. She was liberated in September, 1945.