door johan willaert » 03 jan 2009, 00:35
http://usmilitary.about.com/library/mil ... mbrose.htm
Distinguished historian and author Dr. Stephen E. Ambrose wrote "Band of Brothers," the acclaimed nonfiction best seller that is the basis for the 10-part HBO miniseries of the same name. Asked why he chose to tell the story Easy Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne, Ambrose replies, "It’s the scope of the thing. The adventures of this group of men take you through America and through much of Europe, including most of the high points of the European theater of the war."
At a military reunion in New Orleans in the fall of 1988, Ambrose taped interviews with as many units as possible, including members of Easy Company, focusing on the D-Day experience. Ambrose’s neighbor, Walter Gordon, a corporal in Easy Company, then circulated a transcript of Ambrose’s interviews to other company veterans, including Richard Winters, the company’s commanding officer. Winters found discrepancies, and, since he was planning to visit Gordon with a few other veterans, suggested meeting Ambrose to set the record straight.
At Ambrose’s home, Gordon, Winters, Forrest Guth and Carwood Lipton spent hours discussing their memories of D-Day, which was an educational experience for Ambrose. During dinner that night, talk turned to the company’s adventures in the days and months following D-Day, a conversation that convinced Ambrose to put their story on paper. Ambrose recalls telling Winters, "What you guys have done, and the way in which the company holds together so tightly, I have to write this up…this is just too good!"
Over the next year, Ambrose conducted interviews with about three dozen Easy Company veterans, some in person, some by telephone. He spent nearly a week with Winters, and saw his neighbor Gordon often, checking out various stories. The result is a narrative that describes the experiences of members of an elite company from their start as raw recruits to battle-hardened soldiers, and tells it from a very personal point of view.
When asked what about these men allowed them to rise above their peers, to be as good as they were, Ambrose demurs, observing, "I don’t think they would ever say that of themselves. But I would say this – they weren’t all that much better than other paratroopers, or the Rangers, or the Marines. They were one of many elite units in the war. But what made them special even among those who were already self-selected special, was their leadership, and how well it held together. And it got tried very severely on several occasions. But the great COs, platoon leaders and sergeants – not all elite units had such luck in their leaders, and that’s the difference."
Ambrose read the scripts for "Band Of Brothers," but was content, he says, to let "Hanks and Spielberg do their magic, because I trust them so much and I know what they’re going to do with the story." After seeing its translation to the screen, Ambrose is, he declares, "ecstatic! It’s just wonderful. This series is the best portrayal of war in the 1940s, ever. Everyone knows how good Spielberg is, and I was even more impressed after working with him on "Saving Private Ryan," and then Hanks really put his heart and soul into this. And he got it, just the way it happened, and he’s just a genius in how he does these things."
Ambrose is particularly glad to see that Hanks kept to the truth, even the truth that doesn’t look good, such as the American GIs looting, because it’s what happened – but it’s also put in context. Noting the recent revival of interest in World War II, and the commensurate books, films and television projects, Ambrose attributes the phenomenon to two factors: the veterans themselves, and America’s changing attitude about its history. In the case of the veterans, he notes, "many are realizing that they don’t have much time left in the world, and many, for the first time, are willing to talk about their experiences. As young men just back from fighting, they didn’t want to think about the war. But now, they realize their grandchildren are deeply interested in hearing those stories, and if they don’t tell them, they’ll go to the grave with them."
At the same time, Ambrose believes the country is newly interested in its history, which is "something that young people, especially, didn’t want to hear about in the ‘60s and ‘70s, because of everything else going on – the civil rights movement, women’s rights movement, Vietnam. Now that 25 years later those issues aren’t at the forefront anymore, young people are aware that we’re living in the freest and richest nation that ever was, and we owe that to somebody. Where did this wealth and these liberties come from? That’s the 180-degree turn in attitude about history in this country. And World War II is the greatest event of the century that we just passed through, and the answer to some of those questions."
As for "Band Of Brothers," Ambrose would like Easy Company’s story to inspire in the audience "a commitment to democracy. An understanding that freedom doesn’t come for free. And if it has to be fought for, then it has to be fought for, and introduce the soldiers of democracy that will get it done. As for young people, I would like them to come away saying, 'I want to be like Carwood Lipton' or 'I want to be like Dick Winters' – and go do it! Not necessarily as soldiers, but as that kind of leader, that kind of man, with basic honesty and virtue and an understanding of the difference between right and wrong."
http://usmilitary.about.com/library/milinfo/bandofbrothers/blbbambrose.htm
Distinguished historian and author Dr. Stephen E. Ambrose wrote "Band of Brothers," the acclaimed nonfiction best seller that is the basis for the 10-part HBO miniseries of the same name. Asked why he chose to tell the story Easy Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne, Ambrose replies, "It’s the scope of the thing. The adventures of this group of men take you through America and through much of Europe, including most of the high points of the European theater of the war."
[b]At a military reunion in New Orleans in the fall of 1988, Ambrose taped interviews with as many units as possible, including members of Easy Company, focusing on the D-Day experience. Ambrose’s neighbor, Walter Gordon, a corporal in Easy Company, then circulated a transcript of Ambrose’s interviews to other company veterans, including Richard Winters, the company’s commanding officer. Winters found discrepancies, and, since he was planning to visit Gordon with a few other veterans, suggested meeting Ambrose to set the record straight.[/b]
[b]At Ambrose’s home, Gordon, Winters, Forrest Guth and Carwood Lipton spent hours discussing their memories of D-Day, which was an educational experience for Ambrose. During dinner that night, talk turned to the company’s adventures in the days and months following D-Day, a conversation that convinced Ambrose to put their story on paper. Ambrose recalls telling Winters, "What you guys have done, and the way in which the company holds together so tightly, I have to write this up…this is just too good!"[/b]
Over the next year, Ambrose conducted interviews with about three dozen Easy Company veterans, some in person, some by telephone. He spent nearly a week with Winters, and saw his neighbor Gordon often, checking out various stories. The result is a narrative that describes the experiences of members of an elite company from their start as raw recruits to battle-hardened soldiers, and tells it from a very personal point of view.
When asked what about these men allowed them to rise above their peers, to be as good as they were, Ambrose demurs, observing, "I don’t think they would ever say that of themselves. But I would say this – they weren’t all that much better than other paratroopers, or the Rangers, or the Marines. They were one of many elite units in the war. But what made them special even among those who were already self-selected special, was their leadership, and how well it held together. And it got tried very severely on several occasions. But the great COs, platoon leaders and sergeants – not all elite units had such luck in their leaders, and that’s the difference."
Ambrose read the scripts for "Band Of Brothers," but was content, he says, to let "Hanks and Spielberg do their magic, because I trust them so much and I know what they’re going to do with the story." After seeing its translation to the screen, Ambrose is, he declares, "ecstatic! It’s just wonderful. This series is the best portrayal of war in the 1940s, ever. Everyone knows how good Spielberg is, and I was even more impressed after working with him on "Saving Private Ryan," and then Hanks really put his heart and soul into this. And he got it, just the way it happened, and he’s just a genius in how he does these things."
Ambrose is particularly glad to see that Hanks kept to the truth, even the truth that doesn’t look good, such as the American GIs looting, because it’s what happened – but it’s also put in context. Noting the recent revival of interest in World War II, and the commensurate books, films and television projects, Ambrose attributes the phenomenon to two factors: the veterans themselves, and America’s changing attitude about its history. In the case of the veterans, he notes, "many are realizing that they don’t have much time left in the world, and many, for the first time, are willing to talk about their experiences. As young men just back from fighting, they didn’t want to think about the war. But now, they realize their grandchildren are deeply interested in hearing those stories, and if they don’t tell them, they’ll go to the grave with them."
At the same time, Ambrose believes the country is newly interested in its history, which is "something that young people, especially, didn’t want to hear about in the ‘60s and ‘70s, because of everything else going on – the civil rights movement, women’s rights movement, Vietnam. Now that 25 years later those issues aren’t at the forefront anymore, young people are aware that we’re living in the freest and richest nation that ever was, and we owe that to somebody. Where did this wealth and these liberties come from? That’s the 180-degree turn in attitude about history in this country. And World War II is the greatest event of the century that we just passed through, and the answer to some of those questions."
As for "Band Of Brothers," Ambrose would like Easy Company’s story to inspire in the audience "a commitment to democracy. An understanding that freedom doesn’t come for free. And if it has to be fought for, then it has to be fought for, and introduce the soldiers of democracy that will get it done. As for young people, I would like them to come away saying, 'I want to be like Carwood Lipton' or 'I want to be like Dick Winters' – and go do it! Not necessarily as soldiers, but as that kind of leader, that kind of man, with basic honesty and virtue and an understanding of the difference between right and wrong."