Saturday, June 18, 2011

Support from an Old Warrior

Screaming Eagle, Jim "Pee Wee" Martin, landed in France on D-Day, and then fought through Holland to the Battle of the Bulge. In The Americans in the Bulge, Jim describes, in chilling detail, the ordeals soldiers faced during that winter campaign. He says, "I thought I would never be warm again."

Safely home now in Dayton, Ohio, Jim enjoys watching documentaries on public television. He and his wife have supported their local station for thirty years, and he encourages us to do the same.

4 comments:

  1. PBS should play this as their promotion to donate! Pee Wee rules!


    Where does he talk about how he got his nickname?

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  2. He is a tiny guy, hence the name "Pee Wee". We have loads of interview footage with him, that we never used in 'The Americans in The Bulge', maybe we will continue to post clips of his remarkable, Bastogne story.
    He was adamant that he wanted to promote PBS, so as we are airing on PBS stations, we cut the clip. It's unlikely that anyone will use it, but they couldn't find a more ardent supporter.

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  3. This is Jim "Pee Wee" Martin. I was tagged with the nickname "Pee Wee" soon after I arrived in Toccoa in July, 1942. I was the lightest guy in our outfit in WWII. When the larger guys would get to complaining about something in training people would say, "Look at "Pee Wee"....he's getting the job done! Stop complaining." It was used as an inspirational kind of thing. I understood their meaning for my nickname. I never resented it.

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  4. Better the man himself - many thanks, Pee Wee!

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