December 5, 2024 • 38 mins
On this episode of Our American Stories, Audie Murphy's story is one of the quintessential American stories; yet, chances are, many Americans have never even heard of his name. Here's Roger McGrath with another Hollywood Goes to War story.
Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
This is Lee Habib, and this is our American story.
He's to show where America is the star and the
American people. Audie Murphy was a fifth grade educated teenager
who became World War two's most decorated soldier, earning thirty
three military awards, citations and decorations, twelve of which were
(00:31):
for vour. He would go on to be a major
motion picture star, playing the lead in over forty pictures,
and write a best selling autobiography of his war experiences
entitled to Hell and Back, and then extraordinarily would play
himself in the highly successful film based on the book.
(00:51):
Here to Tell Another Hollywood Goes to War's story is
Roger McGrath. Roger is the author of Gunfighters, Howiman, and Vigilantes.
He's a US Marine and former history professor at UCLA
and a frequent contributor on the History Channel documentaries. He's
a regular contributor Here Take It Away, McGrath.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
For years now, Audie Murphy has been a well known
motion picture star, but he is known also as the
most decorated soldier of World War Two. What has stayed
in his mind? What does he remember most about that
time of his life?
Speaker 3 (01:27):
Audi Murphy is one of the greatest of our American heroes.
Born and reared in poverty, he became American's most decorated
soldier of World War Two while still a teenager. After
the war, he became a movie star, apearing in forty
four films, often as leading man. He also wrote songs,
(01:47):
two of them hits. His rise from obscurity to war
hero and fame and fortune is one of the most
improbable in American history. Audie Murphy is born on June twentieth,
nineteen twenty five, on a farm in Hunt County, Texas.
(02:08):
He's the seventh of twelve children born to Emmett and
Josie Murphy. His father is a sharecropper, and the family
lives in dire poverty, never having enough food or clothes.
Audie learns a hunt at an early age, not has
a recreational activity, but to help put food on the
table for the family. He becomes a skilled marksman. He
(02:32):
can't afford to miss. Bullets costs money. A neighbor once
gave Audie a dozen rounds of AMMO for a twenty
two rifle, but Lottie is using. Later in the day,
Audie returns with seven rabbits and five bullets he didn't use.
The neighbor is astounded by the shooting prowess of a
little kid named Audie Murphy.
Speaker 4 (02:56):
I am nineteen Murphy, the sister of Aldie Murphy, the
most decorated hero of World War Two. People don't believe
he went to bed hunger, got up hunger, and went
worked all day, come in nothing to eat. He'd get
out hunting and stuff to kill squirrels rabbits for us
to have something to eat. And we were always proud
(03:16):
of him.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
Audi and his brothers and sisters are the ultimate underdogs
in a nation of underdogs during the Great Depression. Audio
attends school only intermittently. He spends most of his young
years not in the classroom, but in the fields picking cotton.
He totes a cotton sack for the first time at
age five. The few years he actually attends school, he
(03:42):
misses weeks at a time, necessitated by work on the farm.
At school, he's often in fights. Despite being smaller than
the playground bullies, He's never one to back down. His
teacher calls him my fighting the Irishman, and later he
says his childhood was always a struggle against many odds,
(04:04):
but he was intelligent, industrious, quick to anger, but very
loyal and devoted to the ones he loved. When at
he was only fourteen, his father takes off for parts unknown,
seeing his work in another county and will send money home.
Speaker 4 (04:29):
Daddy got up one coat snow at night and put
her on his clothes and walked off and left us.
My mother is down sick, and I seen him when
he left out the door.
Speaker 3 (04:39):
Two years later, Ottie's mother dies. A hard scrabble life
gets harder, if that's possible.
Speaker 4 (04:48):
Some man, big truck come down there late one in't
and put our big what we had.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
We didn't have much.
Speaker 4 (04:55):
They loaded up and they put us out on the
road side, and was out there and it was started
raigning honess.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
Audie Leader said, people know me for my record as
a soldier, but the truth is I must have done
some of my best fighting in a war. I was
in lawn before I joined the army. He might say,
there never was a peacetime in my life, a time
when things were good. I never had just fun. I
(05:24):
am one Texan boy who never had a pir of
cowboy boots. I'm one native born and native bred American
male who actually doesn't know the rules of our national pastime, baseball.
I never had time to play or the paraphernalia.
Speaker 1 (05:40):
You play with.
Speaker 3 (05:42):
I never had a bike. It was a full time
job just existing. Audie is a months I have sixteen
years old. When his mother dies, it's a devastating blow
for the teenage Audie.
Speaker 4 (05:56):
He worshiped our mother. She died and he just couldn't
get over.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
He later said, she had the most beautiful hair I've
ever seen. It reached almost to the floor. She rarely
talked and always seemed to be searching for something. What
it was, I don't know. We didn't discuss our feelings.
But when she passed away, she took something of me
with her. It seems I've been searching for it ever since.
(06:27):
Attie drives a whole the family together, at least those
children still at home and worked several jobs. Nonetheless, the
county sends the three youngest Murphy children to an orphanage.
Audie is devastated for a second time. Six months after
(06:54):
the death of Attie's mother, the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor
in a sneak attack on the side number seventh, nineteen
forty one. The deed that will live in infamy.
Speaker 1 (07:05):
And you've been listening to doctor Roger McGrath tell the
story of the most decorated soldier of World War II,
Audie Murphy. And my goodness, he toded cotton sacks at
the age of five, and he didn't hunt for fun.
He hunted for food for the family meals. When we
come back more of the story of Audie Murphy here
(07:27):
on our American Stories. Here are at our American Stories.
We bring you inspiring stories of history, sports, business, faith
and love. Stories from a great and beautiful country that
need to be told. But we can't do it without you.
Our stories are free to listen to, but they're not
free to make. If you love our stories in America
(07:47):
like we do, please go to our American Stories dot
com and click the donate button. Give a little, give
a lot, help us keep the great American stories coming.
That's our American Stories dot Com. And we continue with
(08:10):
our American Stories and with the story of Audie Murphy.
Let's pick up Louie last left off. Here's Roger McGrath.
Speaker 3 (08:19):
Six months after the death of Audie's mother, the Japanese
bomb Pearl Harbor in a sneak attack on December seventh,
nineteen forty one. Like most Americans, Audi is stunned and outraged.
Although underage and underweight, Audi tries enlisting in the service,
but is rejected by the Marine Corps and by the Army.
(08:41):
Just after return seventeen, an older sister, Koreen, falsely attests
Audi having just turned eighteen.
Speaker 4 (08:50):
And so it came in one day and he told
my oldest sister, Correen. He said, I want to join
the Army. And she said, Audi, you're not old enough.
And he said, I know it, but I want to go.
He said, you signed for me. She said, well, you
know I can. But if something happens to y'all always
feel guilty. She said, I'm gonna go over there and
do my best. And he said, if I live through it,
(09:11):
I'm gonna get a home for these three little ones.
He'll have home. He walked over there and signed up,
and he's just gone in a day or two.
Speaker 3 (09:20):
Audi is five foot five and a half inches tall
and weighs one hundred and twelve pounds and doesn't have
anything to shave on his freckled baby face, but the
Army enlists the blue eyed auburn haired kid. On June thirtieth,
nineteen forty two, Audie will grow taller and gain weight,
but will still look like a baby faced kid when discharged.
(09:43):
In September nineteen forty five, Audie Murphy goes through basic
training at Camp Walters, some fifty miles west of Fort Worth.
He's still in Texas, but for the first time, it's
meeting men from outside of the state. Baby by his
first sergeant, Murphy gets along well with his fellow recruits
(10:05):
and excels throughout the training. Upon graduation, he's recommended for
a rear echelon assignment because of his small size and
boyish appearance. Murphy will have none of it and assists
on the infantry. Acceding to his wishes, the Army sends
Murphy through advanced infantry training at Fort Meade, Maryland. He
(10:26):
again excels and again has urged to accept a rear
echelon billet. Murphy refuses and goes overseas with the fifteenth
Infantry Regiment of the third Infantry Division.
Speaker 5 (10:40):
Audie, how long were you in the service?
Speaker 6 (10:43):
Well, actually a very short time, about three years, but
I assure you it seemed much longer.
Speaker 5 (10:48):
Did you spend most of your service in Europe, practically.
Speaker 7 (10:51):
All of it.
Speaker 6 (10:52):
I had my basic training in Texas and a little
bit at Fort Need, Maryland, and light on to North Africa.
Speaker 3 (11:00):
In Casablanca, Morocco in February nineteen forty three, and is
assigned to Company B, first Battalion of the fifteenth Infantry Regiment.
His unit serves in Algeria, but sees little action and
spends most of its time in rigorous training. Murphy demonstrates
natural leadership skills and he's promoted to PFC on May
(11:24):
sevent On July tenth, nineteen forty three, the third Division
lands on Sicily in Operation Husky. Murphy is immediately assigned
to scouting patrols. On one of the patrols, Murphy spots
two Italian officers, each mounted on a beautiful horse fleeing
(11:45):
in the distance. Murphy fires twice and the two Italian
officers dropped from their saddles dead. On July fifteenth, Murphy
is promoted to corporal. After more fighting in Sicily, the
third Division takes part in Operation Avalanche, the invasion of
(12:06):
mainland Italy at Salerno on September ninth, nineteen forty three,
casualties are heavy. Murphy is leading the three man scouting
party along the Volturno River on September fifteenth, when German
machine gun fire kills one of the party. Murphy and
the other surviving American destroy the machine gun in placement
(12:29):
and kill five Germans with hand grenades in rifle fire.
A month later, Murphy leads the way in repelling a
German assault on his company's position. Three Germans are killed
and four are taken prisoner. On December thirteenth, Murphy is
promoted to surgeon. The action continues hot and heavy along
(12:52):
what is termed the Volturno Line until mid January nineteen
forty four. Murphy's in the thick of it and is
promoted to s staff sergeant on January thirteenth. Murphy misses
the landings at Anzio and Operation Shingle on January twenty two,
nineteen forty four, because he's in the hospital at Naples
(13:14):
suffering from malaria. However, he's back with his unit in
time for the Battle of Cisterna at the end of January,
again demonstrating outstanding leadership and courage under fire. Staff Sergeant
Murphy is made a platoon sergeant in Company B He's
still only eighteen years old. On March second, nineteen forty four,
(13:39):
and again on March eighth, Murphy has awarded the Bronze
Star with V for Valor for his actions in combat.
In the second action, Murphy crawls through one hundred yards
of mud to destroy a German tank with rifle grenades.
The action will later be depicted in to Helen Back,
a story of Murphy's heroism in World War Two. Murphy
(14:03):
then spends another week in a hospital with a second
bout of malaria. Staff Surgeon Audie Murphy, now with two
Bronze Stars, is with American forces when they liberate Grown
on June fourth, nineteen forty four. He will be there
for two months. The first extended period of rest is
(14:24):
outfit has had after nearly a year of combat. On
August fifteenth, nineteen forty four, the Third Division lands on
the beaches of southern France in Operation Dragoon. Murphy's platoon
is ordered to attack what's called pill Box Hill thick
(14:46):
with German machine gun and placements. As my rifle platoon
and I moved inland from the beach, said Murphy. We
were halted by machine gun fire from a rocky ridge.
We dropped to the ground and crawled quickly to come.
There's only one thing to do, and I could not
ask any of my men to do it well. Murphy
(15:07):
needs to find a way up the hill that offers
some protection, and takes off by himself to do so.
He dashes through bullets to a narrow draw and begins
working his way up the hill. He kills two Germans
who are moving down the draw and wounds a third.
He then finds himself in a firefight with two enemy
foxhole positions. He is close to overrunning those positions when
(15:31):
he runs out of ammunition. Murphy retreats back down the
draw to his platoon and tells his men he might
be able to clear a path for them with a
machine gun. Murphy makes a dash for the beach. Bullets
are whizzing all around him. He finds a machine gun squad,
borrows one of their thirty caliber machine guns, and dashes
through bullets back to his platoon. In Murphy's words, the
(15:54):
long as forty yards I have ever run. As Murphy
gets ready to go up the draw, his best friend
Laddie Tipton says, I'm going to the Tennessee and Tipton
and the Texan Murphy, both country boys had shared foxholes
ever since the invasion of Sicily. Shortly after hitting the
beach that day, Timpton was shot through the left ear
(16:17):
and he's bleeding a lot. Murphy orders him back to
the beach for medical treatment, but Tipton refuses to go.
Murphy relents and the two of them make a dash
for the draw.
Speaker 1 (16:29):
And you're listening to doctor Roger McGrath tell the story
of Audie Murphy and after Pearl Harbor is attacked. Well,
Audie is sixteen years old and he's thinking, heck, I'm
going to try and enlist, and when that doesn't work,
when he turns seventeen, he asks his sister to sign
for him, and the sister's hesitant. Of course, something happens
(16:50):
to her baby brother. She'll blame herself forever, but he's insistent,
and in the end, at the age of seventeen, he's
in the army and he's doing basic tech and he's
earned the nickname quickly of baby by his first sergeant.
That would change, and of course that would change because
of his insistence of not being at the back of
(17:11):
the line. But the front of the line, and not
in any part of the army, but the infantry itself,
the front of the line of the infantry is who
he was. And he served only three years, as we
heard from Audie Murphy himself. But boy, during those three years,
what combat, what action he saw, and there was heavy
(17:32):
action in Italy. It's one of the most underappreciated aspects
of the European campaign. When he finally got to Rome
for the first time in a year, and imagine that, folks,
for the first time in a year, he gets to
just take a break from combat. When we come back.
More of the remarkable story of Audie Murphy here on
(17:53):
our American stories, and we continue with our American stories
and the story of Audie Murphy, world War two's most
(18:14):
decorated soldier. Let's continue the story with doctor Roger McGrath.
Speaker 3 (18:19):
They're able to get the machine gun in a position
to fire on the German machine gun replacements and they
silence one, killing the gun crew. They then turn the
machine gun on the second German emplacement and suddenly they
see a white flag waving. This looks funny, Tipton said,
But I'm going up and get him. Keep me covered
(18:40):
Murphy yells, having it to keep down, but Tipton stands
up and as soon as he does to burst the
machine gun fire sends him tumbling backwards and rolling into Murphy.
Tipton is dead. Murphy is set into a rage. He
races forward toward the German placeman, firing his M one
(19:02):
car beat in hurling grenades. He kills the German gun crew,
picks up the German machine gun and firing it from
his hip, advances on the German strongpoint bullets and grenade.
Fragments from the Germans dance around Murphy, but he continues
to advance, killing two Germans who come out to stop him.
In a final fierce firefight, Murphy kills two more Germans
(19:26):
and wounds two five others surrender. Murphy is awarded the
Distinguished Service Cross for the action. It should have been
a Medal of Honor. Dipped In is posthumously awarded with
the Bronze Star and Purple Art. The third Division is
in continual action as it pushes north through France. On
(19:49):
September fifteenth, nineteen forty four, Murphy is wounded when a
mortar shell explodes near him, and he receives his first
of three Purple Arts. During the the first week of October,
Murphy is awarded the Silver Star twice, first when he
takes out a German machine gun in placement, killing four
Germans and wounding three others. The second silver Star is
(20:11):
awarded when bugging the radio. He crawls through heavy enemy
fire to position where he can direct his platoons fire
on a German hilltop position. The battle goes on for
an hour, and all the time Murphy is subjected to
enemy fire. Murphy's fire direction enables his platoon to take
(20:32):
the German stronghold, leaving fifteen enemy dead and thirty five wounded.
On October fourteenth, nineteen forty four, Steph Sergeant Audie Murphy
is made second Lieutenant Audi Murphy. He earlier was offered
a commission, but turned it down when told he would
(20:53):
have to be transferred from his unit. This time he
accepts when told he will not have to transfer. On
October twenty sixth, Murphy's platoon comes under fire from a
trio of German snipers. Murphy goes after them alone, stealthily
tracking and stalking them. He brings back one captive, then
(21:17):
another in a long distance rifle duel with a third sniper.
Murphy is wounded, but then puts a bullet between the
eyes of the German sharpshooter. Murphy's wound earns him another
Purple Art, but puts him in the hospital and out
of action for two months. When he returns to the front,
(21:41):
it's in what's called the Colmar parkt an area of
fierce German resistance at the eastern edge of the French
province of Alsas, just west of the Rhine River. The
frozen ground is covered with snow and it's snowing intermittently.
It's bitterly cold. Murphy's leading his platoon on January twenty fourth,
(22:03):
nineteen forty five, when he's wounded in both legs but
stays in the fight, is awarded another Purple Art and
made commander of his company. Company b or Baker Company.
Companies are usually led by captains. Murphy is still a
second lieutenant Baker Company, now only a fraction of full
(22:25):
strength comes under attack by a superior German force of
infantry and tanks on January twenty sixth. The German infantrymen
are from the elite second Mountain Division and they're clad
in white to blend in with the snow. An American
tank destroyer fires on the German tanks, but return fire
(22:46):
leaves the tank destroyer a blazing wreck, killing its commander
and gunner. Three surviving crew members climb out of the
wreck and race to the nearby woods. Murphy orders his
men to also take cover in the same woods while
he remains in an exposed position to direct American artillery
fire using a field telephone. I remember being mad as
(23:11):
hell when Murph told us to go back, said Pfc.
RF Kelly. We wanted to stay and fight by his side.
The artillery fire slows, but doesn't stop the German advance
as they close in on Murphy. He picks off German
infantrymen using his M one carbine, but there are two
(23:32):
hundred and fifty of them, and they're supported by a
half dozen tanks. They keep coming and are closing in
on Murphy. Over the phone from battalion headquarters comes an
inquiry concerning the location of the attacking Germans. If you
hold the phone, says Murphy, A'll let you talk to
one of the What Murphy does next is described by
(23:57):
eyewitness Lieutenant Walter WEISSFENNI has the bravest thing I've ever
seen a man do in combat with the Germans one
hundred yards away. He climbed onto the tank destroyer turret
and began firing its fifty caliber machine gun at the
advancing crowds. He was completely exposed to the enemy fire,
(24:19):
and there was a blaze under him that threatened to
blow the destroyer to bits. Machine gun, machine pistol, and
eighty eight shell fire was all around him. Twice the
tank destroyer was hit by direct shell fire, and Lieutenant
Murphy was engulfed in clouds of smoke and spurts of flame.
His clothing was riddled by flying fragments of shells. I
(24:42):
saw that his trouser leg was soaked with blood. Murphy
himself recalled the concussion from the German tank shells. I
remember getting the hell shook out of me, but that
was nothing new. I also remember, for the first time
in three days, we're warm with flames. Looking at his legs.
(25:04):
Murphy continues firing at the advancing Germans, who are falling
by the twos and threes. The German infantrymen, said Sergeant
Elmer Brawley got within ten yards of Lieutenant Murphy, who
killed them in the draws, in the meadows, in the woods,
Murphy's withering fire kills fifty Germans and wounds that many more.
(25:27):
The attack falters, then stops, and the Germans retreat. Murphy
climbs off the tank destroyer and limps towards the woods.
Seconds later, the tank destroyer explodes without Murphy, so Rowick
Stand Company B would have been annihilated. Murphy is awarded
(25:48):
the Medal of Honor.
Speaker 1 (25:50):
And you've been listening to doctor Roger McGrath tell the
story of Audie Murphy, and what a story. Indeed, I
think one of the most important points may during that
particular part of the story was the fact that he
turned down a promotion to stay with his unit, and
he understood what unit cohesion meant, and he understood what
(26:10):
he was doing at the time, and the promotion wasn't
as important as the task at hand. And it reflects
his character, his nature and so much more. And then,
of course being awarded the Medal of Honor not an
easy thing to do, very rare, as you know, but
what he did sparked this comment from a superior officer.
It's the bravest thing I've ever seen a man do
(26:32):
in combat. And that's not just an exaggeration. Indeed, read
the citation, go to the Arlington National Cemetery site and
read the story, or go to the Medal of Honors
website and read more about just this particular battle and
what Murphy did, and just as always a sense of well, aushucks.
(26:52):
For the first time in days three days, my feet
were warm. That's what Audie Murphy remembers, being on top
of that tank destroyer, repelling that many German soldiers. And
when we come back more of this remarkable story of
World War two's most decorated soldier, We're talking about Audie
Murphy here on our American Stories. And we continue with
(27:38):
our American stories and the story of World War two's
most decorated soldier, Audie Murphy. Let's pick up where we
last left off. Here's Roger McGrath now with.
Speaker 3 (27:49):
The Middle of Honor, the Distinguished Service Cross, two Silver Stars,
two Bronze Stars, three Purple Arts, and several other awards.
Audie Murphy his most decorating American of World War Two.
He's nineteen years old. Murphy's later awarded the highest decorations
for valor both the French and the Belgian nations can.
Speaker 8 (28:12):
Offer, well, Audi, as a man who was honored with
every decoration his country could award. And going back to
your service before you were commissioned as sergeant Audie Murphy,
let's say, would you tell our listeners what was your
most memorable experience of World War two?
Speaker 6 (28:27):
Thence, of course I had had many, and I sometimes
remember them, not always for great pleasure. But I think
I'd have to say that the greatest thing that ever
happened to me was not as a sergeant, but as
a second lieutenant. Was I first lieutenant. I've tried to
forget all these things. You see, I can't remember my
(28:49):
rank at the end of the war. I think it
was first lieutenant. And this was I've even forgotten the date.
But I was on a train going for a little
rest in the area for all about three or four
day pass and I heard the announcement that the war
in Europe was over, and uh, there's nothing that could
top that for me.
Speaker 5 (29:09):
Well, then this was your most memorable day.
Speaker 6 (29:11):
It certainly was, because, uh, as I say, those three
years it seemed much longer than they really were, and
I saw them out of good Uh.
Speaker 5 (29:19):
Good men come and.
Speaker 8 (29:20):
Go when you heard the war was over, what was
your first thought or reaction?
Speaker 5 (29:26):
Well, coming home again?
Speaker 6 (29:28):
Uh, I started to think about home for a change,
which we didn't dare think of before, because as you know,
you lived in day to day, minute to minute in
most cases. And uh suddenly I was a little frightened.
Uh strange as it might seem, I didn't know what
I'd do when I got home. And uh, uh I
(29:48):
suddenly felt just a little empty and said a little
lonely about the whole thing. Although I was very happy
the war was over, uh I suddenly didn't feel that
I had a home.
Speaker 7 (29:59):
And there w from it.
Speaker 4 (30:00):
When I ran over to hugging and I said, thank
you God, he's home. He came through it, and they
gave him parades and stuff. They gave him bonds, they
gave him money, and he took that money and bought
a big two story house. And he told my oldest sister,
(30:23):
he said, if you and your husband will take those
kids and bring them and raise them with your two boys,
I'll give you that house. So that's what he did,
so we had home. He asked us, he said, the kids,
y'all like you home? And we said, oh yeah, yeah,
you know, he said, Well, I told you that I
(30:45):
was going to the army and if I came back,
i'd buy a home and you'd have a home. That
course tickled us to death. He was the man of
his word all the way. What he said he meant
is just a good, all around, good old country boy,
and that makes me proud.
Speaker 3 (31:07):
After the award, James Gagney, one of Hollywood's greatest stars,
invites Murphy to Hollywood to get him into the movies.
Upon his arrival in Hollywood, Murphy, with the help of
the ghostwriter David McClure, begins working on an autobiography titled
to Hellen Back Bubbles in nineteen forty eight. The book
(31:28):
immediately becomes a best seller. Murphy's first roles in movies
are minor, but eventually appears in forty four films, starring
in most of them, including To Hellen Back, the top
grossing movie of nineteen fifty five. Murphy also writes fourteen songs,
(31:48):
including two the chart in the top ten. Murphy is
a thrill of being an actor and understands his own
acting skills are limited. He finds Hollywood as far more
than its share of egocentric phonies. One of them is
Kirk Douglas, who, in front of others, regularly challenges Murphy
(32:08):
to see who's the fastest gun. Douglas appears more than
a dozen Westerns and simply thinks he can outdraw anyone
in Hollywood. He eagerly anticipates showing up the famous war hero. Finally,
after another one of Douglas's challenges, and with the crowd gathered,
Murphy agrees to a quick draw contest. Goes there. See
(32:32):
Murphy's blue eyes turn icy cold, and Murphy says, but
but we use real bullets. Douglas looks like he's been
hit with an axe, his legs turned a rubber, and
he wobbles backwards. Douglas never again approaches Murphy. Murphy's first
(32:57):
marriage ends after a couple of years, his wife unable
to cope with Murphy's problems with post traumatic stress disorder.
Speaker 7 (33:05):
He called me one day and he said, I'm sitting
here with my forty five. Don't worry about a thing.
I'm going to blow my brains out. And I had
two seconds and I said, that's really great. He said,
what do you mean? I said, why don't you do that?
He said, what do you mean. I said, do it
for every kid in the country who thinks you're the
(33:27):
greatest fellow who ever lived. That'll make everybody in the
United States. Go ahead and pull a trigger. He said,
you son of a b and he hung up.
Speaker 3 (33:35):
His second marriage, which is the Pam Archer, lasts for
the rest of his life and produces two sons, Terry
Michael Murphy and James Shannon Murphy. Although it's a struggle,
Pam is able to cope with Murphy's PTSD, and after
he dies, she volunteers at the SUPOVI the VA for
(33:56):
the rest of her life. The man the Germans couldn't
kill foul Weather does. Flying in a twin engine aero
Commander on May twenty eighth, nineteen seventy one, the plane
runs into thick clouds and heavy rain that reduce visibilities
to zero. The plane crashes into a mountain in Virginia,
(34:20):
killing all six aboard, including America's most decorated hero of
World War II, Audie Murphy.
Speaker 9 (34:31):
Good Evening, America's most decorated soldier of World War Two,
Audi Murphy used to refer modestly to himself as a
fugitive from the law of averages. Now it appears the
law of averages has caught up with Audie Murphy. On
a wooded mountain near Rono, Virginia, this afternoon, rescue workers
found six bodies and no survivors in the remains of
(34:52):
a private plane. The forty six year old Murphy and
a group of businessmen had taken in applight from Atlanta, Georgia,
last Friday. Murphy in North Hollywood, California. He was a
wife and two teenage sons.
Speaker 10 (35:07):
I hadn't been in Germany since the end of World
War Two, and then I had seen most of the
country over a gun sight in those days over fifteen
years ago. I never thought I'd return here as the
guests of the army to find our former enemy's close allies.
I never thought I'd have a chance to see this
(35:29):
again either. It's Hitler's Stadium in Nuremberg, once a triumphant
monument to Nazism. It was here Hitler boasted that his
party would rule the world for a thousand years. While
people were calling him a fool in the Little Corporal,
he was using his evil genius to build one of
the strongest armies. Owner don't think the transformation was easy.
(35:56):
I knew a lot of guys who died to make
his place and infantyused not in history. Your blood feeds sweet.
You see going now, man who wanted to live just
as much as you and I.
Speaker 6 (36:12):
What you have seen here is history.
Speaker 5 (36:15):
But history has a way of.
Speaker 6 (36:16):
Speaking firmly to the past, at present and the future,
and it tells us now in no uncertain terms that
the price of peace is eternal vigilance.
Speaker 1 (36:30):
And a terrific job on the production, editing and storytelling
by our own Greg Hengler, and a special thanks to
doctor Roger McGrath, who's the author of Gunfighters, Howeman and Vigilantes,
Violence on the Frontier, the US Marine and former history
professor at UCLA. Doctor McGrath has appeared on numerous History
Channel documentaries. He's a frequent and regular contributor here at
(36:54):
our American Stories, and we're so blessed to have him
as a part of our team. That's what it feels
like at this point, these many years later, and still
this kind of inspired storytelling reminding us of who we were,
right always reminding us of who we were. I loved
when he said that the greatest thing that ever happened
to me. Happened on a train on the way to
(37:16):
rest on the Riviera when I heard the announcement that
the war in Europe was over. And of course then
came his book when he came back to Helen Back,
a bestseller in forty eight, the top grossing movie of
nineteen fifty five. That howering moment when he thought he
wanted to end his life, and a friend of his well,
it wasn't exactly hug therapy. It was a tremendous insight
(37:40):
he shared with his friend, and that insight well prevented
a real tragedy. By the way, the list a Medal
of Honor Distinguished Service Award, which is second to the
Medal of Honor, three Purple Hearts, two silver Stars, two
Bronze Stars, and of course five French Awards and a
Elgian Award for service. By the way, he was doing
(38:02):
none of this for the awards. You can't try and
earn them. By the way, he racked up those awards
by the time he was nineteen. Audie Murphy's story here
on our American Stories
This is Lee Habib, and this is our American story.
He's to show where America is the star and the
American people. Audie Murphy was a fifth grade educated teenager
who became World War two's most decorated soldier, earning thirty
three military awards, citations and decorations, twelve of which were
(00:31):
for vour. He would go on to be a major
motion picture star, playing the lead in over forty pictures,
and write a best selling autobiography of his war experiences
entitled to Hell and Back, and then extraordinarily would play
himself in the highly successful film based on the book.
(00:51):
Here to Tell Another Hollywood Goes to War's story is
Roger McGrath. Roger is the author of Gunfighters, Howiman, and Vigilantes.
He's a US Marine and former history professor at UCLA
and a frequent contributor on the History Channel documentaries. He's
a regular contributor Here Take It Away, McGrath.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
For years now, Audie Murphy has been a well known
motion picture star, but he is known also as the
most decorated soldier of World War Two. What has stayed
in his mind? What does he remember most about that
time of his life?
Speaker 3 (01:27):
Audi Murphy is one of the greatest of our American heroes.
Born and reared in poverty, he became American's most decorated
soldier of World War Two while still a teenager. After
the war, he became a movie star, apearing in forty
four films, often as leading man. He also wrote songs,
(01:47):
two of them hits. His rise from obscurity to war
hero and fame and fortune is one of the most
improbable in American history. Audie Murphy is born on June twentieth,
nineteen twenty five, on a farm in Hunt County, Texas.
(02:08):
He's the seventh of twelve children born to Emmett and
Josie Murphy. His father is a sharecropper, and the family
lives in dire poverty, never having enough food or clothes.
Audie learns a hunt at an early age, not has
a recreational activity, but to help put food on the
table for the family. He becomes a skilled marksman. He
(02:32):
can't afford to miss. Bullets costs money. A neighbor once
gave Audie a dozen rounds of AMMO for a twenty
two rifle, but Lottie is using. Later in the day,
Audie returns with seven rabbits and five bullets he didn't use.
The neighbor is astounded by the shooting prowess of a
little kid named Audie Murphy.
Speaker 4 (02:56):
I am nineteen Murphy, the sister of Aldie Murphy, the
most decorated hero of World War Two. People don't believe
he went to bed hunger, got up hunger, and went
worked all day, come in nothing to eat. He'd get
out hunting and stuff to kill squirrels rabbits for us
to have something to eat. And we were always proud
(03:16):
of him.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
Audi and his brothers and sisters are the ultimate underdogs
in a nation of underdogs during the Great Depression. Audio
attends school only intermittently. He spends most of his young
years not in the classroom, but in the fields picking cotton.
He totes a cotton sack for the first time at
age five. The few years he actually attends school, he
(03:42):
misses weeks at a time, necessitated by work on the farm.
At school, he's often in fights. Despite being smaller than
the playground bullies, He's never one to back down. His
teacher calls him my fighting the Irishman, and later he
says his childhood was always a struggle against many odds,
(04:04):
but he was intelligent, industrious, quick to anger, but very
loyal and devoted to the ones he loved. When at
he was only fourteen, his father takes off for parts unknown,
seeing his work in another county and will send money home.
Speaker 4 (04:29):
Daddy got up one coat snow at night and put
her on his clothes and walked off and left us.
My mother is down sick, and I seen him when
he left out the door.
Speaker 3 (04:39):
Two years later, Ottie's mother dies. A hard scrabble life
gets harder, if that's possible.
Speaker 4 (04:48):
Some man, big truck come down there late one in't
and put our big what we had.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
We didn't have much.
Speaker 4 (04:55):
They loaded up and they put us out on the
road side, and was out there and it was started
raigning honess.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
Audie Leader said, people know me for my record as
a soldier, but the truth is I must have done
some of my best fighting in a war. I was
in lawn before I joined the army. He might say,
there never was a peacetime in my life, a time
when things were good. I never had just fun. I
(05:24):
am one Texan boy who never had a pir of
cowboy boots. I'm one native born and native bred American
male who actually doesn't know the rules of our national pastime, baseball.
I never had time to play or the paraphernalia.
Speaker 1 (05:40):
You play with.
Speaker 3 (05:42):
I never had a bike. It was a full time
job just existing. Audie is a months I have sixteen
years old. When his mother dies, it's a devastating blow
for the teenage Audie.
Speaker 4 (05:56):
He worshiped our mother. She died and he just couldn't
get over.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
He later said, she had the most beautiful hair I've
ever seen. It reached almost to the floor. She rarely
talked and always seemed to be searching for something. What
it was, I don't know. We didn't discuss our feelings.
But when she passed away, she took something of me
with her. It seems I've been searching for it ever since.
(06:27):
Attie drives a whole the family together, at least those
children still at home and worked several jobs. Nonetheless, the
county sends the three youngest Murphy children to an orphanage.
Audie is devastated for a second time. Six months after
(06:54):
the death of Attie's mother, the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor
in a sneak attack on the side number seventh, nineteen
forty one. The deed that will live in infamy.
Speaker 1 (07:05):
And you've been listening to doctor Roger McGrath tell the
story of the most decorated soldier of World War II,
Audie Murphy. And my goodness, he toded cotton sacks at
the age of five, and he didn't hunt for fun.
He hunted for food for the family meals. When we
come back more of the story of Audie Murphy here
(07:27):
on our American Stories. Here are at our American Stories.
We bring you inspiring stories of history, sports, business, faith
and love. Stories from a great and beautiful country that
need to be told. But we can't do it without you.
Our stories are free to listen to, but they're not
free to make. If you love our stories in America
(07:47):
like we do, please go to our American Stories dot
com and click the donate button. Give a little, give
a lot, help us keep the great American stories coming.
That's our American Stories dot Com. And we continue with
(08:10):
our American Stories and with the story of Audie Murphy.
Let's pick up Louie last left off. Here's Roger McGrath.
Speaker 3 (08:19):
Six months after the death of Audie's mother, the Japanese
bomb Pearl Harbor in a sneak attack on December seventh,
nineteen forty one. Like most Americans, Audi is stunned and outraged.
Although underage and underweight, Audi tries enlisting in the service,
but is rejected by the Marine Corps and by the Army.
(08:41):
Just after return seventeen, an older sister, Koreen, falsely attests
Audi having just turned eighteen.
Speaker 4 (08:50):
And so it came in one day and he told
my oldest sister, Correen. He said, I want to join
the Army. And she said, Audi, you're not old enough.
And he said, I know it, but I want to go.
He said, you signed for me. She said, well, you
know I can. But if something happens to y'all always
feel guilty. She said, I'm gonna go over there and
do my best. And he said, if I live through it,
(09:11):
I'm gonna get a home for these three little ones.
He'll have home. He walked over there and signed up,
and he's just gone in a day or two.
Speaker 3 (09:20):
Audi is five foot five and a half inches tall
and weighs one hundred and twelve pounds and doesn't have
anything to shave on his freckled baby face, but the
Army enlists the blue eyed auburn haired kid. On June thirtieth,
nineteen forty two, Audie will grow taller and gain weight,
but will still look like a baby faced kid when discharged.
(09:43):
In September nineteen forty five, Audie Murphy goes through basic
training at Camp Walters, some fifty miles west of Fort Worth.
He's still in Texas, but for the first time, it's
meeting men from outside of the state. Baby by his
first sergeant, Murphy gets along well with his fellow recruits
(10:05):
and excels throughout the training. Upon graduation, he's recommended for
a rear echelon assignment because of his small size and
boyish appearance. Murphy will have none of it and assists
on the infantry. Acceding to his wishes, the Army sends
Murphy through advanced infantry training at Fort Meade, Maryland. He
(10:26):
again excels and again has urged to accept a rear
echelon billet. Murphy refuses and goes overseas with the fifteenth
Infantry Regiment of the third Infantry Division.
Speaker 5 (10:40):
Audie, how long were you in the service?
Speaker 6 (10:43):
Well, actually a very short time, about three years, but
I assure you it seemed much longer.
Speaker 5 (10:48):
Did you spend most of your service in Europe, practically.
Speaker 7 (10:51):
All of it.
Speaker 6 (10:52):
I had my basic training in Texas and a little
bit at Fort Need, Maryland, and light on to North Africa.
Speaker 3 (11:00):
In Casablanca, Morocco in February nineteen forty three, and is
assigned to Company B, first Battalion of the fifteenth Infantry Regiment.
His unit serves in Algeria, but sees little action and
spends most of its time in rigorous training. Murphy demonstrates
natural leadership skills and he's promoted to PFC on May
(11:24):
sevent On July tenth, nineteen forty three, the third Division
lands on Sicily in Operation Husky. Murphy is immediately assigned
to scouting patrols. On one of the patrols, Murphy spots
two Italian officers, each mounted on a beautiful horse fleeing
(11:45):
in the distance. Murphy fires twice and the two Italian
officers dropped from their saddles dead. On July fifteenth, Murphy
is promoted to corporal. After more fighting in Sicily, the
third Division takes part in Operation Avalanche, the invasion of
(12:06):
mainland Italy at Salerno on September ninth, nineteen forty three,
casualties are heavy. Murphy is leading the three man scouting
party along the Volturno River on September fifteenth, when German
machine gun fire kills one of the party. Murphy and
the other surviving American destroy the machine gun in placement
(12:29):
and kill five Germans with hand grenades in rifle fire.
A month later, Murphy leads the way in repelling a
German assault on his company's position. Three Germans are killed
and four are taken prisoner. On December thirteenth, Murphy is
promoted to surgeon. The action continues hot and heavy along
(12:52):
what is termed the Volturno Line until mid January nineteen
forty four. Murphy's in the thick of it and is
promoted to s staff sergeant on January thirteenth. Murphy misses
the landings at Anzio and Operation Shingle on January twenty two,
nineteen forty four, because he's in the hospital at Naples
(13:14):
suffering from malaria. However, he's back with his unit in
time for the Battle of Cisterna at the end of January,
again demonstrating outstanding leadership and courage under fire. Staff Sergeant
Murphy is made a platoon sergeant in Company B He's
still only eighteen years old. On March second, nineteen forty four,
(13:39):
and again on March eighth, Murphy has awarded the Bronze
Star with V for Valor for his actions in combat.
In the second action, Murphy crawls through one hundred yards
of mud to destroy a German tank with rifle grenades.
The action will later be depicted in to Helen Back,
a story of Murphy's heroism in World War Two. Murphy
(14:03):
then spends another week in a hospital with a second
bout of malaria. Staff Surgeon Audie Murphy, now with two
Bronze Stars, is with American forces when they liberate Grown
on June fourth, nineteen forty four. He will be there
for two months. The first extended period of rest is
(14:24):
outfit has had after nearly a year of combat. On
August fifteenth, nineteen forty four, the Third Division lands on
the beaches of southern France in Operation Dragoon. Murphy's platoon
is ordered to attack what's called pill Box Hill thick
(14:46):
with German machine gun and placements. As my rifle platoon
and I moved inland from the beach, said Murphy. We
were halted by machine gun fire from a rocky ridge.
We dropped to the ground and crawled quickly to come.
There's only one thing to do, and I could not
ask any of my men to do it well. Murphy
(15:07):
needs to find a way up the hill that offers
some protection, and takes off by himself to do so.
He dashes through bullets to a narrow draw and begins
working his way up the hill. He kills two Germans
who are moving down the draw and wounds a third.
He then finds himself in a firefight with two enemy
foxhole positions. He is close to overrunning those positions when
(15:31):
he runs out of ammunition. Murphy retreats back down the
draw to his platoon and tells his men he might
be able to clear a path for them with a
machine gun. Murphy makes a dash for the beach. Bullets
are whizzing all around him. He finds a machine gun squad,
borrows one of their thirty caliber machine guns, and dashes
through bullets back to his platoon. In Murphy's words, the
(15:54):
long as forty yards I have ever run. As Murphy
gets ready to go up the draw, his best friend
Laddie Tipton says, I'm going to the Tennessee and Tipton
and the Texan Murphy, both country boys had shared foxholes
ever since the invasion of Sicily. Shortly after hitting the
beach that day, Timpton was shot through the left ear
(16:17):
and he's bleeding a lot. Murphy orders him back to
the beach for medical treatment, but Tipton refuses to go.
Murphy relents and the two of them make a dash
for the draw.
Speaker 1 (16:29):
And you're listening to doctor Roger McGrath tell the story
of Audie Murphy and after Pearl Harbor is attacked. Well,
Audie is sixteen years old and he's thinking, heck, I'm
going to try and enlist, and when that doesn't work,
when he turns seventeen, he asks his sister to sign
for him, and the sister's hesitant. Of course, something happens
(16:50):
to her baby brother. She'll blame herself forever, but he's insistent,
and in the end, at the age of seventeen, he's
in the army and he's doing basic tech and he's
earned the nickname quickly of baby by his first sergeant.
That would change, and of course that would change because
of his insistence of not being at the back of
(17:11):
the line. But the front of the line, and not
in any part of the army, but the infantry itself,
the front of the line of the infantry is who
he was. And he served only three years, as we
heard from Audie Murphy himself. But boy, during those three years,
what combat, what action he saw, and there was heavy
(17:32):
action in Italy. It's one of the most underappreciated aspects
of the European campaign. When he finally got to Rome
for the first time in a year, and imagine that, folks,
for the first time in a year, he gets to
just take a break from combat. When we come back.
More of the remarkable story of Audie Murphy here on
(17:53):
our American stories, and we continue with our American stories
and the story of Audie Murphy, world War two's most
(18:14):
decorated soldier. Let's continue the story with doctor Roger McGrath.
Speaker 3 (18:19):
They're able to get the machine gun in a position
to fire on the German machine gun replacements and they
silence one, killing the gun crew. They then turn the
machine gun on the second German emplacement and suddenly they
see a white flag waving. This looks funny, Tipton said,
But I'm going up and get him. Keep me covered
(18:40):
Murphy yells, having it to keep down, but Tipton stands
up and as soon as he does to burst the
machine gun fire sends him tumbling backwards and rolling into Murphy.
Tipton is dead. Murphy is set into a rage. He
races forward toward the German placeman, firing his M one
(19:02):
car beat in hurling grenades. He kills the German gun crew,
picks up the German machine gun and firing it from
his hip, advances on the German strongpoint bullets and grenade.
Fragments from the Germans dance around Murphy, but he continues
to advance, killing two Germans who come out to stop him.
In a final fierce firefight, Murphy kills two more Germans
(19:26):
and wounds two five others surrender. Murphy is awarded the
Distinguished Service Cross for the action. It should have been
a Medal of Honor. Dipped In is posthumously awarded with
the Bronze Star and Purple Art. The third Division is
in continual action as it pushes north through France. On
(19:49):
September fifteenth, nineteen forty four, Murphy is wounded when a
mortar shell explodes near him, and he receives his first
of three Purple Arts. During the the first week of October,
Murphy is awarded the Silver Star twice, first when he
takes out a German machine gun in placement, killing four
Germans and wounding three others. The second silver Star is
(20:11):
awarded when bugging the radio. He crawls through heavy enemy
fire to position where he can direct his platoons fire
on a German hilltop position. The battle goes on for
an hour, and all the time Murphy is subjected to
enemy fire. Murphy's fire direction enables his platoon to take
(20:32):
the German stronghold, leaving fifteen enemy dead and thirty five wounded.
On October fourteenth, nineteen forty four, Steph Sergeant Audie Murphy
is made second Lieutenant Audi Murphy. He earlier was offered
a commission, but turned it down when told he would
(20:53):
have to be transferred from his unit. This time he
accepts when told he will not have to transfer. On
October twenty sixth, Murphy's platoon comes under fire from a
trio of German snipers. Murphy goes after them alone, stealthily
tracking and stalking them. He brings back one captive, then
(21:17):
another in a long distance rifle duel with a third sniper.
Murphy is wounded, but then puts a bullet between the
eyes of the German sharpshooter. Murphy's wound earns him another
Purple Art, but puts him in the hospital and out
of action for two months. When he returns to the front,
(21:41):
it's in what's called the Colmar parkt an area of
fierce German resistance at the eastern edge of the French
province of Alsas, just west of the Rhine River. The
frozen ground is covered with snow and it's snowing intermittently.
It's bitterly cold. Murphy's leading his platoon on January twenty fourth,
(22:03):
nineteen forty five, when he's wounded in both legs but
stays in the fight, is awarded another Purple Art and
made commander of his company. Company b or Baker Company.
Companies are usually led by captains. Murphy is still a
second lieutenant Baker Company, now only a fraction of full
(22:25):
strength comes under attack by a superior German force of
infantry and tanks on January twenty sixth. The German infantrymen
are from the elite second Mountain Division and they're clad
in white to blend in with the snow. An American
tank destroyer fires on the German tanks, but return fire
(22:46):
leaves the tank destroyer a blazing wreck, killing its commander
and gunner. Three surviving crew members climb out of the
wreck and race to the nearby woods. Murphy orders his
men to also take cover in the same woods while
he remains in an exposed position to direct American artillery
fire using a field telephone. I remember being mad as
(23:11):
hell when Murph told us to go back, said Pfc.
RF Kelly. We wanted to stay and fight by his side.
The artillery fire slows, but doesn't stop the German advance
as they close in on Murphy. He picks off German
infantrymen using his M one carbine, but there are two
(23:32):
hundred and fifty of them, and they're supported by a
half dozen tanks. They keep coming and are closing in
on Murphy. Over the phone from battalion headquarters comes an
inquiry concerning the location of the attacking Germans. If you
hold the phone, says Murphy, A'll let you talk to
one of the What Murphy does next is described by
(23:57):
eyewitness Lieutenant Walter WEISSFENNI has the bravest thing I've ever
seen a man do in combat with the Germans one
hundred yards away. He climbed onto the tank destroyer turret
and began firing its fifty caliber machine gun at the
advancing crowds. He was completely exposed to the enemy fire,
(24:19):
and there was a blaze under him that threatened to
blow the destroyer to bits. Machine gun, machine pistol, and
eighty eight shell fire was all around him. Twice the
tank destroyer was hit by direct shell fire, and Lieutenant
Murphy was engulfed in clouds of smoke and spurts of flame.
His clothing was riddled by flying fragments of shells. I
(24:42):
saw that his trouser leg was soaked with blood. Murphy
himself recalled the concussion from the German tank shells. I
remember getting the hell shook out of me, but that
was nothing new. I also remember, for the first time
in three days, we're warm with flames. Looking at his legs.
(25:04):
Murphy continues firing at the advancing Germans, who are falling
by the twos and threes. The German infantrymen, said Sergeant
Elmer Brawley got within ten yards of Lieutenant Murphy, who
killed them in the draws, in the meadows, in the woods,
Murphy's withering fire kills fifty Germans and wounds that many more.
(25:27):
The attack falters, then stops, and the Germans retreat. Murphy
climbs off the tank destroyer and limps towards the woods.
Seconds later, the tank destroyer explodes without Murphy, so Rowick
Stand Company B would have been annihilated. Murphy is awarded
(25:48):
the Medal of Honor.
Speaker 1 (25:50):
And you've been listening to doctor Roger McGrath tell the
story of Audie Murphy, and what a story. Indeed, I
think one of the most important points may during that
particular part of the story was the fact that he
turned down a promotion to stay with his unit, and
he understood what unit cohesion meant, and he understood what
(26:10):
he was doing at the time, and the promotion wasn't
as important as the task at hand. And it reflects
his character, his nature and so much more. And then,
of course being awarded the Medal of Honor not an
easy thing to do, very rare, as you know, but
what he did sparked this comment from a superior officer.
It's the bravest thing I've ever seen a man do
(26:32):
in combat. And that's not just an exaggeration. Indeed, read
the citation, go to the Arlington National Cemetery site and
read the story, or go to the Medal of Honors
website and read more about just this particular battle and
what Murphy did, and just as always a sense of well, aushucks.
(26:52):
For the first time in days three days, my feet
were warm. That's what Audie Murphy remembers, being on top
of that tank destroyer, repelling that many German soldiers. And
when we come back more of this remarkable story of
World War two's most decorated soldier, We're talking about Audie
Murphy here on our American Stories. And we continue with
(27:38):
our American stories and the story of World War two's
most decorated soldier, Audie Murphy. Let's pick up where we
last left off. Here's Roger McGrath now with.
Speaker 3 (27:49):
The Middle of Honor, the Distinguished Service Cross, two Silver Stars,
two Bronze Stars, three Purple Arts, and several other awards.
Audie Murphy his most decorating American of World War Two.
He's nineteen years old. Murphy's later awarded the highest decorations
for valor both the French and the Belgian nations can.
Speaker 8 (28:12):
Offer, well, Audi, as a man who was honored with
every decoration his country could award. And going back to
your service before you were commissioned as sergeant Audie Murphy,
let's say, would you tell our listeners what was your
most memorable experience of World War two?
Speaker 6 (28:27):
Thence, of course I had had many, and I sometimes
remember them, not always for great pleasure. But I think
I'd have to say that the greatest thing that ever
happened to me was not as a sergeant, but as
a second lieutenant. Was I first lieutenant. I've tried to
forget all these things. You see, I can't remember my
(28:49):
rank at the end of the war. I think it
was first lieutenant. And this was I've even forgotten the date.
But I was on a train going for a little
rest in the area for all about three or four
day pass and I heard the announcement that the war
in Europe was over, and uh, there's nothing that could
top that for me.
Speaker 5 (29:09):
Well, then this was your most memorable day.
Speaker 6 (29:11):
It certainly was, because, uh, as I say, those three
years it seemed much longer than they really were, and
I saw them out of good Uh.
Speaker 5 (29:19):
Good men come and.
Speaker 8 (29:20):
Go when you heard the war was over, what was
your first thought or reaction?
Speaker 5 (29:26):
Well, coming home again?
Speaker 6 (29:28):
Uh, I started to think about home for a change,
which we didn't dare think of before, because as you know,
you lived in day to day, minute to minute in
most cases. And uh suddenly I was a little frightened.
Uh strange as it might seem, I didn't know what
I'd do when I got home. And uh, uh I
(29:48):
suddenly felt just a little empty and said a little
lonely about the whole thing. Although I was very happy
the war was over, uh I suddenly didn't feel that
I had a home.
Speaker 7 (29:59):
And there w from it.
Speaker 4 (30:00):
When I ran over to hugging and I said, thank
you God, he's home. He came through it, and they
gave him parades and stuff. They gave him bonds, they
gave him money, and he took that money and bought
a big two story house. And he told my oldest sister,
(30:23):
he said, if you and your husband will take those
kids and bring them and raise them with your two boys,
I'll give you that house. So that's what he did,
so we had home. He asked us, he said, the kids,
y'all like you home? And we said, oh yeah, yeah,
you know, he said, Well, I told you that I
(30:45):
was going to the army and if I came back,
i'd buy a home and you'd have a home. That
course tickled us to death. He was the man of
his word all the way. What he said he meant
is just a good, all around, good old country boy,
and that makes me proud.
Speaker 3 (31:07):
After the award, James Gagney, one of Hollywood's greatest stars,
invites Murphy to Hollywood to get him into the movies.
Upon his arrival in Hollywood, Murphy, with the help of
the ghostwriter David McClure, begins working on an autobiography titled
to Hellen Back Bubbles in nineteen forty eight. The book
(31:28):
immediately becomes a best seller. Murphy's first roles in movies
are minor, but eventually appears in forty four films, starring
in most of them, including To Hellen Back, the top
grossing movie of nineteen fifty five. Murphy also writes fourteen songs,
(31:48):
including two the chart in the top ten. Murphy is
a thrill of being an actor and understands his own
acting skills are limited. He finds Hollywood as far more
than its share of egocentric phonies. One of them is
Kirk Douglas, who, in front of others, regularly challenges Murphy
(32:08):
to see who's the fastest gun. Douglas appears more than
a dozen Westerns and simply thinks he can outdraw anyone
in Hollywood. He eagerly anticipates showing up the famous war hero. Finally,
after another one of Douglas's challenges, and with the crowd gathered,
Murphy agrees to a quick draw contest. Goes there. See
(32:32):
Murphy's blue eyes turn icy cold, and Murphy says, but
but we use real bullets. Douglas looks like he's been
hit with an axe, his legs turned a rubber, and
he wobbles backwards. Douglas never again approaches Murphy. Murphy's first
(32:57):
marriage ends after a couple of years, his wife unable
to cope with Murphy's problems with post traumatic stress disorder.
Speaker 7 (33:05):
He called me one day and he said, I'm sitting
here with my forty five. Don't worry about a thing.
I'm going to blow my brains out. And I had
two seconds and I said, that's really great. He said,
what do you mean? I said, why don't you do that?
He said, what do you mean. I said, do it
for every kid in the country who thinks you're the
(33:27):
greatest fellow who ever lived. That'll make everybody in the
United States. Go ahead and pull a trigger. He said,
you son of a b and he hung up.
Speaker 3 (33:35):
His second marriage, which is the Pam Archer, lasts for
the rest of his life and produces two sons, Terry
Michael Murphy and James Shannon Murphy. Although it's a struggle,
Pam is able to cope with Murphy's PTSD, and after
he dies, she volunteers at the SUPOVI the VA for
(33:56):
the rest of her life. The man the Germans couldn't
kill foul Weather does. Flying in a twin engine aero
Commander on May twenty eighth, nineteen seventy one, the plane
runs into thick clouds and heavy rain that reduce visibilities
to zero. The plane crashes into a mountain in Virginia,
(34:20):
killing all six aboard, including America's most decorated hero of
World War II, Audie Murphy.
Speaker 9 (34:31):
Good Evening, America's most decorated soldier of World War Two,
Audi Murphy used to refer modestly to himself as a
fugitive from the law of averages. Now it appears the
law of averages has caught up with Audie Murphy. On
a wooded mountain near Rono, Virginia, this afternoon, rescue workers
found six bodies and no survivors in the remains of
(34:52):
a private plane. The forty six year old Murphy and
a group of businessmen had taken in applight from Atlanta, Georgia,
last Friday. Murphy in North Hollywood, California. He was a
wife and two teenage sons.
Speaker 10 (35:07):
I hadn't been in Germany since the end of World
War Two, and then I had seen most of the
country over a gun sight in those days over fifteen
years ago. I never thought I'd return here as the
guests of the army to find our former enemy's close allies.
I never thought I'd have a chance to see this
(35:29):
again either. It's Hitler's Stadium in Nuremberg, once a triumphant
monument to Nazism. It was here Hitler boasted that his
party would rule the world for a thousand years. While
people were calling him a fool in the Little Corporal,
he was using his evil genius to build one of
the strongest armies. Owner don't think the transformation was easy.
(35:56):
I knew a lot of guys who died to make
his place and infantyused not in history. Your blood feeds sweet.
You see going now, man who wanted to live just
as much as you and I.
Speaker 6 (36:12):
What you have seen here is history.
Speaker 5 (36:15):
But history has a way of.
Speaker 6 (36:16):
Speaking firmly to the past, at present and the future,
and it tells us now in no uncertain terms that
the price of peace is eternal vigilance.
Speaker 1 (36:30):
And a terrific job on the production, editing and storytelling
by our own Greg Hengler, and a special thanks to
doctor Roger McGrath, who's the author of Gunfighters, Howeman and Vigilantes,
Violence on the Frontier, the US Marine and former history
professor at UCLA. Doctor McGrath has appeared on numerous History
Channel documentaries. He's a frequent and regular contributor here at
(36:54):
our American Stories, and we're so blessed to have him
as a part of our team. That's what it feels
like at this point, these many years later, and still
this kind of inspired storytelling reminding us of who we were,
right always reminding us of who we were. I loved
when he said that the greatest thing that ever happened
to me. Happened on a train on the way to
(37:16):
rest on the Riviera when I heard the announcement that
the war in Europe was over. And of course then
came his book when he came back to Helen Back,
a bestseller in forty eight, the top grossing movie of
nineteen fifty five. That howering moment when he thought he
wanted to end his life, and a friend of his well,
it wasn't exactly hug therapy. It was a tremendous insight
(37:40):
he shared with his friend, and that insight well prevented
a real tragedy. By the way, the list a Medal
of Honor Distinguished Service Award, which is second to the
Medal of Honor, three Purple Hearts, two silver Stars, two
Bronze Stars, and of course five French Awards and a
Elgian Award for service. By the way, he was doing
(38:02):
none of this for the awards. You can't try and
earn them. By the way, he racked up those awards
by the time he was nineteen. Audie Murphy's story here
on our American Stories
Host
Lee Habeeb
Popular Podcasts
The Breakfast Club
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy And Charlamagne Tha God!
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Decisions, Decisions
Welcome to "Decisions, Decisions," the podcast where boundaries are pushed, and conversations get candid! Join your favorite hosts, Mandii B and WeezyWTF, as they dive deep into the world of non-traditional relationships and explore the often-taboo topics surrounding dating, sex, and love. Every Monday, Mandii and Weezy invite you to unlearn the outdated narratives dictated by traditional patriarchal norms. With a blend of humor, vulnerability, and authenticity, they share their personal journeys navigating their 30s, tackling the complexities of modern relationships, and engaging in thought-provoking discussions that challenge societal expectations. From groundbreaking interviews with diverse guests to relatable stories that resonate with your experiences, "Decisions, Decisions" is your go-to source for open dialogue about what it truly means to love and connect in today's world. Get ready to reshape your understanding of relationships and embrace the freedom of authentic connections—tune in and join the conversation!