Preserving The Oral HistorIES of Combat Veterans
1:23 | As artillery bursts lit up the sky, Ken Johnson brought a chicken back to eat in his shell hole. He relives the moments he jumped into the hole and how his helmet saved his life.
Ken Johnson describes how being color blind led him to one of the most dangerous jobs as a paratrooper getting ready to jump into Normandy.
Assigned to H company, Ken Johnson became a machine gunner. He describes how he felt about the new dangers he faced and what his commanding officer said to him before battle.
Rugged training is what Ken Johnson recalls during his paratrooper days. He tells how only 21 of the 7000 trainees made it through the training, and describes the obstacles and climbs he needed to master.
Remembering the officers that commanded his company, Ken Johnson describes what he thought of their leadership. He tells about one officer leading the troops in his bare feet and how he was killed in action.
Ken Johnson relives his first day in action, breaking his leg while jumping as a paratrooper. He describes fighting off German troops with another injured man, whose death has affected him to this day.
In this dramatic account, Ken Johnson tells how he was rescued from a shell hole after fighting off German troops and where he was taken next.
Fear was not a factor. That's what Ken Johnson describes about his rigorous training as a paratrooper. He tells how having his tooth pulled didn't slow down his mission to Normandy.
Loaded down with equipment, paratrooper Ken Johnson had to be helped into his seat on the plane. In this account, he relives his first jump at an incredible speed and getting injured in the air.
In this chilling story, Ken Johnson decribes the gruesome ways two of his friends were killed during fierce combat, despite defeating the Germans in France.
After seizing a bridge from the Germans in Holland, Ken Johnson had his strangest experience, being dispatched to an area where other troops were withdrawing. He tells why they warned him and his platoon.
Ken Johnson vividly describes why his mom and dad got a "missing in action" telegram, teaching a new recruit how to fight, and saving the life of his machine gunner.
As artillery bursts lit up the sky, Ken Johnson brought a chicken back to eat in his shell hole. He relives the moments he jumped into the hole and how his helmet saved his life.
Ken Johnson stresses that he and the soldiers he trained with were told they were the greatest. He tells how they proved it and how they were recognized.
In this amazing story, Ken Johnson reflects on how he and his fellow troops outsmarted the Germans who outnumbered them. He quotes a famous word used by an officer who refused to surrender.
Ken Johnson laughs as he recalls how his platoon encouraged British soldiers to shoot multiple rounds at a German soldier. It was a joke they played while facing serious danger.
In this dramatic account, Ken Johnson talks about taking prisoners and discusses why some stories may have been exaggerations of what really happened to those killed in battle.
After taking control of a Dutch farmhouse, one of Ken Johnson's men took a piglet for food from its mother. Ken describes why he made him give it back to the sow.
Ken Johnson sums up his experience as a paratrooper seeing action against the Germans. He describes how it changed him and led him to a most productive life.
