90-minute DocumentaryThis 2011 documentary film is shown in honor of the 80th anniversary of the formation of the first African-American Army Air Corps Squadron in January 1941. In Their Own Words tells the story of the African-American pilots who fought to protect the skies during WWII. Complete with personal interviews with 20 of the original Airmen, […]
Lecture and book signing by author Dr. Julien AyotteCode Name Lily is an historical fiction novel based on the true story of Micheline “Michou” Dumon-Ugeux (code name Lily), who was a legend in the Comet Line escape network in Belgium during World War II. Lily was responsible for helping over 250 downed British and American […]
Lecture by Dr. Giovanni FrisoneIn September 1943, when an armistice was signed with the Allies, Italian soldiers thought the war had ended for them. Instead, they were arrested by the Germans and given a choice: disregard the armistice and continue fighting under Fascist or Nazi command or be taken to a German prison camp. An […]
Lecture and book signing by Jane HealeyIn The Beantown Girls, author Jane Healey places us to the final harrowing months of World War II in Europe, and brings it painfully, beautifully, heartbreakingly alive. A literary critic said of the novel: “Through the eyes of Fiona Denning, a Red Cross Clubmobile worker, and her colleagues, we […]
A One Woman Play by Catherine LadnierJourney through the tumultuous years of World War II through the letters of one American soldier to his sister on the home front. Eva Lee Brown kept the home fires burning on the family farm in South Carolina while her brother, Bill, served in the China Burma India theatre […]
Lecture and book signing by Author Rick Beyers Admission $15 non-members, $12 membersIn the summer of 1944, a handpicked group of young GIs landed in France to conduct a secret mission. Armed with truckloads of inflatable tanks, a massive collection of sound-effects records, and more than a few tricks up their sleeves, they created a […]
Lecture by Dr. Marion DorseyWinning battles requires fighting and supplies, but sometimes tricks can turn the tide in one side’s favor. The Allies considered and implemented a variety of deceptions, sometimes massive ones, against the Axis powers. From the invasion of Sicily to the landings at Normandy, the Allies benefited from lies and deceptions that […]
Lecture by Dr. Edward G. MillerIn June 1963, American journalist Malcolm Browne captured one of the most famous photographs of all time: the self-immolation of the Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Quang Duc. What caused Quang Duc to take his life in such a shocking and painful way? In his lecture, Edward Miller reveals the behind-the-scenes […]
Lecture and book signing by the author Peter Lion It’ s December 1944, and knowing they would not be home for Christmas, battle weary GIs throw a holiday party for the children of Wiltz, Luxembourg. Ten days later the town is all but destroyed during the Battle of the Bulge. Wiltz however never forgot the […]
Documentary film presentationThis is a fun, fast-paced biopic about Colonel Norman Phillips. No one has squeezed more out of 98 years than Phillips, and he tells his own story with clarity, candor, and charisma. Raised by illiterate, immigrant grandparents, Phillips grew up to become a decorated World War II fighter pilot, mentor to future astronauts, […]
Lecture by Professor Kurk DorseyFifty years have passed since the United States began to disentangle itself from the war in Vietnam. Yet the war is still meshed into American society, politics, and foreign policy. In this illustrated lecture, Kurk Dorsey discusses some of the ways in which the Vietnam War continues to influence the United […]
Film starring Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews and Fredric March This program is free thanks to Edward Jones, Kevin Lawlor, Financial AdvisorThe story concentrates on the social re-adjustment of three World War II servicemen, each from a different station of society. The crisis each veteran faced upon arriving home is a microcosm of the experiences many […]