After starting to scan my father’s letters he sent home during
WW II – and before sending them to the National WW II Museum along with his War
Memorabilia -- I suddenly realized that tomorrow would have been his 100th
birthday. He died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 68.
He refers to me in those letters as “my little guy.” Could he have imagined a future point in time
when I would be organizing his unique WW II scrapbook, his photographs and the few letters of his I have, all
sent to his brother, my Uncle Phil, for museum preservation? He sent many more letters to my mother and sadly
they are all gone.
Or what would he have thought of the technology which has
rendered most silver halide photography obsolete? That was his business. Somewhere
I read that there are more digital photographs taken throughout the world today
in two minutes than all the photographs taken in the 19th century. Give
an infinite number of monkeys an infinite number of cameras and you could do
away with professional photography.
Before digital, one had to think through the “what and when and how” to
photograph; it required thought and skill and artistry. You couldn't afford to snap away. Photographic materials were just too
expensive. Now the accidental confluence
of someone with an iPhone at the right moment results in photographs that the
best photographers would envy. All by
accident! Not skill, not love of
photography. He would be appalled.
The very first letter I came across in the collection (they
were not chronologically organized) is dated May 20, 1944, full of anticipation
about maybe being able to return home for a few days as Germany had just surrendered
and he thought he was about to be shipped to the Pacific theater. I don’t think
I am going to publish others but this first one was particularly meaningful. He was a Signal Corps photographer and this
letter to his brother tells a lot about his state of mind at the time and has
interesting information about what he was going through. “Penny” was the nickname for my mother and “Pop”
is my grandfather who was running the photography business back home.
This transcription is not exact, but as close as I can
make it without doing in depth editing.
I mostly dictated the contents to my iPhone as an email and then pasted
it into Word and then did some light editing to make sense of run on sentences,
misnaming of things from the transcription from voice to type (e.g. amusingly “Berchtesgaden”
was captured as “Birch is God”), and just general but not precise clean up.
It was written on “Der Reichsminister und Chef der Reichskanzlei"
stationary (The Reich Minister and Chief of the Chancellery) and presumably
this was left behind in the SS facilities the GIs were then occupying
May 20, 1945 from
Berchtesgaden
Dear Phil,
Well, Phil, finally
the struggle lasting more than five years for the European people has ended and
with great relief to us all. Now I'm confronted with the Pacific war and my
utmost wish and desire is to come home or at least return for a brief stay
before going into the Japanese warfare. I don't see why that's such a tremendous
problem that the Army is making us believe. Money running into billions and
time running into years has been already been spent so what's the difference if
it costs more and takes more time to finish that phase of the warfare. Especially so if it is the choice of most of
the prospective GIs bound for the South Pacific wishing to return home to their
love ones. I for one haven’t enough
points for a discharge but neither does the majority of troops and I like many others
feel so fortunate to come through this struggle without bearing any marks. Fighting
in the Pacific might last more than a year and who knows if my good fortune
will hold out. I do feel though that I have a pretty good chance in obtaining
the route through the states before going to the Pacific. If I do I certainly
will be thankful and overjoyed. I have my fingers crossed even my toes.
From my heading in
the first page of this letter you can see that censorship much has been lifted.
No more officers who I knew fairly well will be prying into my mail. Just the
base censors as certain restrictions still exist.
I am now living in Berchtesgaden
and in fairly comfortable barracks formerly occupied by SS troops. These
barracks are very near to Goering’s summer home giving him the protection he very
well needed. We have two rooms. One we fixed up into a writing, sitting, and
chat room with a sofa and five chairs, a desk and a radio that works when it
wants to. The other room we have divided in half, one half are our cots and the
other we fixed up into a dark room. We acquired an enlarger, some chemicals, a
hand cutter, even a deckled edge cutter, some trays, and a dryer. Here we can
process our personal work along with some brown nosing material (brown nose means
work which puts us in good with ranking personnel of the division). Between
this work and our photography for the Army which hasn't let up we are pretty
busy and have very little time for personal needs. Our mess hall has two large
dining rooms and we eat from clean tablecloths and plates. KP's are volunteer German girls who serve the
chow and clean up the mess afterwards. The food is really good but our rations
aren't up to par as yet but soon they will be.
With all the sudden
change in living conditions I had first felt pointless doing it but in a short
time I was back in the game so to speak. Everything has changed to regular
Garrison life, the way it was back in the States in the Army Corps. But I think
it is slightly more chicken to eat.
There is no
fraternization for the troops and it is hard for most of the boys. As for
myself I don't care about the feminine problem but I would like it better if
conversations could be had with the civilians -- that's where it is much better
being in France, Belgium, Holland, or England. USO shows are being promised and
next week I heard there will be a show. The G.I. movies are being shown twice
nightly. So far I haven't been to a movie, not for a long time. The pictures playing are old ones like Eddie
Cantor’s “Show Business” or “Meet me in St. Louis” and numerous others. Other
forms of entertainment and classes in subjects of learning are being planned. Berchtesgaden
is a beautiful summer resort situated close to the Austrian border and high up
the mountains, snow capped at that. I was surprised to learn it's a very
ancient town dating back to the 11th century.
Hitler’s former home, I say former for was almost completely destroyed,
is standing halfway up one of the highest mountains. When the French Armored
division reached here they shelled and set fire to it for what purpose just to
get even --there wasn't any resistance at his home. After knocking it to pieces
they looted most everything in sight, looting they are very famous for. But I
have a book that once was on his bookshelf and I’ll parcel post some of my
additional souvenirs home. In more
detail I have explained to Penny what his house looks like so I know you have
heard all about it.
Way up the top of
the same mountain Hitler had another place called Eagles Nest -- a spacious
dwelling of stone where he went to meditate his fanatical ideas and also threw
wild parties. What an awe inspiring
sight this place is. You can see for miles and miles around and the scenery of
the Bavarian Alps is very picturesque. Again the articles that could be acquired
by GIs for souvenirs are now diminished. I have two saucer plates of unique
design though. The living room of this
house is a tremendous semicircular affair with heavy beamed ceiling, stonewalls
and a huge marble fireplace, a large circular table in the center of the room with
10 chairs around. Scattered around the rest of the room are some other chairs
and chaise lounges. There are fine large heavy windows that rolled down in the
living area and abundant light which afford a view of the beautiful scenery. There is a large sunny sun porch off to the
left and a dining room of oak panel walls and a large table seating about 30
people. There are two other rooms, one
for drinking, and a toilet in another one. An elevator that goes down to the furthest
point in the roadway can go up to this place but is not working at present -- the
main reason is that it is fairly well trafficked. I had to use the footpath up to it about a
half an hour’s climb. We are making -- Mack
and me-- a travel log of what the GIs are sightseeing around here. Someday you
might see it in the newsreels or in a special short. I hope so. Anyway it is a big job and is taking many days
to finish. We laugh when we think about
it. It reminds me of one of those Fitzpatrick
travelogues you remember with those closing sunsets and the line “and now we take
leave of Berchtesgaden.”
A few weeks prior
to the close of the war I was with the 101st division cleaning out numerous
pockets of resistance all around these Bavarian mountains -- a tough job it
was. When one of the regiments got their orders to take – rather than half take
-- Berchtesgaden from another route I went with them walking a number of miles,
for more than five bridges were all blown up recently. But still there were SS
troops. This job was exciting but very tiring for the tension was hard for a
few days and we couldn't get anything much to eat. When the surrender was finally
declared many many SS troops had to be rounded up. This was another job I enjoyed
and from Penny’s letters you already know the situation.
 |
| Uncle Phil and the "Little Guy" |
I received your
very lengthy and interesting letter of April 23 along with many from Penny a
few days ago and Phil I sure enjoyed its contents. Both you and Penny fear that
your letters are boring -- they are
anything but. I sometimes feel that way
with my own especially to you and family for most everything I write to you I
have already sent to Penny.
You ask if I took
any shots of airborne troops leaving for Germany. I presume you mean the airborne mission over the
Rhine. I certainly did on that mission,
more than 5000 feet of film. I'm sure
some of it was used in the newsreels. I
also made a lot of footage of those troops moving up to their frontline
positions into the heart of Bavaria --maybe it was what you saw. I never received those shots you made of Penny
and Robert at the zoo. I only hope that
they aren't lost in my anxiousness to get them. Do you think Pop could make a portrait of Penny
and my little guy, Phil? I'd love to
have a recent one, say 5 x 7 of my love ones.
Your description of
the ballet “Undertow” sounds very interesting and intriguing. I surely want to see ballets when I'm home
once again. I've missed real art all
these past years. The Harold Lloyd
picture must have been very amusing. I
wish this damned Army would show some pictures like that as I'm sure it would
be very entertaining and meet with favor with the troops.
 |
| Marlene Dietrich visiting the 101st Airborne |
I'm glad the
business is keeping up fairly well now that the war is over -- over here --
your shortage in paper and film should be lifted somewhat I hope anyway. By the way remember me to everyone in the
shop. In a separate envelope Phil I'm enclosing
a Photostat on Berchtesgaden written in English for the purpose of tourist
trade. Some of their descriptions will give
you a laugh. Also with this you find some pictures of myself and a snapshot of
Marlene Dietrich at a reunion of the 101st. I thought you might like a snap shot like this
-- she doesn't look any too well but that's the way she looked that day; the
day before that she had a collapse. She
witnessed a terrible accident where two C47s with paratroopers crashed killing
more than 20.
So Phil I say so
long for a while, take care of yourself and my love to Jerry and everyone I love.
Love Robert
The letter is such a contrast to one he wrote on October
4 from Wiesbaden, some five months later.
He was still stuck in Germany very upset he hadn’t been shipped back as
Japan had already surrendered. He was finally shipped home in the middle of
December, just in time for Christmas and the New Year, but he tried to keep his
mind off the delay by writing this long letter about his ideas for expanding
the family photography business to film for TV, promotional use in architecture
and real estate, even children’s’ programming to be used by department store
child care centers while their mothers shopped (he suggested Macy’s as such a
store). Nothing came of these ideas. Nonetheless, he speaks to me across the ages,
dreaming big as a 29 year old. It showed
me a side of him I didn’t really see as a teenager when I worked with him.
In another letter from “somewhere in France” on March 18,
1945 he confided to my Uncle (he didn’t want my mother to know yet because of
the danger of the mission) that he was reassigned to 101st Airborne,
the “Screaming Eagles” (the same division he mentions in the past tense in the
letter transcribed above). He was being trained to photograph from gliders
setting down behind enemy lines (not quite put that way because of censorship
of GIs letters), so he expected a lot of action. He expressed his fears but his admiration of
the men he was serving with -- D Day paratroopers and “The Bastards of Bastogne.” He also managed to film General Eisenhower
when he visited the 101st, those shots apparently making it into
newsreels back home.
