Immortal Images

the long version

A member of the 28th Marines regiment that fought at Iwo Jima and raised the flags on Mt. Suribachi, Tedd Thomey offers here a fascinating, very personal story about the two photographers whose camera artistry captured the historic second flag raising. He describes with great sensitivity the triumphs and humiliations of Joe Rosenthal, the Associated Press photographer who became well known to the public but endured years of abuse from the media, which claimed he had staged his famous photo. A modest, highly ethical man, Rosenthal tried for years to ignore the unjust accusations but finally fought back. Thomey also tells the tragic story of the other photographer, Sgt. Bill Genaust, a Marine cinematographer whose immortal motion picture of the flag raising has been seen world-wide for half a century. Killed in battle nine days after the flag went up, Genaust was not publicly identified by the Marine Corps or given credit for his film classic, Thomey explains, until another Marine movie cameraman and Iwo survivor, Sgt. Harrold Weinberger, mounted a decades-long campaign. His efforts eventually succeeded in bringing honor to Genaust and in 1995 a bronze plaque atop Suribachi. The poignant story of Genaust's widow, Adelaide, is also told. A series of photos reproduced from Genaust's motion picture illustrates the book along with photographs by Rosenthal and of Iwo Jima today, taken by the author on a recent visit.