IamA 92-Year-Old WWII Normandy/Battle of the Bulge Veteran, Half-Track Driver and War Photographer - ASK ME ANYTHING!

What was your opinion of the Germans you faced and interacted with during this time? Did you notice any ideological/attitude difference in Germans from different areas of Germany, such as Bavaria, Ruhr, Silesia?

My great grandfather is a 92 year old Veteran of the Herman Goering division who was thankfully captured by the Allies. Thanks for doing an AMA, my Great Grandfather sadly is still following orders and will not speak at all of his time during the war.

For soldiers, the attitude was composed of various ethnic groups. The average German soldier was like the average person. If he was captured, I could talk to him. They seemed like ordinary people you could find anywhere. The SS were the bad guys, the real killers. They were responsible for the death camps and the killing of innocent people. You couldn't interact with them... you treated them like dirt. In some cases, I know some of the guys in our outfit got some of these arrogant SS troops and disposed of them.

The German people were fooled by Hitler. He promised them the world and they never asked him how he was going to do that. By the time he achieved what he was going to do, it was too late and they were stuck with him and he continued on to ruin Germany. The German prisoners of war that came to the United States knew how they were treated. Most were treated very respectfully and a lot came back to live in this country. The only soldiers that we had dealings with were shooting at us or we were shooting at us, or the prisoners. They were treated well most of the time and we never had any problems. The civilians we were not supposed to interact with. I talked to many German civilians and no one ever admitted they were a Nazi. It was always the other guy that was a Nazi. That was the attitude of the civilians. The people knew that the Americans were pretty easy to deal with but the Russians were pretty tough. Most of the German people liked the American soldiers.

Have you watched Band Of Brothers, and if so - what are your thoughts?

Yes I've seen it. It's a great series. These are the true heroes. These guys really gave everything they had. I was never in their position as they were. I was in a lot of tight positions but not like what they went through. They were infantry and paratroopers I was armored. It was a different way of fighting.

Thank you for your service! Did you meet anyone during the war that you wish you kept in contact with after the war was over, like someone you met who lived in France or maybe a local girl?

Hey now, we have to be careful about that girl stuff. You'll get me into trouble.

Yes! In France I was in a small village and we had just chased the Germans out of the village and everyone was celebrating. I met this gentlemen there that could speak English. We were speaking and he invited me to his house for dinner. This was during the war and food was pretty scare and I appreciated what he was offering me so I went to his house. I found out he was a school teacher. He said to me, "why do you always say maybe? I don't you say perhaps?" I say that to this day. We kept on campaigning and he wrote a letter to my mother as the war was ending. He asked her if I survived the war. I don't know if she ever answered that letter but I wish I would have kept in contact with him because he was a real gentlemen.

What do you love most about your wife of 67 years?

I have to watch myself here, I don't want to get into trouble. We always seem to agree on everything. We never argue about most things. I've learned to be quiet sometimes and not to argue about the things that aren't important.

She's a great cook. You can't go wrong for that, marry a great cook. During our early years she would work to supply the extra money when we needed it.

I never asked to marry her. We just assumed we would get married. We always knew we were going to get married and we did. To buy an engagement ring I worked overtime and bought her a ring of a total cost of $50.00.

I thought about Marilyn Monroe, but I don't think we would have hit it off so good.

thank you for your service. I'd love to ask you about that, but I think so many people are focusing on that.

As a photographer, what was your favorite thing to shoot/your most proud work? Did you stay with it afterward?

I like to shoot fine art nudes. Nothing is as beautiful as the female form. I like still life work too. I was only a photographer afterwards as a micro photographer.

At the time you set foot in France, did you know about the camps, or of what was going on in the Holocaust in general?

After the Battle of the Bulge did you advance any further into Germany (in any significant battles or liberations)?

There were rumors. We heard about them, but we hadn't seen any yet. We had an idea that they were there. We never knew what they were doing. How they were killing all these poor babies, their mothers and things for no reason whatsoever. We didn't know that.

After Battle of the Bulge we returned to Germany where we were before. That was in the Siegfried line. Magdeburg was one. We went to the Elbe River and crossed that to the other side where we were stationary and only 40 miles outside of Berlin. We were told to stay there for further orders. In the meantime the Russians were permitted to go and take Berlin, which was a horrible battle. Berlin was destroyed completely from that. We stayed on the Elbe until the war ended.

Did you enjoy driving a half-track? How does it compare to driving a regular truck? Did you always drive the same one (and did it have a name)?

And have you ever driven it while under fire or in an active combat situation in a support role? How did you feel about the protection it offered?

My MOS was half-track driver, which wasn't true. When I took my training in KN my training wasn't adequate I got to drive the track one time around the course. When I went into service I lived in Philadelphia so I didn't need a car I used public transit. I had never driven until I went into the army. So for some reason they designated me a half-track driver when I went overseas to England. When I went to France/Normandy I went over as the half-track driver with never any experience as a driver. The first chance I got I volunteered for the IR Platoon. I stayed in that until the end of the war going across France, Belgium, Holland, and Germany. When the war ended I was given the opportunity to operate the movie projector of the battalion until I was sent home in November of 1945. The name of our half-track was Nicki, I don't know how it was given its name. Our outfit started the war in Africa.

I never drove it during an active situation, I was the passenger. Our driver was Mr. Newlin I can't think of his nickname right now. He was one of the older guys.

What were your opinions on subsequent wars (Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, etc)? How do you think your opinion was influenced by your own war-time experiences?

I was never in favor of the Vietnamese or the Korean War because I had enough war and have seen what had happened in Europe and seeing the influence of our country being involved I'm not fond of. To be truthful I was glad when we got out of those countries. A lot of bad things happened in Europe. It was very discouraging.

How do you feel about how the political spectrum of America has changed after the war?. The way the American government has evolved into what it is today.

During the war, the US was a democratic nation. It happened after the war too when Truman was still the president. I believe Eisenhower was a Republican. After the war, my main concern, being newly married, I was more worried about finding a decent job and supporting my wife and child on the way. So I didn't involve myself with politics really. I voted as I thought it would be best for the country... mostly democratic and occasionally Republican. I consider myself today an Independent with Democratic leanings. We're not talking what happened 70 years ago... it is very difficult for me to think back that far on the political atmosphere. Most of the people were happy the war was over and the prosperity was good, people were making money.

Hope im not too late! Is there anything that happened in the war that they leave out of the textbooks for any reason?

I don't think very much... we always had people traveling. Photographers, newspapers.... everything that we did was public knowledge. I can't think of anything that was done on a large scale that was left out. There are probably lots of individual acts that were never discussed or talked about.

The American army at the time were looters. Almost very GI was always looking for something that he could take.

Thank you for your service! Fellow Philadelphia-area redditor!

Questions: What was your first impression upon landing in Normandy?
What is your favorite food, and can you find it in Philadelphia?

When our group was going across the English Channel over to France I wasn't sure what to expect. I was very apprehensive. As we came closer to the shore I could see burnout tanks, blown apart equipment...no bodies, the bodies had been taken away. There was still fighting going on i the immediate area. I could see dead animals in fields, wires down, destroyed buildings. We stayed there until Operation Cobra was taken into effect.

My favorite food... I now live in Lansdale with my wife Dorris. I love seafood. Shrimps mainly. I go to the Red Lobster because they make a great margarita. :)

My favorite restaurant in Philadelphia was Fisher's. It was a seafood house built like a castle... beautiful inside. My second choice was Horn and Hardt's. It was a chain of restaurants downtown... for 35 cents you could get a beef pie in a big brown container. Best pumpkin pie you ever ate too. Best pumpkin pie ever.

Also, I'm about to be married. What are your best tips for a long marriage?

Marriage is a give and take. At times you think you're giving more than your taking, but that's not so. Never make demands that aren't correct. I've been married for 67 years to Dorris and I don't think we've had 5 or 6 disagreements in all those years. You have to play it by ear. Don't expect too much. You should be able to get through the problems.

Make sure you marry a good cook. That's important.

What was the hardest part of day-to-day life during battle? Other than staying alive of course.

Edit: Also, I bet the concrete steps took the worse of that spill

You can't put it in different sections... the one thing was to stay alive. The hardest part was not knowing what was happening in the whole area. We never knew what the left flank was doing or the right flank was doing. We knew what we were doing in the center but didn't know about everyone else.

The biggest fear was the thought that you're not going to go home again.

Thank you for your service in WWII....I am a current Army Officer, any fun stories about the LT's you had to deal with during the war? I am a 1LT and I am learning something new every day, but Im sure as you know, us LT's dont know anything!

Thanks for sharing any stories.

I don't have a funny story. I never had much dealings with officers (unless I was in trouble).

While we were in England we were a group of soldiers who weren't attached to any specific regiment. We were all replacements. We had a 1L who was in charge of us over in England. He was a real good guy. Down to earth and nice to know. When we went into Normandy we were replacements for those who were killed or wounded.

Our 1L was the first guy to be chosen and sent onto the beach. He was killed. He was a good gentlemen and friend to all of us.

As far as a funny story goes... Fort Knox KN where I was training I was a new recruit I was given the job to clean the orderly room. The 1L comes in the room and I see him, but I didn't know what to do. So I did nothing. He went into the room and everyone shouted "ATTENTION!". I didn't know to do that so there I was sitting down and looking. You're supposed to stand up at attention. The first sergeant chewed me out for that.

What did you think of the British soldiers you worked with?

I had no problems with the British soldiers. I found them to be good friends. A German officer was asked after the war what he thought about the American soldiers and the British soldiers and he said the British soldiers were better fighters than the Americans.

What is the best piece of advice you could give me right now?

Who am I speaking to? This would be my advice: Don't drink. Don't smoke. Don't take drugs... and love your wife.... or your girlfriend, or your mother. Love someone.

What did you do after the war was over? Did you get off the army soon? How hard was it to get estabilished back, getting a job, a place to live and all of those things?

When the war ended, and I was sent home, I was asked if I wanted to re-enlist. I said no. I came home and my girlfriend was waiting for me and I came home in December. I got married in February... 67 years ago. I had not very many skills to be used in civilian life but I found jobs I could do to support my family. A lot of the jobs were menial, hard work and the main job I had was that I learned to be a machinist. The last 25 years of my working life I worked on Swiss automatic machinery making tiny precision parts. It was a very rewarding job. I worked for a good company and I get a pension from them every month. That's about the story of my life.

Hi! Thank you for all you did!

What do you think of the many war-based video games, especially those that focus on WWII?

And, bonus question, any chance you remember a Robert "Bob" Sivers? He was my grandpa, and he was also at Battle of the Bulge and Normandy.

I am 92-years-old. I am not engaged in any time of games on the computer. I don't play those games. I don't get satisfaction from doing things like that. I know it's popular but I never got into that.

The name does not ring any bells... I don't think I knew him. Most of the people in my outfit came from the South, the Midwest, and the West. Not too many from the Eastern United States.

When do you believe that war is justified? Thank you for your service.

When we are attacked without provocation, either militarily or by terrorists. Then I think that we are justified to go to war.

Hello Harry, welcome to Reddit!

My question would be: If you can, how would you describe your perspective of the invasion of Normandy? (how the battle looked like from the first hand)

Thanks for doing this AMA, i hope you enjoy the rest of the evening!

I thought the 8th Air Force could have done more. After the battleships did their shelling, the pursuit planes should have been active shooting at the machine gun nests while the troops were landing on the beach. That's my thought. I didn't think they did enough. A lot of mistakes were made during the invasion in my opinion. We were very luck to have made the landing. One of the biggest mistakes was made by Hitler who slept. He told people not to wake him. By not waking him, Rommel could not bring up his reserve tanks and that let us have a successful invasion.

Do you still pick up the camera? Did you pursue photography when you got back? I'll bet you have some great gear to go along with those fantastic stories!

Yes I still enjoy taking pictures. After the war I became a micro photographer doing micro film work for 5 years. It was very satisfying and I enjoyed it very much. One of the things I've done is photographed all of Ben Franklin's original Almanacs.

Which movie was the favourite amongst the troops?

The Wizard of Oz was a favorite. Some of the German civilians had seen the movie because we showed it in beef halls for the battalion. Some of the locals came to watch and they were very pleased. It was the first color movie they ever saw... it was the first color movie I ever saw too.

Sir, what would be one thing you would tell to the soldiers both at home and overseas?

I would say, try and do the best that you can. Don't take too many chances. It just takes one bullet to end your life. Try and be brave and do your duty.

As a photographer in war, have you ever felt in danger? And the locations which you picked for photos, were they safe places or sometimes did you have to go close to the battle?

I wasn't a photographer while in action. That was unheard of in our outfit. There were people who did those things though. We were strictly combat. The only pictures I took were in Berlin after I finally got a camera. They were only snapshots.

I took pictures of some Russian soldiers among the rubble of buildings that had collapsed in Berlin. I took photos of whole streets collapsed and the Brandenberg Gate after the Russians knocked the swastikas off of them.

I also have a picture of German civilians reaching into our garbage can after dinner to find whatever they could.

My actual photographic experience was when I ran the 16mm camera for the battalion. We showed movies and I had to go to Headquarters and pick out the movies I wanted to show. I picked The Wizard of Oz. The Germans called it a Bund film, it meant color film or movie. We showed the movies in beef halls for the battalion and it was my job when the war was over. It was a good duty. I went every other day to pick out movies and take them back and splice them. They were always torn up.

I aspire to be an Army Officer (albeit a doctor in the British Army so I won't be in action, but an officer nevertheless) and I would like to ask you; what would your advice be to me to obtain my goal?

Thank you for doing this, you WW2 veterans are truly amazing people who inspire me day-in, day-out.

What you'll have to do is go to medical school and be a doctor first. Then you'll have to enlist in the British Army. You're going to have to do the job and keep your nose clean, don't get into trouble. There's no reason why you won't succeed. The doctor in our outfit got many citations. One time I saw him on a burning tank pulling a wounded soldier out of the tank with the flames shooting out of it. He was a great man.

What was your worst fighting experience of the war? And what was the best?(if there was any good moments.) thank you for your service!

The best would have been Magdeburg, Germany. A lieutenant took me and three other soldiers and put us on the corner of an intersection with a 37mm cannon and asked us if we had ever shot one before. The answer was no. Then he explained how to put a projectile into the gun and how to shoot it. If we had seen any Germans down the road. Then he took off and left. Now, there were three soldiers who had never fired a cannon in their life to supposedly shoot the germans if they came around the corner! Luckily they didn't and that was the happiest.

The saddest was in Saint Denis Le Gast in Normandy. We were almost all killed. Luckily the German second devision went the other way and we were spared.

What was the general feeling in the American lines during the Battle of the Bulge? Did people think that it was an intense campaign of an army in its last throes, or was there a real fear that they could break through to the sea and put the Allies in a terrible situation? Given that it was shortly after Market-Garden, I would think that morale would be a bit low.

We knew what was happening. I was in Germany and we had to patrol knowing that the Germans were dropping German soldiers in our area dressed as Americans. A very scary time.

We were told what the Germans were trying to do and that we had to stop them. It was a big time. They were making an all time effort to break through to Holland and split the American lines. But a lot of that we didn't know until after it happened. We knew it was important, though. I had my Christmas tree already put up and had to leave everything there. There were boxes of turkeys, hundreds of them and we had to leave it for the line. That was supposed to be our turkey dinner for Christmas.

First let me thank you for helping us get our freedom back. My question: If you could go back in time to the day you enlisted, would you do it again or not?

First of all, I was drafted. I'm glad I did what I did but would I want to do it again? No. Once was enough.

Thank you for your service! Couple of questions:

-What was your favorite job?

-Do you think that present day kids are going to be able to maintain the U.S.A. as a world power in the coming decades?

Favorite job during the war was being in the IR Platoon.

I don't think the children will be responsible for that. It will be the politicians. The children will be the result of that. If we do it right we won't have anymore wars and we'll be all right. If we mess up I think it will be a disaster. It also depends on what Russia is going to do.

Good afternoon, Sir! Thank you for your service and doing this AMA. My grandfather was a WWII vet and used to love watching old war movies - The Longest Day, The Dirty Dozen, etc. He passed away in 1997, so he was not able to watch some of the newer war movies, which depicts the violence with much more realism. What do you think of movies like Saving Private Ryan or any of the war movies from the past 10-15 years that have a lot of graphic detail? I would have been interested to see how my grandfather would have responded to seeing these portrayals on the big screen.

Most of the war movies are based on fighting with the infantry who I admire very-very much. I was in a tank outfit, which was in some ways similar yet very different. The guys in the infantry had it a lot worse than the tank guys who slept in mud, walked in the rain, and such. We didn't had to do that because we were in armor. I felt sorry for the GIs who were marching alongside our tanks going into battle and in some ways they may have had an advantage. In the tanks we had to take whatever we got. Most of the tankers knew that the Germans had the 88 which could knock out the tank at 2 miles away. You had to stay though and slug it out with them. It was difficult, but the infantry I think had it tougher.

As far as the movies go I think we have seen all that we want to see. How much more do they have to show of us all the terrible offal things? I don't want to see anymore war movies. I've had my fill of them.

To me one of the worst things I've seen during the war was a German horse drawn artillery wagon and the horses shot up and killed. Not the soldiers, but the horses having to be killed like that. It was a shame and terrible to see.

Thank you for your service. My grandpa was in the Pacific Theatre and was in the signal corps, JASCO.

Were you at all being told that you would be sent to the Pacific Theatre at all or were you leaving after Germany surrendered or were you part of the occupation forces?

When the war in Europe ended, we were going to be sent to Japan. Not to occupy, but to invade. Then, President Harry S. Truman dropped the bomb. Thank god for the other Harry. He saved a lot of us from going over there. I didn't feel bad for the Japanese, I feel they got what they deserved. The President saved a lot of us from getting killed.

Thats a long time to be married. I hope my husband and I last that long. What is a good way to keep the spark going, especially when raising (2 so far) kids?

The best way is to respect one another and try not to petty arguments. You don't get anywhere with them. Be a good cook. Nothing better to a man that to have a woman who can cook a good dinner. And love one another.

Can you remember any Germans that you felt bad for?

After it was revealed about the death camps I didn't have much to say to the Germans. I didn't respect them much after that. It was a horrible and terrible thing that they did.

Thank you for serving to protect our freedom and the constitution ! In your wisdom do you feel like things are getting worse in this country - that we're going down the toilet with elected officials who can barely name all the US capitols, crooked schemers selling out the country's national assets to the highest private bidders - or has the country always been run by morons and it's no worse now than it was 75 years ago? I ask because people (me) seem to assume some golden time in US history when everything was fair and equitable and as a result are doubly discouraged by the frightful mismanagement of this nation. thank you.

I don't think it's any worse than it was in those days. In those days we had a common purpose. We had to defeat Japan and Germany. Today we have many enemies who are trying to destroy our country. Hopefully our country will survive... it's that serious. Politicians are always politicians. They are all bad.

Thank you for your service!

Have you ever seen the movie "The Best Years of Our Lives", and is there any way you would be able to relate to it?

As well, are there any times you become nostalgic of any of the decades you lived in, and if so which one and why?

Yes I have seen this movie. Thinking about this now, I never put much thought on this movie... but it does parallel my life. I don't recall it that well, but what happened to them more or less happened to me too. Great movie.

Yes I do. If I had to do it over again, I would do the first 10 years of my marriage (the 50s) with the little children. That was the good times. Raising 3 children with all the problems we had when kids are growing up... broken windows and fights... it was all good times when they were small.

Hey Harry. As a member of the armored unit, did you guys have to worry more about infantry, other armored units, or threats from the air? And Did you travel with a halftrack unit or were you interspersed with tanks as well?

The biggest threat was the other German armored units and their 88 canon, and the second was the infantry with their Panzerfaust bazooka. We were an IR Platoon, the intelligence and recognizance. Our job was to seek out the best routes for tanks to travel, collect prisoners, and that's more or less what we did. We avoided combat when we could. That was not our job, but if the time came upon us we would fight back with riffles and machine guns.

I'd love to know which, if any, first hand accounts you've read and connected with after the fact?

Thank you for your service!

One of my favorite war books is Patton. There was a man who believed in himself. If he did as he wanted, the war would have ended a lot sooner. His biggest obstacle was General Montgomery of the British Army.

Have you ever wanted to return to France before this project? Why are you going now?

I am going I have two girls that are bugging me... haha. Yes, I always wanted to go back. I never had the opportunity. Perhaps we can do it now. We have a vehicle for me to go back (Indiegogo) and I'd love to go back and take advantage of this opportunity. I'd love to see all these places... it's been so long. With a little luck and enough contributors, we will do that.

Thank you very much for your service!! Do you have any advice for a young American?

Like I told a previous person here, don't drink. Don't smoke. Don't do drugs. Love your country. Be a good citizen.

phellow Philly cat here!

1. Thank you for your service

2. Care to share your favorite picture from your photography career?

A picture of the tip of the Eiffiel Tower in the countryside... maybe 20 miles away. We were not allowed to go into Paris. I wish I took that picture.

I can share a photo from Berlin later today and will share the link.

As a war photographer, which photographs are you most proud of?

What did you witness that you wish you had photographed?

I wasn't a war photographer but I was ducking more than I was taking pictures, making sure I didn't get shot. Some of my photos in Berlin were very good. I finally had a decent camera then.

I was in the center of Hamelin the piper town in Germany directing traffic by surrounded by all the German soldiers on balconies watching me. Hamelin was a hospital town and it was called an open city, no fighting. They surrounded and I was in the center of town with all of them looking at me. I wish I could have taken a picture then.

Have you seen saving private ryan the movie? Was it really like the movie portrays it? And if you like, can we have a picture of when you were in service back then?

I was in the second armored division, not the infantry. I'm sure that's exactly how it happened and my heart goes out to all those who had to suffer that. There will be a photo post update in the next few minutes.

So, you more or less took part in the two bloodiest battles of WWII?

Yes. I wasn't in the thick of either of those really.