VOICE ONE:
Six men are in the photograph. But only four of them are clearly seen.
In the front is Harlon Block, a Marine from Yorktown, Texas. Next is John Bradley. His face is the only one in the picture. He was a Navy corpsman; his job was to treat the wounded.
Also in the picture is Franklin Sousley, a Marine from Hilltop, Kentucky. And all the way at the left is Ira Hayes, a Marine, and an American Indian. The heavy pole holding the flag had just left his hand when the picture was taken.
Behind these four men are two other Marines. They cannot be seen as clearly. They are Rene Gagnon of Manchester, New Hampshire, and Mike Strank. He lived in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, but was born in Jarabenia, in what was then Czechoslovakia.
VOICE TWO:
The next day, Joe Rosenthal's film went by airplane to the island of Guam where it was developed and printed.
The pictures were given to Associated Press photo editor John Bodkin. It was his job to decide which ones to send to the United States. They would go on a machine that sent images by radio.
As histories tell it, he looked and looked at the first photograph, and said: "This is one for all time." Within minutes he sent the picture of the six men raising the flag to the Associated Press headquarters in New York.
From there, the photograph went to newspapers across the United States. Most decided to print a huge copy on their front page.
VOICE ONE:
Most photo experts will tell you that the picture Joe Rosenthal made is almost perfect. The camera catches the flag as it rises. The flagpole cuts across the photograph. Winds blow against the flag.
The experts also say you must look at the picture as the American public saw it in nineteen forty-five. The world had been at war for years. Victory was not yet certain. Many people worried about family members. Many had a deep fear of the enemy.
The picture shows strength and courage. It suggests that six young men are working together to defeat the enemy. Joe Rosenthal's photograph seemed to say: the battle may not be over, but we are winning.
It was the very image of a future American victory.
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