Customer Reviews

The Greatest Generation [VHS]

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As a combat veteran of Desert Shield and Storm, I wept while I watched this program on tv. It was emotional to see the struggles Americas "true" war heroes and what they overcame. Korea, Vietnam, and everything else were different struggles. This generation overcame their problems, looked life in the eye and seized the day to make our Country the greatest one in the World!

Over a twenty year period, a generation of Americans lived through the great depression and then fought a war that had to be fought. Once they returned from that war, they vowed not to forget the sacrifices of their comrades and to work hard to make their nation greater. In that they succeeded, probably far beyond their expectations. This tape is the story of some of those people, with interviews about their lives from the start of the depression through the war years, their actions immediately after the war up to how they feel today.
The most powerful aspect of the video is when the men reminisce about their combat experience. It is clear that it is as vivid to them now as it was when it happened. Even fifty years after the fact, you see men crying about their friends who made the ultimate sacrifice for the good of the nation. One would have to possess a very stoic personality to remain unmoved when viewing these scenes. While it is often arrogant to argue that the interests of one nation are the interests of humanity, in this case it can be said that their sacrifice was for the good of humanity. The Nazi menace was an incredible one, and those kids became either men or dead kids when they left their homes and went off to foreign lands to fight it. We look around now and see no true foreign threat and individuals are free to do as they choose. Largely due to what these people did during those years, no American should hesitate to express appreciation for their noble actions.
We must never forget those traumatic years and what was done to see this nation through them. Nearly all of that generation will be gone in a few years but this dramatic tape shows us what they did, how they felt about it and what affect it had on them. It is truly priceless and respectful.

I taught a unit on World War II as part of a high school U.S. History class this past year and included this video. The students LOVED it and it gave us a great opportunity to talk about heroism and values. Seeing the veterans and hearing them talk made the events in their textbook come alive for them. While the book is excellent, it is difficult to include in the classroom. However, the video has the same information and is in an easily accessible format for students. I highly recommend its use!