I get a lot of kickback when I bring up Ambrose's demeanor and creative license in telling these stories. People really do prefer to stick to comfort, don't they? You keep up the solid work, and I'll keep watching, commenting, and sharing. Take care, W&T. As always, keep safe.
I was shocked when I first read an article about Blithe after BoB came out describing that he went on to serve in Korea, was shot in the shoulder, not neck, and made his family proud. It was then that I read into it and found out that a lot of it was bunk. It's probably why algo put War&Truth up for me so early in his YT start. And I am grateful for it.
Sadly the more I learn about Ambrose the more I’m disappointed. His narcissistic personality is quite common in our society. Thank you for sharing everything, especially the ugly stuff like this. Ambrose should have been more specific to the veterans regarding his true intentions. If he had truly been transparent I believe the remaining veterans would have been more receptive.
I liked Ambrose when I saw him all those years ago on “World at War”. But in recent times I’ve not been impressed by him. I think the turning point for me was in the 1990’s when he endorsed the book “Other Losses “ them promptly changed his mind. Undercutting the author James basque and his claims of neglect of the German POW’s in 1945. Then he was touted as a expert military consultant on “Saving Private Ryan” only to admit he never saw the movie till after it was made !
I met Ed Shames at a gun show in 2012 while he was selling his new book Tonight we die as men. He singed my copy and gave me his business card. At the time there was an online petition to posthumously award Winters the MOH. I mentioned it to Mr. Shames. His reaction told me to leave it alone. I know he was unhappy about the writers referring to him as a yeller in the series by Winters. I don't know however if Winters actually said that or if it was just another Ambroseism.
This is exactly why Mark Bando should have been used! Ambrose is an ego filled , narcissist!!! Mark Bando would have been the best to consult on the series!
@@War_And_Truth he also told the truth in his books! No matter how it read! He interviewed, went overseas with those vets, listened and he is acknowledged by the very vets, Ambrose took advantage of.
@@War_And_Truth Bando also embedded himself with the current 101 in Afghanistan, he is writing a book about it, sadly it was delayed, his only son was murdered in the Pulse nightclub massacre.
As a BoB junkie, this is incredibly cool as hell. One of the reasons this was so good, is the real guys, were able to hold the reign's back pretty well on the artistic freedoms pretty good. Nothing on film will ever be 100% to anyone who was the subject, too many angles of perception. But as always, I will stand by my Veterans and their positions 100% especially being a fellow "Mountaineer" from West by God ~ On the heels of Private Ryan, this was the best we've ever gotten from Hollywood. More incredible are the stories from the actors after 20+ years and how it changed them as humans. That's a rare experience that doesn't come along with all the right people. Good example are the boots. Be honest, who thinks Sobel, whom we got to know through the show, would've reversed Lipton's pass? ~ Not me for sure. Carwood doesn't add any mustard to what he knows to be his truth, and lots of them have given Sobel credit for making them tough, even SOB he was. Remember Jr high football? I never had a coach I didn't believe hated my guts and wanted me to die during practice. Almost 50 years later, I remember them in a positive way, I know why they did it.
I loved Band of Brothers. But I know most of what fills books and mini series has to be made up dialogue. I went through Desert Storm 33 years ago and I recall some things very well but most of it blurs together. I even have a diary I began when ground war started, but most of my answers to any interview would be "Sorry, don't remember that too well." Just saying. Semper Fi!!
What's the phrase? 'Don't let the truth get in the way of a good story.' I get the distinct impression Ambrose had such a fixed idea of the direction of his narrative that he ignored what a lot of the guys were telling him. That's a poor approach to using oral history as a source. It's also disrespectful.
I remember talking to E co vet on the drive to Fort Campbell, he had made a comment about how some of the vets really got a big head with BOB success. Wild bill was not one of them, but the one name he dropped was Winters.
I had cellulitis of the leg once. It was a very fast-moving and nasty bug. Started as an ache, like a pulled muscle. Then came a fever. I drove to the hospital, but collapsed in the parking lot before I could get to the ER. Damned near killed me. Kept me in the hospital for two weeks. Cellulitis sucks.
Ambrose was interviewed for the British series World At War, a massive series that covered all the war on every front. Makes me wonder how much he got wrong in that series.
@@War_And_Truth Yeah he talked to Armstrong like he was a macho fighter jock but Armstrong was more of a brainy engineer type who was very thoughtful about the words he said. Really awkward interview.
I enjoyed BoB, but to tell the truth, any other historical movies from Spielberg I refuse to rewatch (War Horse, SPR, Schindler) because I find them just to emotionally manipulative. Yet I found BoB much less so, at least in my opinion.
Well according to Lipton's letter to Winters, Guarnere was getting very animated when answering some of the questions. The Atlanta March was one question that upset him. Its difficult to express someone getting upset in narration. Its why I posted the letter.
Ambrose was an historical writer. These guys should have counted their lucky stars that they were about to become immortal thanks to Ambrose. There are millions of WWll stories.
Hi Warren 👍👍 Another insightful video! I left you a message about Steven Spielberg, Bernie Madoff and Stephen Ambrose in the past 24 hours. Did you see it? Cheers from Perth, Western Australia 🇦🇺
@@War_And_Truth Hi Warren. The comment/message seems to have vanished! I mentioned that Steven Spielberg was one of the high profile celebrities who “invested with” (was scammed by) Bernie Madoff. To be precise Spielberg’s charity invested with Bernie Madoff. I found it interesting that Spielberg was duped by a discredited historian (Stephen Ambrose) and the head of the world’s biggest Ponzi scheme, Bernie Madoff. Some of Spielberg’s other movies “based on” World War 2 events such as SCHINDLER’S LIST & SAVING PRIVATE RYAN also take plenty of liberties with the truth. Getting back to my point about Spielberg getting scammed, it’s easy to Google some information by typing in both names in the search bar.
If you read Lipton's letter to Winter he states Guarnere was shouting at Ambrose. I'm still working through the papers, If its in the transcript it will be in this interview series.
It is interesting to hear these interviews and hear some of the stories behind the company, the book and the series, but I do think a bit of caution is required. While Ambrose clearly has his faults, it would be a shame if this whole thing just turns into a witch hunt. There were obviously mistakes, but we also have to remember that he was dealing with incomplete and often conflicting information based on the recollections from men who had experienced these events decades before. Couple that with the realities of putting together a book, and then all of the challenges of putting together a TV show, and it was never going to be 100% accurate, and it would be silly to expect that to be the case. It's important to remember that, despite the inaccuracies and the inevitable Hollywood drama, BoB remains probably the definitive WW2 drama, and has done more to raise awareness of the horrors of the war, and the bravery of the men and women involved than any other production. I'm not sure that trashing Ambrose all these years later is of that much value, and it's sad to see that some are even having a pop at some of the veterans themselves, simply because they don't remember things that happened decades earlier in 100% technicolor detail.
I think Steve did an amazing job. It is rare that any single historical author gets it right 100%. Here is what I can guarantee, if every one of the members of easy company wrote a book on their experiences in the war… not one persons book would be 100% accurate. I’ve trained hundreds of airline pilots. We teach pilots that communication and visual memory are highly variable. One of the most interesting training exercises was to place 5-6 pilots at a table together. We then handed a small piece of paper with one long sentence describing something occurring or some action taken. The first pilot had 5 minutes to remember the sentence and then hand back the note. Then we would have the 1st pilot written down what he had learned and hand it to the second pilot. Then he or she had to remember before we took it away. Then after 5-10 min that pilot would write down and hand to the next pilot. At the end, we would have the last pilot write down what they were told. 100% of the time, the single sentence was always changed significantly often meaning something very different than the original piece of paper handed out. I’ve been researching our family’s tree. As I gain knowledge I have gone to my parents and guess what, what they remember is almost always wrong about their parents and grandparents histories. To me, Band of Brothers is the best TV made documentary on a combat group in WW2. It was far far more accurate than the Pacific.
The problem is Ambrose changed what he was told and he also put a lot of information in the book which he was asked not to put in there. Then you get to the stories he put in there (Shifty Powers/Blithe etc) which were just completely untrue. You are defending the undefendable I am afraid.
This story is the first time the word "racialism" is mention but only a short reference to "Jews" in the patoon. Watching B.O.B. their were no Black American or English soldiers just the Black Nurse in the make shift hospital, Part 6.
There were not any black soldiers in the 506th PIR. The army was segregated. There were very few black soldiers in the british army (although there were African colonial units in the Commonwealth forces)
![A Band of Brothers Interview - Lipton & Guarnere Talk About Captain Sobel [Part 2] Easy Company](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/qPVaU3zcVtA/mqdefault.jpg)
![A Band of Brothers Interview - Lipton & Guarnere Talk About Captain Sobel [Part 2] Easy Company](/img/tr.png)
![Lipton And Guarnere Talk To Ambrose About Meehan, Strayer And D-DAY - Band of Brothers [Part 3]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Oj_vxYL_3cQ/mqdefault.jpg)
Imagine having your leg blown off in battle only to be asked 50 years later if a 100 mile march hurt your feet?!
Imagine having done all of that, but your family, much less the world never knew your name. Can't have it both ways
@@leehemmersbach8018 Not everyone wants the world to know, Ambrose was wrong, can't have it both ways.
Well, if you're trying to write a history, you want to hear it near enough as it happened
Ambrose always comes off like he feels he is the one doing a favor for the guys from Easy.
"I'll make you famous, boys!"
ambrose is an entertainer...lipton and guarnere are soldiers
@@PeterOkeefe54 yeah I know.
Yep, I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall seeing Ambrose sized up by those old ww2 vets.😂
Ambrose is a Narcissist. Go watch him in an interview.
Interesting moment of mercy from Capt. Sobel giving him his pass back to see his wife.
Yes I get get quite a buzz when I read these documents for the first time. You never know what you will find.
I get a lot of kickback when I bring up Ambrose's demeanor and creative license in telling these stories. People really do prefer to stick to comfort, don't they? You keep up the solid work, and I'll keep watching, commenting, and sharing. Take care, W&T. As always, keep safe.
Thanks mate as always.
I was shocked when I first read an article about Blithe after BoB came out describing that he went on to serve in Korea, was shot in the shoulder, not neck, and made his family proud. It was then that I read into it and found out that a lot of it was bunk.
It's probably why algo put War&Truth up for me so early in his YT start. And I am grateful for it.
@@sid2112 Indeed..
Sadly the more I learn about Ambrose the more I’m disappointed. His narcissistic personality is quite common in our society. Thank you for sharing everything, especially the ugly stuff like this. Ambrose should have been more specific to the veterans regarding his true intentions. If he had truly been transparent I believe the remaining veterans would have been more receptive.
I truly appreciate you giving the back story to the story we've all seen. This is also history, from more first-hand points of view.
Glad you enjoyed it!
"Tough, determined and ridiculous" I like that and sums up other accounts well, no wonder he was so polarizing.
I liked Ambrose when I saw him all those years ago on “World at War”. But in recent times I’ve not been impressed by him. I think the turning point for me was in the 1990’s when he endorsed the book “Other Losses “ them promptly changed his mind. Undercutting the author James basque and his claims of neglect of the German POW’s in 1945. Then he was touted as a expert military consultant on “Saving Private Ryan” only to admit he never saw the movie till after it was made !
Died in 2002
Another interesting installment of this series. Thanks for sharing!
More to come!
I met Ed Shames at a gun show in 2012 while he was selling his new book Tonight we die as men. He singed my copy and gave me his business card. At the time there was an online petition to posthumously award Winters the MOH. I mentioned it to Mr. Shames. His reaction told me to leave it alone. I know he was unhappy about the writers referring to him as a yeller in the series by Winters. I don't know however if Winters actually said that or if it was just another Ambroseism.
What did he sing?😅😅😅
It is a good book covering the 3rd Battalion and an enjoyable read.
Shames had issues with many of the company and even his own men in 3rd Plt and he took credit for what others did
I have been trying to get the scoop on Winters MOH but its a closed door subject.
@@pvtjohntowle4081 never heard of audio books? lol
This is exactly why
Mark Bando should have been used!
Ambrose is an ego filled , narcissist!!!
Mark Bando would have been the best to consult on the series!
Yes well he at least looked up to the veterans unlike this buffoon.
@@War_And_Truth he also told the truth in his books! No matter how it read!
He interviewed, went overseas with those vets, listened and he is acknowledged by the very vets, Ambrose took advantage of.
@@War_And_Truth Bando also embedded himself with the current 101 in Afghanistan, he is writing a book about it, sadly it was delayed, his only son was murdered in the Pulse nightclub massacre.
Bando has an ego also and rumor is he help to rip off vets items for a shady museum in Gettysburg
@@mickeyglenn8936 yeah then he claimed he should be given Veteran Statues for it at Pee Wee Martin's birthday pissing off a bunch of vets
As a BoB junkie, this is incredibly cool as hell. One of the reasons this was so good, is the real guys, were able to hold the reign's back pretty well on the artistic freedoms pretty good. Nothing on film will ever be 100% to anyone who was the subject, too many angles of perception. But as always, I will stand by my Veterans and their positions 100% especially being a fellow "Mountaineer" from West by God ~ On the heels of Private Ryan, this was the best we've ever gotten from Hollywood. More incredible are the stories from the actors after 20+ years and how it changed them as humans. That's a rare experience that doesn't come along with all the right people.
Good example are the boots. Be honest, who thinks Sobel, whom we got to know through the show, would've reversed Lipton's pass? ~ Not me for sure. Carwood doesn't add any mustard to what he knows to be his truth, and lots of them have given Sobel credit for making them tough, even SOB he was. Remember Jr high football? I never had a coach I didn't believe hated my guts and wanted me to die during practice. Almost 50 years later, I remember them in a positive way, I know why they did it.
Thanks for your post, great insights.
I loved Band of Brothers. But I know most of what fills books and mini series has to be made up dialogue. I went through Desert Storm 33 years ago and I recall some things very well but most of it blurs together. I even have a diary I began when ground war started, but most of my answers to any interview would be "Sorry, don't remember that too well." Just saying. Semper Fi!!
Excellent source research.
Thank you
What's the phrase? 'Don't let the truth get in the way of a good story.' I get the distinct impression Ambrose had such a fixed idea of the direction of his narrative that he ignored what a lot of the guys were telling him. That's a poor approach to using oral history as a source. It's also disrespectful.
Spot on.
Drama sells books, Ambrose wrote what he wanted not what was said or done.
Yes the best marketing manager in the game.
I remember talking to E co vet on the drive to Fort Campbell, he had made a comment about how some of the vets really got a big head with BOB success. Wild bill was not one of them, but the one name he dropped was Winters.
It wasn't Ed Shames was it? He didn't like Winters
I had cellulitis of the leg once. It was a very fast-moving and nasty bug. Started as an ache, like a pulled muscle. Then came a fever. I drove to the hospital, but collapsed in the parking lot before I could get to the ER. Damned near killed me. Kept me in the hospital for two weeks. Cellulitis sucks.
That sounds awful.
Ambrose was interviewed for the British series World At War, a massive series that covered all the war on every front. Makes me wonder how much he got wrong in that series.
Different subject. I listened to an interview of Ambrose interviewing Neil Armstrong. Absolutely hated it.
I have never listened (subtitles) to an Ambrose interview. Ill have to do it some day.
@@War_And_Truth Yeah he talked to Armstrong like he was a macho fighter jock but Armstrong was more of a brainy engineer type who was very thoughtful about the words he said. Really awkward interview.
Said it before, will say it again. Ambrose was a sensationalist hack.
Pretty much SA up as someone who thinks writing about history is superior then creating it.
I enjoyed BoB, but to tell the truth, any other historical movies from Spielberg I refuse to rewatch (War Horse, SPR, Schindler) because I find them just to emotionally manipulative. Yet I found BoB much less so, at least in my opinion.
So what was heated?
Well according to Lipton's letter to Winters, Guarnere was getting very animated when answering some of the questions. The Atlanta March was one question that upset him. Its difficult to express someone getting upset in narration. Its why I posted the letter.
Ambrose was an historical writer. These guys should have counted their lucky stars that they were about to become immortal thanks to Ambrose. There are millions of WWll stories.
Yes I give him that although most of the vets didn't want to be immortalized. Most did it so that their friends could be remembered.
@@War_And_Truthit certainly seemed that Dick Winters wanted to be immortalized..
@@War_And_Truth True. But the best stories are about the survivors. That's what Ambrose was writing about.
Hi Warren 👍👍 Another insightful video! I left you a message about Steven Spielberg, Bernie Madoff and Stephen Ambrose in the past 24 hours. Did you see it? Cheers from Perth, Western Australia 🇦🇺
Hi mate no. Where did you send it?
@@War_And_Truth Hi Warren. The comment/message seems to have vanished! I mentioned that Steven Spielberg was one of the high profile celebrities who “invested with” (was scammed by) Bernie Madoff. To be precise Spielberg’s charity invested with Bernie Madoff.
I found it interesting that Spielberg was duped by a discredited historian (Stephen Ambrose) and the head of the world’s biggest Ponzi scheme, Bernie Madoff.
Some of Spielberg’s other movies “based on” World War 2 events such as SCHINDLER’S LIST & SAVING PRIVATE RYAN also take plenty of liberties with the truth.
Getting back to my point about Spielberg getting scammed, it’s easy to Google some information by typing in both names in the search bar.
What got heated? I must have missed it.
Guarnere was asked about his feet getting sore marching to Atlanta during training. He lost his leg in Bastogne.
If you read Lipton's letter to Winter he states Guarnere was shouting at Ambrose. I'm still working through the papers, If its in the transcript it will be in this interview series.
@@War_And_Truth Thank you!
Ambrose didn't write a documentary. It was a history but he also inserted some drama, kind of like Shelby Foote did with his books.
Lol It certainly wasn't a documentary.
I agree but Foote at least always said his books were novels.
At least that was my impression.
Ambrose always gave his books as straight history.
He always referred to himself as a historian so you have to assume that was what he was.
💯💯💯💯👍👍👍
So far nothing wrong with the interview or style.
It is interesting to hear these interviews and hear some of the stories behind the company, the book and the series, but I do think a bit of caution is required. While Ambrose clearly has his faults, it would be a shame if this whole thing just turns into a witch hunt. There were obviously mistakes, but we also have to remember that he was dealing with incomplete and often conflicting information based on the recollections from men who had experienced these events decades before. Couple that with the realities of putting together a book, and then all of the challenges of putting together a TV show, and it was never going to be 100% accurate, and it would be silly to expect that to be the case. It's important to remember that, despite the inaccuracies and the inevitable Hollywood drama, BoB remains probably the definitive WW2 drama, and has done more to raise awareness of the horrors of the war, and the bravery of the men and women involved than any other production. I'm not sure that trashing Ambrose all these years later is of that much value, and it's sad to see that some are even having a pop at some of the veterans themselves, simply because they don't remember things that happened decades earlier in 100% technicolor detail.
Yeah I love researching it. Never know what I'm going to find,
I think Steve did an amazing job. It is rare that any single historical author gets it right 100%. Here is what I can guarantee, if every one of the members of easy company wrote a book on their experiences in the war… not one persons book would be 100% accurate. I’ve trained hundreds of airline pilots. We teach pilots that communication and visual memory are highly variable. One of the most interesting training exercises was to place 5-6 pilots at a table together. We then handed a small piece of paper with one long sentence describing something occurring or some action taken. The first pilot had 5 minutes to remember the sentence and then hand back the note. Then we would have the 1st pilot written down what he had learned and hand it to the second pilot. Then he or she had to remember before we took it away. Then after 5-10 min that pilot would write down and hand to the next pilot. At the end, we would have the last pilot write down what they were told. 100% of the time, the single sentence was always changed significantly often meaning something very different than the original piece of paper handed out.
I’ve been researching our family’s tree. As I gain knowledge I have gone to my parents and guess what, what they remember is almost always wrong about their parents and grandparents histories.
To me, Band of Brothers is the best TV made documentary on a combat group in WW2. It was far far more accurate than the Pacific.
The problem is Ambrose changed what he was told and he also put a lot of information in the book which he was asked not to put in there. Then you get to the stories he put in there (Shifty Powers/Blithe etc) which were just completely untrue. You are defending the undefendable I am afraid.
@@War_And_Truth ok then just the series and books away.. you then have nothing even close to as good.
This story is the first time the word "racialism" is mention but only a short reference to "Jews" in the patoon. Watching B.O.B. their were no Black American or English soldiers just the Black Nurse in the make shift hospital, Part 6.
There were not any black soldiers in the 506th PIR. The army was segregated. There were very few black soldiers in the british army (although there were African colonial units in the Commonwealth forces)
blah, blah, blah All participants are dead. Make up your own minds if this has any value or just carping after the guys are dead.
Their families and children aren’t dead.
Why watch
Trolling