Posted on 09/14/2007 6:33:58 AM PDT by KeyLargo
Sopranos Star Celebrates Troops with HBO Special By Amanda Carpenter Thursday, September 13, 2007
Emmy Award winner James Gandolfini produced a tribute to modern-day war heroes which airs this evening on HBO and is available online.
The documentary, “Alive Day Memories: Home from Iraq,” highlights 10 Soldiers and Marines who suffered severe injuries and includes face-to-face interviews interspersed with war footage and images from their rehabilitation. “Alive Day” refers to the day they almost died in Iraq.
The featured heroes are proud to have served their country. “How many people can look at you and say, ‘I had a stare down with death? And, I won,” said Marine Corporal Jacob Schick.
Near Baghdad, Schick drove over a pressurized bomb and lost his right leg below the knee and a third of his left hand and arm. After he was hit, Schick immediately knew his injury was bad. “But I thought, I’m not going to extend them the courtesy of watching me die,” he said. “No way. Not here in this land.”
To treat his injury, Schick has had 46 surgeries. At one point, his left arm was placed into his stomach for 4 weeks to grow a graft.
Gandolfini, known for his leading role as “Tony Soprano” on the HBO series “Sopranos,” is not the star of this film. He merely asks questions that prompt Iraq survivors like Army Specialist Crystal Davis, who was hit with an improvised explosive device, to share their stories.
While talking with Gandolfini, Davis pointed to her right leg, amputated at the knee, and told him: “This is the good one.” Gesturing to her left leg, she said, “This is the one I have all the problems with.” She found it underneath the seat of the vehicle she was in when a bomb struck.
She said one day she’d like to return to Iraq to fight again.
Marine Corps Sergeant Eddie Ryan sat with his mother for his interview because he struggles to speak. While serving, he received two gunshots to his head that caused severe brain damage.
Ryan’s mother said Ryan wants people to see his scars because he is proud of them.
Although he has limited speech, he sang the “Marine’s Hymn” well in his interview, snapping his fingers to the beat of the honored song.
The film, which is 57 minutes long, is available to watch online free of charge for a limited time. Additional biographical information and vivid recovery photos are also available at the official documentary site.
Amanda Carpenter is National Political Reporter for Townhall.com..
Be the first to read Amanda Carpenter's column. Sign up today and receive Townhall.com delivered each morning to your inbox.
http://www.hbo.com/aliveday/
God Bless our Troops.
God bless all our troops. And a very special HURRAH to my friend and hero Sgt Eddie Ryan.
bump for later viewing
Good for Gandolfini! I’m actually friends with his niece. Seems like a great family through and through.
Wow, HBO aired this?
*blank stare of puzzlement and disbelief*
Yikes! Never heard of this technique.
I was going to post about this today. I saw it last night. It was so moving. I was in tears by the end of it. And there were definitely a couple of scenes that made me jump and just shake my head - the insurgent videos of bombs going off.
I was very cautious going in, not knowing if it would have a political tone. But I was pleasantly surprised. You could tell Gandolfini was humbled to be around those men and women he interviewed and he seemed very proud to be able to shake their hands or hug them.
I looked at my husband when it was over and told him we have to go to the GOE tomorrow. It is the least we can do, living so close to DC.
But take this sentence from another article I found on this film; “The film tries hard to show that war is hell without taking an obvious stance on Iraq (although it’s easy to infer an anti-war subtext)” - lifted from http://www.star-telegram.com/television/story/228109.html
I bolded the obnoxious (IMHO) wording. These little drive-by’s just irk me.
I had a bad experience trying to work with Gandolfini and his “people” on an event several years ago, but good on him for this.
.
Good for him. I’ll look for it.
The sacrifice these soldiers have made woud be in vain.
If a rat POTUS was in power during 9/11 we would still be in Iraq anyway.
What these red sons of bitches will do or say for the sake of politics is disgusting.
Their time will come.
We have a friend who was electrocute in college and underwent multiple surgeries as a result. The primary damage was done to his right arm and to heal/protect it, was also grafted to his stomach for weeks.
If I were a propagandist, I'd make sure to spread photos of American women maimed in service to their country. Putting young women in such danger runs against every chivalrous instinct.
I just watched disk two of season six and I’m sorry I ever got involved with this series. Meadow is a bleeding heart and in this episode they condone our President and feel for a Muslim family. Hollywood garbage
I had to fix my typo!
I think the article is not clear. A friend of mine in high school almost lost his leg in a boating accident. He had his arm basically attached to his abdomen for about two months to in effect wean a large flap of skin away from there to be applied to his leg wound - it allowed blood to flow through the skin flap.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.