U.S. searching for Iwo Jima Marine Jun 22, 2007
"Genaust, a combat photographer with the 28th Marines, used a movie camera to film the raising of the flag atop Iwo Jima's Mount Suribachi on Feb. 23, 1945. He stood just feet away from AP photographer Joe Rosenthal, whose photograph of the moment won a Pulitzer Prize and came to symbolize the Pacific War and the struggle of the U.S. forces to capture the tiny island, a turning point in the war with Japan.Genaust didn't live to see the end of the battle.Johnnie Webb, a civilian official with... (The Miami Herald)
This Day in History Jun 22, 2007
Today s Highlight: In 1945, the World War II battle for Okinawa ended with an Allied victory; some 13,000 Americans and 90,000 Japanese soldiers, plus 130,000 civilians, were killed in the nearly three-month campaign. On this date: In 1940, during World War II, Adolf Hitler gained a stunning victory as France was forced to sign an armistice eight days after German forces overran Paris. (Montana Standard, MT)
Today in History Jun 22, 2007
On June 22, 1945, the World War II battle for Okinawa ended with an Allied victory; some 13,000 Americans and 90,000 Japanese soldiers, plus 130,000 civilians, were killed in the nearly three-month campaign. On this date. (Yahoo News)
WORLD BRIEFS Jun 21, 2007
June 21, 2007 JAPAN RENAMES IWO JIMA. Japan has changed the name of the Pacific island of Iwo Jima, site of the famous World War II battle, to its original name of Iwo To after residents there were prodded into action by two recent Clint Eastwood movies. In Japanese characters, the new name looks and means the same as Iwo Jima - or Sulfur Island - but sounds different, the Japanese Geographical Survey Institute said. (Newsday -- World)
Japanese Rename Iwo Jima, Reverting To Prewar 'Iwo To' Jun 21, 2007
" The new name, Iwo To, was adopted Monday by the Japanese Geographical Survey Institute in consultation with Japan's coast guard. Surviving islanders who were evacuated during the war praised the move, but others said it cheapens the memory of a brutal campaign that is inextricably linked to the words Iwo Jima. In 1945, the small, volcanic island was the vortex of the fierce World War II battle immortalized by the famous photograph by Joe Rosenthal of The Associated Press showing Marines... (Tampa Bay Online, FL -- News)
Japan changes name of Iwo Jima to shore up tradition in face of Hollywood onslaught Jun 20, 2007
TOKYO: Japan has changed the name of Iwo Jima, the island immortalized in a brutal World War II battle, to the traditional name used by locals disenchanted with the modern moniker used in movies like Clint Eastwood's recent "Letters from Iwo Jima.". The island's name has officially reverted to Iwo To, which has the same written characters and meaning "Sulfur Island" but is different when spoken, the Japanese Geographical Survey Institute has decided. (International Herald Tribune -- Business)
Japan Changes Name of Iwo Jima Jun 20, 2007
Iwo Jima was the site of the World War II battle immortalized by the famous photograph by Joe Rosenthal of The Associated Press of Marines raising the American flag on the islet's Mount Suribachi. Before the war, however, the volcanic island was known as Iwo To by the 1,000 or so civilians who lived there. (Guardian Unlimited -- World)
Click for Full Story Jun 5, 2007
In 1940, during the World War II Battle of France, Germany attacked French forces along the Somme line. In 1947, Secretary of State George C. Marshall gave a speech at Harvard University in which he outlined an aid program for Europe that came to be known as "The Marshall Plan."In 1967, war erupted in the Middle East as Israel raided military aircraft parked on the ground in Egypt; Syria, Jordan and Iraq entered the conflict. (KWTX.com, TX)
Vet only needs to look up to be reminded of sacrifice or war May 29, 2007
That is where you can find a ceiling tile printed with the name of James Johnson, Kenneth s older brother who was killed during the World War II Battle of the Bulge in January of 1945. Kenneth Johnson s name is among the 100 or so that line the ceiling of the VFW Post 5400 in Santa Fe. (KHOU.com, TX)
His native roles are historic May 24, 2007
"Just to hear that people were upset that I didn't get nominated really means a lot," he says of critics enthralled by his haunting portrayal of Ira Hayes, one of the Marines seen raising the flag on Iwo Jima in the prize-winning Associated Press photo snapped during the World War II battle. "I've never had to wait for an award to look at my accomplishments," he says. (Newsday -- Entertainment)
more » May 24, 2007
For those who don't know, this is the Japanese side of the momentous World War II battle. Usually, the Japanese are caricatured as brainwashed fanatics, so it's nice to see them portrayed as human beings, some honorable and some not, like the Americans. (CTNow.com)
A queen-sized nest ... With session adjourned, lawmakers look to next year ... Terrorist attacks and deaths rose sharply in 2006 ... Bush indicates willingness to work with Democrats on Iraq ... Special speaker ... ';var marqueewidth="350px";var marqueeheight="20px";var marqueebgcolor="#FFFFFF";////NO NEED TO EDIT BELOW THIS LINE////////////var pauseit=1;var marqueespeed=1 //slow speed down by 1 for NSvar copyspeed=marqueespeedvar pausespeed=(pauseit==0)? copyspeed: 0var iedom=document.all||document.getElementByIdif (iedom)document.write(''+marqueecontent+'')var actualwidth=''var cross_marquee, ns_marqueefunction populate(){if (iedom){cross_marquee=document.getElementById? document.getElementById("iemarquee") : document.all.iemarqueecross_marquee.style.left=parseInt(marqueewidth)+8+"px"cross_marquee.innerHTML=marqueecontentactualwidth=document.all? temp.offsetWidth : document.getElementById("temp").offsetWidth}else if (document.layers){ns_marquee=document.ns_marquee.document.ns_marquee2ns_marquee.left=parseInt(marqueewidth)+8ns_marquee.document.write(marqueecontent)ns_marquee.document.close()actualwidth=ns_marquee.document.width}lefttime=setInterval("scrollmarquee()",20)}window.onload=populate;function scrollmarquee(){if (iedom){if (parseInt(cross_marquee.style.left)>(actualwidth*(-1)+8))cross_marquee.style.left=parseInt(cross_marquee.style.left)-copyspeed+"px"elsecross_marquee.style.left=parseInt(marqueewidth)+8+"px"}else if (document.layers){if (ns_marquee.left>(actualwidth*(-1)+8))ns_marquee.left-=copyspeedelsens_marquee.left=parseInt(marqueewidth)+8}}if (iedom||document.layers){with (document){document.write('')if (iedom){write('')write('')write('')write('')}else if (document.layers){write('')write('')write('')}document.write('')}}Wednesday, May 02, 2007 A queen-sized nest May 2, 2007
People going to and from Westwood Park Saturday to view the World War II battle re-enactment as part of Military History Days were treated to another special sight as well - this large swan nesting in a marsh area along the roadway. Her mate swam nearby, keeping an eye on everyone to make sure the road was as close as anyone got. (Charles City Press, IO)
Rain-free MHD the largest yet May 1, 2007
"The weather was great again, the World War II battle went really well and we had a lot of people here until around 9 p.m., so the weather made a difference.". Contact Matt Barnes at or (641) 228-3211 ext. (Charles City Press, IO)
Chicago exhibit features worlds most famous maps Apr 22, 2007
McCarter had been fascinated with maps since he was a child, when he kept a box of maps he cut out from National Geographic and studied World War II battle maps with his father at their kitchen table. Now head of one of the countrys most prominent natural history museums, he asked a friend and cartography expert: Had there ever been an exhibit on the 100 greatest maps in the world. (The Pantagraph newspaper)
Moon flecks and history under a dome Apr 9, 2007
Two other items on display are more curious than visually impressive: a few flecks of moon rock (along with a small Rhode Island flag carried there and back), and grains of sand from the World War II battle of Iwo Jima. If all this history tires you out, not to worry. (Boston Globe)
Staff Sgt. Andrew C. Edwards polishes a Marine Corps memorial. Mar 17, 2007
U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Andrew C. Edwards polishes a Marine Corps memorial to the veterans of the World War II Battle of Iwo Jima on the top of Mount Suribachi, Japan, on March 13, 2007. Marines from Marine Corps Base G4 came to Iwo Jima to support the 62nd commemoration of the Battle for Iwo Jima, which will be held March 14, 2007. (DOD DefenseLINK -- News)
Northwestern Hawaiian Islands monument receives Hawaiian name Mar 3, 2007
Bush also spoke of the threat of marine debris -- ocean-borne garbage -- to local wildlife and the importance of preserving the area to remember its military history and those who lost their lives there at the World War II Battle of Midway in 1942. Some local groups, however, have opposed the monument designation, recently raising concerns that increased public attention to the area may lead to more people wanting to visit the area, possibly illegally. (North County Times)
Today in History - March 2 Mar 2, 2007
In 1943, the World War II Battle of the Bismarck Sea began; U.S. and Australian warplanes were able to inflict heavy damage on a Japanese convoy. In 1965, the movie version of Rodgers and Hammersteins musical The Sound of Music had its world premiere at New Yorks Rivoli Theater. (MSNBC -- Race)
Eastwood's attack on futility is just more propaganda Mar 1, 2007
So it's not surprising that Eastwood now has his revisionist take on a famous World War II battle in Letters From Iwo Jima, told from the Japanese point of view. Last year he released an English-language movie about Iwo Jima, Flags of Our Fathers, but it's the Japanese-language effort that has grabbed Hollywood's attention. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Opinion)
COLUMN: Oscar picks reflect America's flaws Feb 27, 2007
Caryn James of the New York Times argued, "As the Academy Award nominees for best picture suggest, it has been a terrific year for films about global politics." She defends this argument by saying that Babel addresses lack of communication across seven continents and that "Letters from Iwo Jima," which examines the Japanese side of the famous World War II battle, beat out director Clint Eastwood's other film ("Flags of Our Fathers") from the American perspective. I beg to differ with this... (U-Wire.com)
This year the golden guy goes global, drawn to all things foreign Feb 25, 2007
Director Clint Eastwoods Letters from Iwo Jima shows the flip side of his earlier released widely shown Flags of Our Fathers, both based on the key World War II battle in the Pacific. While Flags told the confusing and complicated story of the raising of the flag on Iwo Jima, Letters is a more straightforward account from the Japanese point of view of their doomed efforts to defend the barren island. (Orangeburg Times Democrat)
There’s an appetite for faith-based reviews Feb 24, 2007
Baehr, who has warned parents to protect your children from the evil occult power of Harry Potter, recently took to task Clint Eastwood s Oscar-nominated Letters From Iwo Jima a look at the World War II battle as experienced by Japanese soldiers for ignoring the terrible horrors that Japanese soldiers inflicted in places like Manchuria, Nanking, Korea and the Philippines. He railed against Eastwood for promoting some kind of politically correct, misguided liberal notion of fairness and... (La Crosse Tribune, WI)
More of this story Feb 18, 2007
The annual Iwo Jima Commemorative Sunset Memorial at Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base ---- on the 62nd anniversary of a strategic, bloody World War II battle that dragged on for more than a month ---- was over in half an hour. There was barely time for the crowd of 600 people, including 100 veterans of the historic conflict, to hear the Pledge of Allegiance, a prayer and a few short remarks, and witness the laying of a wreath at the base's Iwo Jima Monument. (North County Times)
Santa Monica samurai Feb 15, 2007
Eastwood captures the crucial World War II battle for the Japanese garrison island of Iwo Jima from the perspective of Japanese soldiers, with the Americans as the lethal but largely unseen enemy. And that's a first for a Hollywood World War II movie. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Entertainment)
Low on glitz, big on film Feb 12, 2007
"It's [expletive] cold here," observed director-actor Clint Eastwood, disembarking from a private jet at Tempelhof airport for yesterday's screening of his "Letters from Iwo Jima," which depicts the bloody World War II battle from the Japanese perspective. Cate Blanchett didn't outright curse the chill. (Boston Globe -- World)
Eastwood film gets slim release Feb 9, 2007
The first of Clint Eastwoods bookend films about the World War II battle for Iwo Jima, Flags of Our Fathers (2 stars, $29. 99, DreamWorks) received excellent reviews, yet apparently failed to find a solid audience. (McAllen Monitor, TX)
Today in History - Feb. 9 Feb 9, 2007
Todays Highlight in History:On Feb. 9, 1943, the World War II battle of Guadalcanal in the southwest Pacific ended with an Allied victory over Japanese forces. On this date:In 1773, the ninth president of the United States, William Henry Harrison, was born in Charles City County, Va. (MSNBC -- Race)
New DVDs: Flags of Our Fathers, Flicka Feb 6, 2007
Flags of Our FathersThe first of Clint Eastwoods bookend films about the World War II battle for Iwo Jima received excellent reviews yet failed to find the audience it deserved. With the buildup to the Academy Awards where the follow-up film, Letters From Iwo Jima, earned a best-picture nomination and a best-director slot for Eastwood Flags may find a second wind as viewers catch up with his overlooked war epic. (MSNBC -- Movies)
'Dreamgirls' left out of the biggest category Jan 26, 2007
The fourth and fifth slots went to "Letters From Iwo Jima," Clint Eastwood's Japanese-language film about the famous World War II battle from the Japanese perspective, and "Little Miss Sunshine," an audience favorite about a dysfunctional family taking a road trip to a beauty pageant. (). (CNN -- Showbiz)
Oscars reflect newfound diversity Jan 24, 2007
Even Clint Eastwood got into the act; his Letters From Iwo Jima, which tells the story of the pivotal World War II battle not only from the Japanese point of view, but in Japanese, was among the best picture nominees. Also in the running are Martin Scorsese's drama of honor and intrigue among the Boston mob, The Departed; the dysfunctional family comedy Little Miss Sunshine (whose 10-year-old star, Abigail Breslin, is up for supporting actress); and Stephen Frears' look at Elizabeth II,... (Baltimore Sun)
What's in a nom? Jan 24, 2007
In its presumed slot for best picture was the drama Letters from Iwo Jima, director Clint Eastwood's film about the Japanese experience of the famous World War II battle which he also chronicled, from the American perspective, in Flags of Our Fathers. The sidelining of Dreamgirls shifted the awards away from the ho-hum Hollywood mainstream. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Entertainment)
'Dreamgirls' snub is big Oscar surprise Jan 24, 2007
Surprises in the category included "Little Miss Sunshine," a dysfunctional family comedy that has been gaining momentum and Monday was named picture of the year by the Producer's Guild, and "Letters From Iwo Jima," director Clint Eastwood's look at the pivotal World War II battle from the Japanese perspective. The movie was rushed into release late in the year, after Eastwood's "Flags of Our Fathers," which told the story from the American perspective, met with some tepid reviews and performed... (SunSpot.net)
Soldiers' story with twist Jan 21, 2007
There is an irony in this, since the movie refuses to see the World War II battle in shades of black and white. With remarkable empathy, Letters looks at events on the desolate island from the viewpoint of the Japanese, turning them into individuals whose lives have been disrupted and who have wives and children back home, just like the American soldiers do. (The Palm Beach Post)
'Letters' shows other side of WW II battle Jan 19, 2007
They've been described as bookends or even mirror images of each other -- "Flags of Our Fathers" and "Letters From Iwo Jima" -- two different perspectives on the same World War II battle. But this second picture is so different from the first, and such a rare, remarkable achievement in itself, it could have stood squarely on its own. (Pensacola News Journal)
Warm to January films Jan 17, 2007
What it's about: The pivotal World War II battle that took place on the desolate island of Iwo Jima is chronicled from the perspective of Japanese soldiers of all ranks. Oscar-worthy performances: Ken Watanabe as a fair-minded general who admires America, and Kazunari Ninomiya as a baker who longs to get home to see his newborn daughter. (USA Today -- Life)
"Babel," "Dreamgirls," "Departed" win Golden Globes Jan 17, 2007
Eastwood did not come away empty-handed as his "Letters from Iwo Jima" -- a film about the famed World War II battle from the Japanese perspective -- won the Golden Globe for best foreign-language film, beating out Mel Gibson's "Apocalypto," "The Lives of Others" from Germany, "Pan's Labyrinth" from Mexico and "Volver" from Spain. "Cars" took home the first Golden Globe awarded to an animated film, beating out "Monster House" and the recent box office blockbuster "Happy Feet.". (Xinhuanet, China)
Dream night for 'Dreamgirls' Jan 17, 2007
Clint Eastwood picked up the best foreign film prize for his epic "Letters from Iwo Jima," which presents the Japanese perspective of the epochal World War II battle. The foreign language category win by the English-speaking superstar (in a field that included films by Spain's Pedro Almodovar and Mexico's Guillermo Del Toro) reflected the evening's bizarre juxtaposition of breezy glamour and bloody reality, as epitomized by a station-break announcement that blared "Another botched execution in... (Newsday -- Entertainment)
Casualty of war films Jan 13, 2007
text size Clint Eastwood's Letters From Iwo Jima relates the World War II battle at Iwo Jima from the Japanese perspective. More content. (AZCentral -- Entertainment)
The other side of the story Jan 13, 2007
The Japanese general Tadamichi Kuribayashi (Ken Watanabe ) emerges from a cave during the fifth day of the epic World War II battle and spies, a mile or so away, a handful of ant-like figures raising a US flag on Mount Suribachi. It's glimpsed on the right side of the screen for a wobbly second and then it's gone: One of the iconic images of the 20th century, viewed through the wrong end of history's telescope. (Boston Globe)
Double exposure Jan 12, 2007
Eastwood told the American side of the grisly World War II battle, including the famed flag raising and its troubled aftermath, and in Letters gives us the suicidally fated Japanese side. Curiously, the more linear, war-generic film seems to be drawing higher praise than the dense, emotionally loaded Flags. (San Diego Union-Tribune)
New Perspectives Jan 12, 2007
Letters From Iwo Jima, directed by Clint Eastwood, one of the finest directors alive, looks at the World War II battle of his recent Flags of Our Fathers from a Japanese perspective. Letters From Iwo Jima opened in Japan around the same time its counterpart opened here, evidence of the nobility of his intention to address the people of both countries, not just us. (Chicago Reader)
Oscars race narrows Jan 8, 2007
The Queen, an inside look at the British royals, director Clint Eastwood's Letters from Iwo Jima, which tells the Japanese side of the World War II battle, Sept. 11 drama United 93, and the comeback story this season, Bobby, about the legacy of former U.S. Senator Robert Kennedy, are all being given a shot - if even a slim one in some cases. "It's an incredibly stable group, but it will be a wide open race" when the five nominees are named, said David Poland, who runs the website. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Entertainment)
Hap's top 2006 picks Jan 3, 2007
Flags of Our Fathers Clint Eastwood is on a winning streak, adding another Oscar-worthy directing effort to Mystic River and Million Dollar Baby, with this history lesson in a crucial World War II battle, its iconic flag-raising image and how it was used to sell further homefront support for the war. It is a film about patriotism and one man's tribute to his father. (The Palm Beach Post)
