The Second World War: Personal Stories of Unsung Heroes

After the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, young Ralph Rush trains with the Army Air Corps. With reinforcements in demand, he is sent to the Battle of the Bulge, 1944. Here Because of his position far behind enemy lines in Germany, Ralph was the first American to enter the Ohrdruf Concentration Camp, the first concentration camp to be liberated by the Allies.

Hank Sciaroni kept his experience as a Flight Navigator during WWII close to his chest. Now revealing his memories, through the perils of air combat, and an emergency landing behind enemy lines in Italy, Hank utilized his capability to speak Italian to help get him and his men to safety as the Germans closed in.

Nisei Soldiers - The Japanese-American Nisei soldiers of WWII would become the most decorated unit in US military history - but at what price?

A WWI and WWII sailor, a descendant of a Scottish sailor and Hawaiian royalty, who eventually became Governor of the Hawaii Territory. King's service at sea during WWI and ashore during WWII, including his efforts to minimized the internment of Japanese Americans in Hawaii, as well as his post-war efforts that led to the territory becoming the 50th State of the Union.

Aldo Giannini signs up for the U.S. Marine Corps in 1943. Training first in San Diego and then in New Zealand, Aldo is part of the Battle of Tarawa, one of the bloodiest battles of WWII. Aldo reflects on a battle which gained the U.S. very little in the war. Aldo is part of the occupying force in the ruined capital, finding the Japanese civilians to be friendly to the U.S. military.

Remembering Port Chicago - In California's Bay Area, a painful memory lingers of the Port Chicago disaster of WWII, when hundreds of the Navy's first black sailors perished.

Adele Shimanoff was part of the Marine Corps League Detachment, U.S Marine Corps from 1945-1946. Shimanoff speaks of her experience as a Marine women: working as a secretary, following the "Free a Marine to fight," and forming the Women Marine Association.