Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone

Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone received the Medal of Honor for his heroic acts during WWII. Basilone was born to Italian parents who had settled in Raritan, New Jersey. His father Salvatore, immigrated in 1903 aboard S. S. Hohenzollern from Naples.

Basilone joined the Army in 1934 and served in the Philippines until he was discharged in 1937. In 1940, he reenlisted, this time with the Marine Corps. Basilone fought with distinction at Guadalcanal, holding off a Japanese advance of thousands with a machine gun for which he received his Medal of Honor. He was killed during the Battle of Iwo Jima and posthumously awarded the Navy Cross.

Staff Sergeant Bernice Frankel

Staff Sergeant Bernice Frankel, more commonly known as legendary actress and comedienne Bea Arthur, was born in New York City in 1922. Her father, a Polish immigrant, arrived in the US in 1902 aboard S.S. Teutonic.

Arthur’s first major roles were in Fiddler on the Roof and Mame on Broadway, the latter earning her a Tony Award. She went on to achieve worldwide fame as Maude Findlay in the popular sitcoms All in the Family and Maude and later as Dorothy Zbornak on The Golden Girls. Prior to her illustrious career on stage and screen, Arthur enlisted as one of the first members of the United States Marine Corps Women’s Reserve in 1943. She served as a typist, a truck driver, and a dispatcher before being honorably discharged in 1945.

General of the Armies, John J. Pershing

The descendant of German immigrants, General of the Armies, John J. Pershing served as the commander of the American Expeditionary Force during WWI. Pershing graduated from West Point in 1886. He saw combat in Cuba and the Philippines during both the Spanish and Philippine American Wars. During WWI, Pershing placed African-American soldiers in then-segregated units under French leadership, thereby giving them advancement opportunities. The American units under Pershing’s command saw heavy combat in the Meuse-Argonne offensive, an event potentially decisive in the German Armistice.

Staff Sergeant Charles Rangel

One of the longest serving members of Congress in American history, Staff Sergeant Charles Rangel represented various districts of New York City from 1971 until 2017. Rangel was born in Harlem to an African American mother and a father who immigrated from Puerto Rico in 1914. He began his career in the Army, enlisting at the age of 18 and serving as an artillery operations specialist in the all-black 503rd Field Artillery Battalion in the 2nd Infantry Division. In 1950, he led a group of soldiers out of a deadly Chinese army encirclement during the Battle of Kunu-ri, earning him a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star.

Chief Warrant Officer Aaron Fisher

Chief Warrant Officer Aaron Fisher was one of many distinguished African American’s to serve in the First World War. The son of a Civil War veteran, Fisher enlisted in the Army in 1911, initially being deployed to New Mexico during the Mexican Border War. After several tours of duty, he graduated Officer Candidate School becoming a Second Lieutenant. Fisher departed from the Port of New York aboard the S.S. Covington on June 15, 1918 for deployment in France. He received the Distinguished Service Cross, Purple Heart, and French Croix de Guerre. He remained in the Army, becoming an ROTC instructor during WWII.

Captain Louis Zamperini

Captain Louis Zamperini was a World War II Air Force veteran and Olympic distance runner whose story became the basis of Laura Hillenbrand’s best-selling book Unbroken and a 2014 feature film of the same name. In the spring of 1943, Zamperini was part of a reconnaissance mission when his plane malfunctioned and crashed into the Pacific Ocean. He survived for 47 days on a raft before being captured by Japanese Navy forces. For two years, Zamperini endured incessant torture as a prisoner of war and was formally declared “killed in action” by the Department of Defense. When he was finally freed, he returned home a hero and received the Purple Heart, the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Prisoner of War medal. He went on to become an inspirational speaker.  Zamperini’s father immigrated to the US from Italy in 1903.

Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz

“WHERE IS REPEAT WHERE IS TASK FORCE THIRTY FOUR. THE WORLD WONDERS.”

One of the most famous quotes of WWII was sent via encryption 80 years ago during the Battle of Leyte Gulf by Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz to Admiral William Halsey.

Nimitz was the descendant German immigrants. His grandfather and idol, Karl Nimitz was a merchant marine, who heavily influenced his decision attend the Naval Academy in 1901. After graduation, Nimitz quickly rose through the ranks and at the outbreak of WWII in the United States, was selected by President Roosevelt to be Commander in Chief of the United States Pacific Fleet.

General Douglas MacArthur

“I SHALL RETURN!”

General Douglas MacArthur uttered these famous words at a train station in Australia after being forced to flee the Philippines due to an overwhelming assault by the Japanese military in 1942. After the Battle of Leyte Gulf in 1944, he did “return.”

MacArthur was the grandson of Scottish immigrants. He graduated West Point in 1903 and saw service all over the globe. He rose to prominence during WWI, becoming a Brigadier General and by WWII a full General. MacArthur oversaw all of the Army’s island hopping campaigns in the Pacific Theatre. He was present and signed the Japanese Instrument of Surrender on September 2nd, 1945.