The E-Sylum:  Volume 8, Number 13, March 27, 2005, Article 20

DISTINGUISHED SERVICE CROSS QUIZ ANSWER

Last week I asked, "What American celebrity received
the DSC?" The answer is Audie Murphy, who became
a celebrity AFTER his heroic war adventures. Murphy
also earned the Medal of Honor for his actions.

In September 1943, the Distinguished Service Cross was
awarded to Audie L. Murphy, Second Lieutenant, (then Staff
Sergeant), Infantry, Company "B", 15th Infantry Regiment, for
extraordinary heroism in action.

"Landing near Ramatuelle, France, with the first wave of the
assault infantry, at 0800 hours, 15 August until halted by
intense machine gun and small arms fire from a boulder-
covered hill to his front. Leaving his men in a covered position,
he dashed forty yards through withering fire to a draw. Using
this defiladed route, he went back toward the beaches, found
a light machine gun squad and, returning up the rocky hill,
placed the machine gun in position seventy-five yards in
advance of his platoon. In the duel which ensued, Lieutenant
Murphy silenced the enemy weapon, killed two of the crew
and wounded a third. As he proceeded further up the draw,
two Germans advanced toward him. Quickly destroying both
of them, he dashed up the draw alone toward the enemy
strongpoint, disregarding bullets which glanced off the rocks
around him and hand grenades which exploded fifteen yards
away. Closing in, he wounded two Germans with carbine fire,
killed two more in a fierce, brief fire-fight, and forced the
remaining five to surrender. His extraordinary heroism resulted
in the capture of a fiercely contested enemy-held hill and the
annihilation or capture of the entire enemy garrison."
Full Story

"Audie Leon Murphy, son of poor Texas sharecroppers, rose
to national fame as the most decorated U.S. combat soldier
of World War II. Among his 33 awards and decorations was
the Medal of Honor, the highest military award for bravery
that can be given to any individual in the United States of America,
for "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life
above and beyond the call of duty." He also received every
decoration for valor that his country had to offer, some of them
more than once, including 5 decorations by France and Belgium."

"Actor James Cagney invited Murphy to Hollywood in
September 1945, when he saw Murphy's photo on the cover of
Life Magazine. The next couple of years in California were hard
times for Audie Murphy. Struggling and becoming disillusioned
from lack of work while sleeping in a local gymnasium, he finally
received token acting parts in his first two films.

His first starring role came in a 1949 released film by Allied
Artists called Bad Boy. In 1950 Murphy eventually got a
contract with Universal-International (later called Universal)
where he starred in 26 films, 23 of them westerns over the
next 15 years."

Full Story

  Wayne Homren, Editor

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