 Proudly we hail. From New York City, where the American stage begins, here is another program with a cast of outstanding players. Public service time has been made available by this station for your Army and your Air Force to bring you this story. As proudly we hail the United States Army. Our story is entitled, Indestructible Sergeant. This is the story of an Indestructible Sergeant, Sergeant First Class Robert 40s of the U.S. Army, and all the men of the 82nd Airborne, the 14th Armored and the 2nd Infantry Division. Today your rapidly expanding United States Army needs intelligent young men with ability and ambition. Men intelligent enough to recognize the vital need for a strong armed force. Men with ability enough to be trained in a necessary job. Men with ambition enough to secure the future for themselves and their loved ones. Does this description fit you? Can you qualify? For full information on how you can fit in with the finest. Check with your nearest United States Army and United States Air Force Recruiting Station now. And now your Army and your Air Force present the proudly we hail production, Indestructible Sergeant. Miss Foley? Yes. I'm Sergeant 40s, the ROTC instructor here. Sergeant 40s, are you sure? The principal said you were running some kind of a qualification survey on teachers and staff, if you weren't the one... Oh yes, I'm the one doing it, but, well, please sit down, Sergeant. Yeah, thank you. Well, now, in your case, Sergeant, I'm not quite sure how to begin. I see now that I do have your card here, but... What's the matter, the question's pretty personal? No, no, not too personal. The thing is, the survey's supposed to cover professional training and experience of a sample group of high school teachers from all over the state. But you're the first ROTC instructor I've met, and I'm not sure these standard questions... Well, Miss Foley, in the Army, one way or another, I've probably filled out enough forms to paper this room. Why don't we just try seeing how it goes? Well, I suppose that's all we can do. Now, by this card, your name is Robert 40s. That's right. F-O-R-T-I-E-S. That's right. Now, Sergeant First Class, United States Army on Detached Service. Age 30, married, one child... Oh, oh dear, now we get to it. Subject Tosh. Would that be basic military training? Yeah, yeah, that's probably close enough. And then it's first studies, degrees, extension work... Well, I'm afraid you'll have to count me out on the degrees. I was 17 when I went up to Canada to enlist and I haven't rightly had time to catch up since. 17? Mm-hmm. You mean you started out with the Canadian Army before we even got into World War II? The British. They were recruiting there, and I was finally shipped out to the Eighth Army, Airborne Brigade. Uh, you saw combat with the British? Pretty hard not to, with the Eighths. Tobruk, El Alamein? Anyway, I don't think you need that, Miss Foley. I'm supposed to put down your different teachers in all places where you... My teachers? Lieutenant Brister? Corporal McKay? Or was it Rommel? No, probably Jamie. Lance Corporal Jamie McKay. What's up, Corporal? Lieutenant says the ploon's edited. We can't look at that bleeding machine gun up ahead. What's the matter? Can't they get mortars on it, Jamie? Not in time to help. We're supposed to be past the ravine by noon, and it's one bloody 5-0 now. You want a volunteer one? I want grenades. How many have you got left? Three. I've got four. That'll be margin enough. Let's have those three in a minute. No, wait a minute, Jamie. You try working up to that position on your own, and what... Well, there ought to be somebody along to try and cover you. Once you get past those rocks, I can't do anything for you from here. Forty's Europe perishing lunatic to be asking for it, but I'd be glad to have you backing me up. The only thing is... Well, if you're coming, you're coming. Let's get on with it. Now, wait a second, Jamie. Look, it's your neck going on the block. What am I doing wrong? It's not your fault, mate. With that sharp eye, you've got it. No wonder you'd be trying to cracker it fire when you can. You mean I'm not getting my shots off fast enough? There's no one can get them all fast enough, Bob. But up close this way, when the jerry's might be popping out at you from any way, it has to be pulled up four-store, or Bob's your uncle, or you'll catch it. Gee, I haven't been trying to do more than half, eh? At least when we're moving. Make it even faster. If anything shows, don't wait to get your piece up. Don't wait for anything. Now, squeeze away before you start thinking. You mean just start blasting off? That's right. Hold in your rifle this way. Your body will do the aim in for you. Then, with your man it anyway, you'll have time for proper aim or for dealing with his mate, see? All right, okay, Corporal. Get started and I'll see what I can do. You know, it'll have to be a run for it from here. There's no cover up beyond. Well, how close after you do I come? Well, give me a bit of a stop. Then come, weave in after me like Billy. But don't forget, Jack, if any edge shows, fire first and zero in after. Right. Good luck to you, Jamie. Okay. Get care, we've got a lot of sweat going, Jamie. Sweat going. Up the eighths. Come on, you perishing, bleeding beauties. We're moving up. Bob Forties didn't get to try the corporal snap shooting trick for a week. But then when he needed it, it saved his life and possibly two more. That was in May 42. But you can't snap shoot against an 88. And that's what tagged Jamie and Bob the same day. Both caught shrapnel, both landed in the same carol hospital. On the day when Bob walked down on his own to be discharged... Did my orders come yet, sister? Your orders, soldier? Yes, ma'am, back to my outfit. No, I'm afraid not. But I've been discharged, haven't I? The doctor said... Yes, you've been discharged, but... Hey, this ain't making trouble, sister. Jamie! Hey, I thought you cleared out a week ago. I did, but they've had me on supply for a few days. Getting the hang of these new... Well, Bazookas, they start to come? Bazookas. Well, is that how you say it? Yeah. Bazookas? Hey, is that a ruddy red Indian name of what? Oh, come on, never mind the Bazookas. Jamie, how is it my orders haven't come through yet? Well, just what I was coming to tell you. You haven't heard? Heard what? Poor lad. And you tried so hard. We're not taking you back, young Mr Forties. What? You're out of a job. Through with the British Army. Well, you'll probably find something to do here in Cairo. Well, polishing boots or maybe having a go at peddling. Corporal, stop tormenting the poor boy. I shall tell him I self-promise or no promise. Sister, you know about my orders and the corporal here got you to... You've got an army of your own these days, Bob. As of this week, you and all these ear-wild yanks like you have been switched to American service. The American army? Jamie, you wouldn't... You wouldn't look... It's all said key and blotters for you, young Forties, and on with the K-Rations. As of this week out, you're an American soldier. Now, I have that about you being transferred to the American army, Sergeant. And here where it says different schools, I suppose I can... Well, you can make it the US 82nd Airborne for the first one after North Africa. And then 45 hours reassigned to the 14th Armored. Well, wait a minute, Sergeant. What's the 82nd Airborne dropped behind the lines in Normandy on D-Day? 6, 1944, Miss Foley. If you couldn't get Bob Forties to confirm it for you. Those quiet apple orchards, fishing ports, and hedge-line fields of Normandy had been locked up inside Hitler's Fortress Europe and marked out of bounds for free men. But the young American soldiers from Kansas City, Louisville, and Bridgeport, who went in along with the British and the free French that morning, the youngsters from a thousand towns and farms, they didn't always believe in signs. That day, they cracked Hitler's Fortress Europe wide open and for keeps. And one of the first paratroopers of the 82nd who bailed out into the roaring slipstream in those early hours was chunky young Bob Forties. Hey, Leo. Hey, you, Leo? No, it's 40s. Who's that, Lou Myers? Yeah. Yeah, that's right. Hey, you know, Bob, I thought for a minute there, you were Leo Dubrusky. Yeah. They sure tossed us out wide. Have they contacted the lieutenant yet? Hey, look, Sergeant, all my life I've been hearing about these beautiful French babes. Here we finally get to France and what's on your mind? Officers. All right, come on, Lou. Cut out the clown. Okay, okay. No contact with anybody. Babes, lieutenants, or the crowds. By my compass, Ridd North ought to split that apple tree over there. We would drop south of the assembly point road. All right, let's get over there now. Okay. Which way do we head after we form on the road? West. St. Marie de Glace is about a mile over. Yeah. What goes we get there? We take and hold. That's all I know. What if the crowds have armor on the road? We deal with it and keep on for the village. We deal with it? Sure, they're starting now. That's some of our stuff out on the road. Yeah, Bob. That is our stuff. By the way, it sounds... This is one year you get your fourth of July a month ahead of time, Lou. Come on, let's get up to that road. Bob 40s and the men of the 82nd Airborne wrote their own passports to France that day and made them good against all the murderous firepower Hitler's crack units tried to throw at them. Within weeks, in the center and the south, the once arrogant Nazi legions were being driven back toward the west wall of Germany itself. To the north, though, in the lowlands of Holland, stubborn fighting still lay ahead for the 82nd. Bob 40s picked up some more shrapnel in Normandy this time in his right arm, and was dispatched on his second combat jump in September 44. Okay, all you guys. We're over the tulip country. Start checking up. Bob, yeah, yeah, let's get... Look, this is my first combat drop coming up, but... They say you jumped into Normandy on D-Day. Was it pretty rough? Not the jump. After you got down? Yeah, for a while. And you figured it'll be rough down at this bridge we're trying? Well, I'll tell you one way to guarantee it, Skip. Hit down there hungry and don't have time to break out rations. You can think about eating now. Come on, get a couple of those sandwiches down. I'm telling you, you're gonna be hungry as a wolf before the night if you don't. Gee, well, I've been concentrating on this first couple of minutes when we hit whatever's down there. Here you are, figuring I'm gonna be right along with you, griping for a chowder now. Well, there's no way you can do your fighting up here, Skip. Let's see now. Yeah, these look like a beef and a ham. All right, take your pick. A couple of minutes ago I couldn't figure out anything. Beef or ham, Skip? Make up your mind. Guess maybe I'll try the beef, all right? Thanks, Bob. I think I'll be okay now. With just one sandwich? Just one guy next to me who's been through this before. Okay, we're running in. Action stations. And hook up. Action stations. Okay, Bob. See you in Charline tonight. Okay, she's open. Get your hands in and go as you're capped. Ask him back. Yeah! I got her! You're on it! Party! Bob! So Bob Porties leaked into the ferocious Nazi ring around Arnhem. Leading a patrol, probing for gaps in the tightening ring about the bridges over the lower Rhine, he was responsible for knocking out a Nazi tank single-handedly. It was this kind of quick-thinking courage matched in unit after unit that enabled the Allied jumpers to fight their way out of a supposedly unbreakable trap. Transferred later to the 14th Armored Division, Bob Porties was wounded in the left leg early in 45, but recovered in time to take part in the final victory drive into Germany. Sergeant Porties? Uh, yes, Miss Foley. This has to be old, hasn't it? It couldn't possibly have shipped you out into the Pacific after you'd gone... No, no, not then. I didn't get to the Pacific until I'd re-enlisted and shipped out for Korea. You are listening to the proudly-we-hail production of an Indestructible Sergeant. Our story will continue in just a moment after this important message. Young man, let's talk about your future and America's future. They're important to each other, you know. Today, your United States Army is charged with a vital responsibility. You need only to glance at your local newspaper to realize how vital. And to meet this responsibility, the Army is rapidly expanding its forces. They have a job for you, a job that must be done by men of courage. You can get full details of how you may best serve your future and your country's future by a visit to your nearest United States Army and United States Air Force Recruiting Station today. You are listening to Proudly-We-Hail, and now we present the second act of Indestructible Sergeant. Sergeant Porties, I know I shouldn't be asking you all this, but since we've started... Now go ahead, Miss Foley. As I said before, if you've got your survey form to fill out, let's try to get through the questions. Who say you re-enlisted in the Army in 47? That's right, New Year's Day, 47. I was assigned to the Airborne School at Fort Benning as an instructor. I guess I've put in more than a year there. Good. That gives me an entry under previous teaching. Mm-hmm. Were you instructing in parachute jumping? Jumping, weapons, field problems. And you stayed in Airborne service until... Until I was switched over to the 2nd Division at 49 and got into a heavy mortar company. The 2nd Infantry Division? When the new enemies of the free world struck in Korea, the 2nd Infantry Division was one of the first American units shipped out. With the 9th Regiment of the 2nd as a squad leader in a heavy mortar company, went Bob Forties, the indestructible Sergeant. On the troop transport, as it plowed west through the Pacific. Hi, Sergeant. Hello, Eddie. You still counting those waves out there? No, I'm just working up ambition enough to fight that jawline. How is it now? Well, not too tough. I got through it in half an hour. Maybe I better get down there. Not our time enough. The line's still thinner now. Hey, Sergeant, there's something I've been wanting to ask you. You, uh... You're married, aren't you? Yeah, yeah, six years. Kids? Boy. Name Davey. How old? Well, he'll probably be four before I get back. Okay. What do you mean, for what? Dealing me some advice. See, back at Fort Lewis there, I met up with a girl just a couple of months before we shipped out. The nicest kid I ever met in my life. Not only that, but, uh... she was crazy enough to think I was okay. Oh, good going. No, no, not so good. The way we left it, we were going to get married when I got back, and now I, uh... I got to finish a letter. I started about eight times, tongue-holds, no dice. Why? Ah, you know the army life. You never know what'll happen next. What kind of a deal is that to tie a nice kid like Amy in? Wait a minute, wait a minute, Eddie. Is that what you want the advice on? You want to finish up this letter breaking it off with your girl? Uh-huh. Well, I ought to have it ready before we land, and I... I just got to figure out some way of telling her without being too blunt about it. Are you getting any ideas? You better hit somebody else, Eddie. I don't see why you have to break it off. Well, not even... Well, how did your wife take it when she heard you were going out this time? My wife... Well, Eddie Jones is kind of a special case. We were married in England back in March of 44, just about three months before the Normandy landing. Oh. And we both knew I was booked to go over. Well, neither of you were ever sorry? Well, this... this would have to be a guess, Eddie. But if Joan were on board and you asked her about this chop it off letter, I'd say she'd tell you to tear it up. Well, maybe I will, but... Hey, wait a minute, Bobby. You think I'm taking this Korean joint too big that it's just a soft pitch we got coming in? Well, I gotta go down and hit that shower line. But I'll take one more guess, though, Eddie. We'll get through the business coming up, but it won't be a soft pitch. As we know now, it wasn't. In those first bad months when a few thousand yanks stopped and threw back the waves of screaming communist fanatics who came clawing at the Busan perimeter, heroism became standard operating procedure for nearly every man in combat. Carlos! Right here, sir. Oh, but get up some more cases of ammo for the BAR. Looks as if those lunatics are gonna try coming through again. Right. Hey, Bob. Yeah. Oh, you're getting low on grenades, Eddie. No, no, I think I got enough. It doesn't ever get you down. What, the way they keep coming? Well, to look at you, you'd think everything was number one and we've been in trouble for days. Don't you ever get scared? Eddie, I'm scared half to death right now with all those bugles and whistles and pans banging. Who wouldn't be? Here's your ammo, sir. Yeah. One another case now. No, you better get back on your grease gun, Carlos. Now, here comes the next New Year's Eve party now. Hey, slow up a little, Carlos. The jeep's barely doing 30, sir. Well, we're coming to that open stretch. Look, I've made the run before. The way to play it is keep bowing right through. You haven't been slowing up, you mean, while you've still got cover to make sure how it is out there? I'm telling you, it's losing time for nothing. And with the upgrade there, it's hard to get rolling again. The way we ought to run. All right, all right, all right. Play it your way, if you think you know what you're doing. But once you get out there, boy, keep pushing it. Just relax, Sarge. I'm an old hot rod man. Okay, you're driving. See what I mean? Get yourself a good start. You're halfway across. Carlos, yank her off the road and pull up. Well, that's with you, Sarge, just because one of our fly boys has to come back. That plane's not one of us. Carlos is rushing, built to pull up and die for it. There wasn't time to hit the ditch. When Bob Porties finally made it to a field aid station, there was new lead to be taken from his ripped up left arm. Before the week was out, Bob rejoined his squad. In the summer of 1950, our troops were sticking in the lines until they were carried out. And although Bob Porties didn't know it then, he still had one final date to keep with those weird suicidal invaders throwing themselves south at the murderous whim of a few men in Moscow. On August 31st, hammered back by overwhelming numbers, Bob's outfit was forced to pull out of a village near the Noctung River. How's your squad, Sergeant? All here but three men, Lieutenant. They pretty bushed. Well, we've been in better shape, but most of them just caught about three hours sleep. We'll be okay. You ready to move in 20 minutes? Lieutenant, we're not pulling back again. No. No, we're heading back to retake that village, Sergeant. And this time we're gonna hang on to it. They retook it and did hang on for three days of 24-hour combat. On the evening of September 5th, Bob 40s and a single PFC were holding an outpost hill position against nearly two companies of North Koreans with a Browning automatic rifle and a couple of M45 submachine guns. All right, all right, hold up. They're falling back again. There's a pocket of them down behind those rocks about halfway up the hill. Maybe I could break the shape. Well, they take them when they break cover. Okay. Oh, lucky for us, they haven't got mortars down there, Bob. Yeah. If they had mortars, they could lay on us. We'd be out of here now. In pieces. Popcorn size. How are we for ammo? Oh, still got a fair supply. What we could do with is about 18 more guys, maybe a couple of flamethrowers. Well, if we can hang on here long enough, maybe we'll get them. With Bob? Yeah. We figure this hill's really worth hanging on to with no one linked in to back us up. Well, the Lieutenant said hold it if we could, Dave. Commies get enough men past here and they can chew up Charlie Company before we'd ever get any armor up. How do we know Charlie Company hasn't bugged out already? They're still over there. We would have gotten a double flare if they had a pullout. All I know is we got about a regiment of maniacs leaning on us here. And it can't be two companies, Dave. Okay, okay. Figure it alone. Two guys against two companies. Kind of odds of those. I told you I'd cover you any time you want to pull out, Dave. Hey. Hey, look down there about the brook. They're coming across again. All right, keep taking them on the left, Dave. I've got the middle and the side. Well, they do, Bob. Dope them up or what? Well, I've heard they call it brainwashing, Dave. Wash the brains right out and put in a time bomb that goes off when the top boys pull a switch. That's pretty fair laundry wear running right here. Yeah. They do it with a lot less customers, though. We got more clips for the other grease gun, Dave. Well, what about the BAR? Well, we've had it on ammo. Used up the final rounds this last time. Wait a minute, Bob. We've done the last three clips on the M45s. That won't be enough to take. All right, all right. So we'll have to fake it if they try another climbing party. Maybe they'll just send a squad up after the losses they've been taking. Look, Bob, with only a clip and a half for each grease gun... Look, Dave, they don't know that yet. And we'll get relief here if we hold on long enough. Let's have one of those... Yeah, lay an artillery on here. Yeah, it's worse than that, Dave. They got a heavy mortar up. Mortar fire. We're not dug in enough to... No, no, no. This means we got to pull out or be blown up in the next couple of minutes. All right, get started, Dave. I'll cover you. You crazy, Bob. We both have to pull out now before they start rushing... You know what, Dave? Just one clip and I'll be right after you. All right, all right. Let's get scrambled. Dave? Dave! It's okay, it's okay. Just knock me down. Come on, let's get out of here. All right, you crazy murder and reg. You've got your hill, but you're going to take one more clip along with it. The communists didn't get the hill to keep. The two men had held on long enough to allow reinforcements to be sent up, and then they dragged their way to the bottom of the hill. Four new men were lugging an aircraft mounted 50-color machine gun into action, and after them came more to throw the North Koreans out before they could dig in. The hill was retaken, and that village on the Fusan perimeter was held. In fact, the whole perimeter was held. And then the forces of freedom mounted the counterattack that threw the invading reds across the 38th parallel in shattered retreat. Sergeant Fortes. Yes, Miss Foley? All you've told me about Korea was that you were in combat there up to September 1950. And then the doctors ordered you back to the States because of a leg wound. Well, you don't need any more than that, do you? No, no, not for this survey. If you aren't qualified to help teach military training after being wounded in the action you've seen in North Africa, Normandy, Germany and Korea... Miss Foley, I'm not qualified. You're not? Nobody's ever qualified all the way to teach a man all the soldiering he may have to know. But if I've picked up anything over in the ETO and out in Korea that can help these kids when they come up against trouble, I'm glad to be able to be here and pass it along. Sergeant Fortes, there's no place in this questionnaire for a comment from me, but... well, can I say we're glad to have you around? Proudly we hail Sergeant First Class Robert Fortes of the U.S. Army and all the men of the 82nd Airborne, the 14th Armored and the 2nd Infantry Division. Here's a special message for the young men of our country. The United States Army, the senior service of our armed forces is expanding rapidly and needs your help. By enlisting in the United States Army you'll not only get the finest training in the world but you'll have the special pride that goes with wearing a United States Army uniform. Why not get full details today? Visit your local United States Army and United States Air Force Recruiting Station enlist now. This has been another program on Proudly We Hail, presented transcribed in cooperation with the station. Proudly We Hail is produced by the Recruiting Publicity Center for the United States Army and United States Air Force Recruiting Service. This is Kenneth Banghart speaking and inviting you to tune in the same station next week for another interesting story on Proudly We Hail.