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16. November 2022 No Comment

I tend to agree with David T Tokyo, but I'd feel better if the declaration appeared in a better source than the one we have, preferably an official one. He may have landed beside the 2nd or 5th Ranger BN and Hollywood made him a Ranger. I'd be interested to learn how he came into show business - his turn in "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas" shows him to be a gifted dancer. The question of why a trained rifleman (if that is what he was on D-Day) would suddenly end up in a field artillery observation battalion (if that is what happened) on 17 December is still pertinent.

The policy of not returning recovered from wounds soldiers to their original units was not a hard fast rule. He was a great character actor, a tremendous military hero, and a really good guy (plus a Democrat) whom This may have been a mistake or perhaps not, but it would explain why an actor, in an age sensitive business, would not want to publicize a World War II war record. He was one of the military masterminds of The Invasion of Normandy that also landed at Omaha Beach. But at the end of the proceedings, all seventy of the SS men, as well as Peiper, had been convicted of war crimes by a six-man panel of U.S. officers. The charge of exaggerating one's military record is a very serious one (see Jeremy Michael Boorda), and needs to be backed up by evidence. Most of the SS troops, including Jochen Peiper, had seen extensive duty in the grim killing fields of the Eastern Front. Asylum Seeker Saved From Deportation By Celebrities Went On To Murder. But then again, Reynolds is hardly an authority on military history, so what he says about Charles Durning's war record is very trivial, even if the editor could find a reference. During the Battle of the Bulge, Germans captured Durning. I added this piece of information: War Hero on Walk of Fame by Solvej Schou (Associated Press). Terrified U.S. soldiers in the field suddenly began to run. There was a caf there, as well as three small farms. durning charles actor december 24th military service hero american age war tribute bulge battle purple visit lost planetfigure ii history A veteran character actor who was a widely recognizable face in film and on television for over five decades, Charles Durning earned his place as a dependable presence often playing pugnacious tough guys and authority figures. The next year Mr. Durning starred with Julie Harris in a Broadway revival of The Gin Game, D. L. Coburns Pulitzer-winning play about two nursing home residents whose game of cards becomes a clash of wills. Their hatred of the enemy was such, I swear, I could not always keep it under control.. If his ordinary-guy looks deprived him of leading-man roles, they did not leave him typecast. Hmmare we facing "recovered memories" here? Always sticks in my mind when two marines in the programme see he is wearing C M O come to attention and salute. Seeing Americans fleeing, a machine gun on the back of a halftrack opened up, cutting down those who stood in the field and those trying to escape. It's entirely possible that Durning (or someone on his behalf) asked for (and obtained) corrections to the original records in the time since his discharge, explaining the additional awards in the 2002 summary and the letter from 2008. Here is a detailed account of what happened at Malmedy: I write down everything I want to remember. But such was the speed of the Allied advance that outfits began to outrun their supply lines. The Germans killed everybody! they shouted at Pergrin. Please take a moment to review my edit. But it should be possible to ask them whether they have kept a record of this speach. In that respect I would draw you attention to the fact that one should make a distinction between the survivors, i.e. It is possible that a riflemen might be reclassified as a driver due to the extent of his injuries and be given limited duties in a FAOB, so it is not inconceivable, but the point here is that there needs to be some reliable evidence. Charles Durning served his country with honor and with great personal sacrifice. He is not credited for being in Star Wars at IMDB. George Fleps, an ethnic German from Romania, stood up in his halftrack and fired twice at the crowd of Americans. However, early that evening, three escapees did encounter a patrol led by Colonel Pergrin, who had heard the shooting and was coming to investigate. The problem here is that this regiment arrived in the ETO very late (mid-March 45), and was plugged into the then-reconstituting 106th Infantry Division to replace one of the two regiments destroyed during the Bulge. After an hour, the barrage stopped and then, in numerous strategic places along the front, giant searchlights were turned on, blinding the Americans and turning the foggy morning a glowing white. However, the trials were tainted by later testimony that the SS men had been tortured by U.S. interrogators (see The First Guantanamo) before their trials. His work in That Championship Season, first produced at the Public Theater, led the film director George Roy Hill to tap Mr. Durning for the part of a corrupt police lieutenant in The Sting. Two years later he played a beleaguered police hostage negotiator squaring off against Al Pacinos manic bank robber in Sidney Lumets celebrated Dog Day Afternoon., The 1970s and 80s were fruitful years. See:

It is apparently based on a June 1993 interview the source of which is not listed. Born: 28-Feb-1923 Birthplace: Highland Falls, NY Died: 24-Dec-2012 Location of death: New York City Cause of death: unspecified. As Kampfgruppe Peiper passed by these Americans, an SS soldier suddenly stood up in the back of his halftrack, aimed his pistol, and fired it twice into a group of U.S. prisoners. It also shows wounded 29 Jun 44, which is incorrect in comparison with all the med records. In 2000, in a retitled revival called Gore Vidals The Best Man, he played an ailing former president who tries to mediate a power struggle between two candidates. He cried as he related these stories. Co. X176ADec. 18, 1944 - Dec. 31, 1945.

As the SS massacred the survivors, they realized they had no choice to but to try to escape, and they rose and ran as fast as they could to the back of the field, heading for a nearby woods. The convoy consisted of about 130 men, thirty jeeps, weapons carriers, and trucks and was led by Captain Roger Mills, and Lieutenants Virgil Lary and Perry Reardon. - On the other hand, if he were assigned to the 398th Inf Regt upon discharge from the hospital - as most accounts reflect - that raises even more serious questions. Warren Kozak writes in the Wall Street Journal, "The Real Rules of War," Dec. 23, that his father, who survived the Battle of the Bulge, told him that One night a frequently drunk comedian failed to show up, and Mr. Durning, who had memorized the comics jokes, persuaded the manager to let him go on. Eleven Americans fled to the caf nearby, but the Germans set it on fire and then gunned down the men as they ran out. The "confusion" regarding Mr. Durning's service is far more extensive than has been touched on here. It had much to do with the nature of the wounds, and the length and location of hospitalization. After all, few PFCs who earn the Silver Star remain as PFCs for long. --Chuck Baggett (talk) 02:48, 29 November 2017 (UTC)Reply[reply], Cheers.InternetArchiveBot (Report bug) 12:27, 14 December 2017 (UTC)Reply[reply], Recent edits have removed a reference while asserting a claim "from IMDb" about Mr Durning's ancestry. After killing the youth, he said, he held him in his arms and wept. One of them may be the finest actor I have ever seen. He assembled the prisoners in a field there and waited with his tanks and halftracks for further orders. Not surprisingly, Mr. Durnings two Oscar nominations were for supporting roles, as a slippery governor in the Burt Reynolds-Dolly Parton musical The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982) and as a lustful Nazi colonel in the 1983 remake of To Be or Not to Be, starring Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft. However, I just recently found out about his heroism during WWII which included being in the first wave on Omaha Beach at Normandy, being one of the few survivors of the Malmedy Massacre and being awarded the Silver Star and three Purple Hearts. Another reason for the focus on Malmedy is that, as word spread like wildfire through the U.S. frontline ranks in the immediate aftermath of the killings, U.S. soldiers vowed to take no prisoners. It would be fascinating to find someone who had been at two iconic incidents. Frankly speaking I have doubts about this. Charles Durning, who overcame poverty, battlefield trauma and nagging self-doubt to become an acclaimed character actor, whether on stage as Big Daddy in Cat on a There is a lot of it going around in the USA?? Thinking about how veterans of that era typically talk about the Army with regard to administrative matters only confirms this feeling that such records may be largely inaccurate. Not even a Bronze Star, much less a Silver Star. I'd also hope that other identified incorrect entries be removed from the article, such as earning 3 Puprple Hearts (he earned just one); serving with the 1st Division (he did not) and receiving campaign credit for the Battle of the Bulge (Ardennes Campaign - which, again, he did not); Oldbubblehead's research has proven those elements invalid. I lack confidence as an actor, he told The Toronto Star in 1988. Following your training period in 1943, you were sent to England in February of the following year. - Mr. During supposedly told a close friend that the reason he was transferred to the Rangers was because he hit an officer, and was therefore given the choice of either Leavenworth or the Rangers. 386th Anti Aircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion (semi-mobile). His combat experiences were harrowing. The only real source are his Military records and the man himself.

and will get the relevant/readable pages uploaded ASAP. At first, the Germans present merely stared at the officer, but then Pfc. Unfortunately, the vast majority of Mr. Durning's 'war record' merely consists of his own assertions (which varied greatly over the years) or retellings of his assertions, as understood or embellished by others. And there's the weakness in Wiki; the burden of proof should be on those making assertions of fact; instead, Wiki gives credence to unsubstantiated, possibly self-serving claims made by individuals, that are only bolstered by second and third hand retellings of that same man's stories. Up and down an 85-mile (136 km) front, mortars, rockets, and heavy artillery shells literally blasted American troops out of bed or shook the ground around their frigid foxholes. Does anyone think that we should request the page to be locked? discussion above, today's AP story on Mr. Durning's death says he was "captured in the Battle of the Bulge and survived a massacre of prisoners." Let me recommend this title (see reviews on Amazon.com), a narrative history that relies on interviews with more than 360 veterans of the 99th. "I never meant to say that the conservatives are generally stupid. After the war, still mentally troubled, Mr. Durning dropped into a void for almost a decade before deciding to study acting at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York, he told Parade magazine in 1993. It is hard to see where Mr. Durning would have earned a Silver Star with this unit. Charles Edward Durning (February 28, 1923 - December 24, 2012) was an American actor, with appearances in over 200 movies, television shows and plays. But, he did NOT survive the Review: Will Bunch on the College-No College Divide, Historian Chris Miller on the Amazingand DangerousSemiconductor. By late fall, the sixty-five Allied divisions operating in northeastern Europe were facing vital supplies shortages, especially of fuel, and their offensive had sputtered to a halt. [Durning] was among the first soldiers to land on the Normandy beaches during the D-Day invasion of June 6, 1944, wrote The Washington Post. Charles Durning is indeed a great actor and served his country honorably during WWII, including his landing at Normandy on D-Day. Before I make any changes to his page, I have asked for some clarification from the Wikipedia powers that be. As even the official U.S. military history of the Battle of the Bulge states: It is probable the Germans attempting to surrender in the days immediately following [the killings at Malmedy] ran a greater risk.. And in 2007 the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, the school that he said had long ago rejected him, created a scholarship in honor of him and two other alumni, Anne Bancroft and Gena Rowlands. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. [Ref: http://www.web2carz.com/people/who-you-know/2097/charles-durnings-war-heroism-exaggeration-fabrication]. Of course all those who have writen on that massacre have emphasised one or other point of view according to their preference: som tried to whitewash the Germans others of course have pointed out how bestial they have been. I would however draw you attention to the fact that this sentence merely concerns the way the event has been related in many books, i.e. Is it him, or someone who really looks like him? Mr. Durning said the memories never left him, even when performing, even when he became, however briefly, someone else. But some quick Google searches, including this database of citations: http://www.homeofheroes.com/members/04_SS/2_WWII/indexes/army/Army-D.html does not contain the name Charles Durning. But simply because I am interested in the Malmedy massacre for several years, which means I have spend much time on the question and read a lot of books. That place that no one knows about horrifying things we keep secret. Within a matter of a few minutes, the field was covered with quickly coagulating pools of blood and writhing bodies. In the Parade interview, he recalled the hand-to-hand combat. Given that the statement was made when Peiper was the commander of Kampfgruppe Peiper, the leading battle formation of the First Panzer Divisionhe had been personally picked by Adolf Hitler to be the point person on the Sixth Panzer Armys drive to seize the bridges of the Meuse River and capture Antwerp.

Is Archaeology Due for a Sexual Revolution? [5]. 50 of 51 found this interesting | Share this Durning does not appear in either the muster reports or morning reports of any of the units involved. I was watching Everwood this evening, and I saw Mr. Durning on it. Furthermore one should keep in mind that all survivors to the massacre, i.e. The Americans in the rear of the group began to run away, even as an officer yelled Stand fast! thinking that the Germans would shoot them if they saw them escaping. 398th Infantry Regiment; part of the 100th Infantry Division, 3. His ordinary-guy looks deprived him of leading-man roles, they did not leave him.. A distinction between the survivors, i.e said the memories never left him, even when performing, when! Did not leave him typecast Tiger and Panther tanks of gratitude as we do many... Halftracks for further orders ordinary-guy looks deprived him of leading-man roles, they did not do his duty the... 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Anyone can read what you share. the men in the pasture, and the other men who escaped the massacre because for one or other reason they were not at the crossroads when and where they were supposed to be when the massacre occured (I think for instance to a man the artillery observer battalion who had been left in Malmedy because he suddenly fell ill: he escaped the massacre but is not a survivor). Perhaps whoever briefed M. Larrieu "mis-spoke" about Malmedy? - Should note that at the time Mr. Durning would have served with the 386th AAA (AW) Bn (he joined the unit while still stateside and he was levied out on 23 May 44 . However, in the beginning of the attack, the Germans possessed the element of surprise and a sense of purpose and directionthey knew what they were there for and where they were heading. Mr. Durning played the prosecutor, a character based on William Jennings Bryan, and Scott, in his last Broadway role, was the defense attorney, modeled on Clarence Darrow. The book contains a bibliography but no footnotes or citations within the text to explain sources. Charles Durning, who overcame poverty, battlefield trauma and nagging self-doubt to become an acclaimed character actor, whether on stage as Big Daddy in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof or in film as the lonely widower smitten with a cross-dressing Dustin Hoffman in Tootsie, died on Monday at his home in Manhattan. He was 89. Unless someone has a contradictory source, or different experience with the Frances/Francis spelling/gender distinction, I believe the section should assume she is a sister. 8. A good many of them had lost their parents, their sisters and brothers, during the [Allied] bombing [of German cities].

Wedinm (talk) 21:22, 29 March 2011 (UTC)Reply[reply], Regarding the lengthy Malmedy survivor? Charles Edward Durning was born into poverty on Feb. 28, 1923, in Highland Falls, N.Y., a Hudson River village. Don't know whether you have seen this discussion of Mr. Durning's service: After a fierce fight in Normandy, the Americans and British had broken out of their beachheads at the end of July and sent the Wehrmacht reeling backwards, ceding vast areas of France and Belgium to the U.S. armored divisions of the First and Third Armies and the British Twenty-fifth Army Group.

Captured during the Battle of the Bulge, Durning, was one of the few survivors of the Malmedy massacre when German troops opened fire on dozens of American prisoners. He worked as a farmhand and did other menial jobs before moving to Buffalo, where again he took odd jobs. Time is always important in military operations, but in the Ardennes in December 1944, it was the most crucial factor that Peiper, and by extension the entire Wehrmacht, faced. But then I found a book in Google Books on actors serving in the military (Duty, Honor, Applause) that talks about Durning's service in the Rangers, says some of his fellow rangers were killed at Malmedy but says nothing about his escaping.[2].

[4] Given the scores of thousands of trained infantry replacements prepositioned in Britain in anticipation of D-Day casualties (over 88,000 replacements of all types had been 'stockpiled' in the UK by 7 Jun 44), it defies belief that the Rangers would accept a last minute replacement who was not even infantry qualified. France honors Charles Durning PFC Durning was one of only a few soldiers to escape and survive the subsequent notorious Malmedy massacre. This record will need to be linked on this talk page so that other editors can verify this before we can allow this kind of character assassination. Finally, this story about Durning present at the crossroad is running on several websites since many years.

Again, kudos to Oldbubblehead. I believe that is so obviously and universally admitted a principle that I hardly think any gentleman will deny it." Charles Edward Durning (February 28, 1923 December 24, 2012) was an American actor who appeared in over 200 movies, television shows and plays. WebWhen beloved actor Charles Durning died on Christmas Eve, journalists unanimously praised the actor's storied war record. Behind them came the grumbling roar of massive Tiger and Panther tanks. Colonel David Pergrin, in charge of a company of combat engineers who were all that were left to defend Malmedy. I hope to get some kind of interview with him that can be published in order to cite these things, but with his current condition, I'm not sure it can be accomplished. Two million men fought for three months in Normandy in 1944. Not because I wuld think that Mr. Durning did not do his duty during the war. Then came World War II, and he enlisted in the Army. They must reach the bridges on the Meuse River before the sky cleared and the Allied planes, which enjoyed almost total air superiority, could turn their tanks into smoldering wrecks blocking the narrow roads and halting Germanys last chance at saving itself from total defeat. Before an attack against the Germans on December 21, four days after the massacre, the headquarters of the 328th Infantry sent out an order that read, in part: No SS troops or paratroopers will be taken prisoner but will be shot on sight.. Charles Durning Durning was yet another actor who initially served as a soldier in WWII, and he was actually part of the first wave of troops to land at Omaha Beach on D-Day. For example, tankers were returned to armored units, specialist troops (rangers, paratroops, etc.) Some fired into already dead Americans, as if to practice their aim. I saw a boy. It had seen relatively little frontline duty and was filled with numerous green replacements. This was an outfit whose job was to spot enemy artillery emplacements and transmit their location to other U.S. units. Durning stated he took part in the D-Day landings, and the article notes he was with 1st Infantry. WebIt is now a fact that Charles Durning's war record - including his involvement at Malmedy - has been publicly detailed by the French Consul. Charles Durning, right, with Dustin Hoffman, in a scene from Tootsie in 1982. . WebCharles Durning, a second World War hero who became one of Hollywood's top character actors in films like The Sting, Tootsie and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, has died, a New York City. He couldnt have been more than 14 or 15. However, immediately after the massacre occurred and well before the bodies were recovered, the news quickly spread through the GIs fighting for their lives in the Ardennes. At that time,in my pre-understanding of conversations I had with his spouse, Mr. Durning did not like to discuss his involvement in the landing at Omaha Beach that fateful day with The 1st. Anyone have any further information??? He spoke at memorial ceremonies in Washington, and in 2008 France awarded him the National Order of the Legion of Honor. Snow blanketed the little towns, vacation chateaus, and deep forests of the area. the relation of the facts, how things happened. Blacks later book, The Battalion: The Dramatic Story of the 2nd Ranger Battalion goes into more detail about the 2nd Ranger Battalion. Can someone decode this? Charles was the ninth of 10 children, and five of his sisters died of smallpox or scarlet fever in childhood, three of them within two weeks. In 2008 the Screen Actors Guild gave Mr. Durning its Life Achievement Award, as if to dispel any lingering doubts he had about being recognized by his peers. On the other side there are based on what the Germans say (at least those who are ready to admit they actually were there: curiously if you listen at the men of Peiper, almost all were miles away from that particular place a that particular time): most of the times, this is presented as an unfortunate accident due to the fact that some US PoWs had tried to escape. The Malmedy massacre (1944) was a war crime in which 84 American prisoners of war were killed by their German captors near Malmedy, Belgium, during World War II. Nine still had their arms raised above their heads. Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.18.160.21 (talk) 03:07, 7 July 2009 (UTC)Reply[reply], Every time I watch Star Wars episode IV (1977), I am certain I see Charles Durning as a foot soldier, Trying to defend the ship as Princess Leia records her message to Obi Wan in R2D2. He looks VERY different than he did since O Brother, Where Art Thou?has he had some sort of stroke or heart attack or some kind of palsy that's affected his speech? Unfortunately, Durning is very frail and his conversation is a bit wandering and imprecise. Sternebeck moved out, followed closely by Peiper, and the long line of Kampfgruffe Peiper began to pass the Americans standing in the field, some of whom had begun to relax, put their hands down, and light cigarettes. Go for it - its obviously a field of study that you enjoy and you have the chance to make your name. If such a trivial thing deserves mention (which IMO it doesn't), then you would need to provide a reference that someone else is the 2nd most decorated soldier of WWII. He went from job to job, from doorman to dishwasher to cabdriver. WebSix survivors of the Malmedy atrocity return to the field where SS troops of the First SS Panzer Division shot and killed 86 unarmed American soldiers on December 17, 1944. He noted that 1) It appears Durning did not leave the replacement system till March 44 (well after Malmedy); 2) Durning was nominally assigned to the 159th Inf Regt, then transferred to the 398th Inf Regt when the former was shipped stateside in the Fall of 45; 3)Although he was nominally assigned to those infantry regiments, he actually was on temporary duty with the 20th Special Services Bn (an entertainment unit); and 5) Mr. Karras says he knows for a fact that Arlington has cut a new headstone for Durning which omits the Bronze Star medal and two of his supposed Purple Hearts. Rlevse Talk 03:12, 9 November 2009 (UTC)Reply[reply], I realize it's no shame to have post traumatic stress disorder, but I think that any such assertions in an article must be sourced, as per BLP. We owe him a debt of gratitude as we do the many other World War II veterans who served alongside him. He describes in detail being captured by Germans and escaping, but NOT as part of the Malmedy events--not even at the same period of time.