Wartime Writings

Words and images can never fully capture the true horror of war, but for the human psyche to express what the experience is like, some times wartime writings by way of mere words or images are all that are available. For Lee Marvin, who spent his life and career trying to express that horror via many of his acting roles, certain words and images proved highly influential. In Lee Marvin Point Blank, a letter taken from a Japanese soldier changed his perspective concerning the enemy when the content was translated for him by military intelligence. Below is the actual letter….
Reproduced in part in Lee Marvin Point Blank’s photo section, below is the actual full telegram sent to Lee’s parents, Courtenay & Monte Marvin, following the Battle of Saipan. Imagine for a moment, what must have gone through their heads when reading the following

Lying wounded in the San Francisco Naval Hospital bed, the young soldier had a lot of time to express what was going on his mind, such as the following two recently discovered doodles of Japanese weaponry and a particular fire fight he experienced on Eniwetok in Feb. of 1944, just a few days after his 20th birthday….