a former professional boxer and a decorated world war veteran who took part in the d-day invasion at omaha beach, the battle of the bulge and was one of few survivors of the malmedy massacre,. Durning was a boxer, ice-cream seller and dance instructor before establishing himself as an actor. Frankly speaking I have doubts about this. He wasnt just a run of the mill World War II veteran. I tend to agree with David T Tokyo, but I'd feel better if the declaration appeared in a better source than the one we have, preferably an official one. Related:To create a personalized transition plan for yourself, and for transition guides and checklists, visit theMilitary.com Transition Center. He also appeared in Dealing: or the Berkeley-to-Boston Forty-Brick Lost-Bag Blues (1972) with Barbara Hershey and John Lithgow. . Charles Durning, a Tony Award-winning actor whose prolific work in films and television included supporting roles in the classic comedy "Tootsie" and the TV sitcom "Evening Shade," died Monday.. I furthermore noticed that these websites often copy that material from one to the other (which means nobody actually checks the accuracy of that information). From there he worked in a variety of plays. And he said, that's good. While working as an usher at a burlesque theater, he was hired to replace a comedian who was too drunk to perform. But, he did NOT survive the Malmedy Massacre. The book contains a bibliography but no footnotes or citations within the text to explain sources. It isn't clear if he were a replacement en route to a line unit, or a member of the replacement detachment's cadre when he was wounded in Normandy on 15 Jun (the initial replacement detachments were displacing to operate from Normandy during this same week). And the Rangers were not a dumping ground for disciplinary problems. Nightmares are indeed an indicator of PTSD, but not everyone who has experienced stress or has nightmares is suffering from a "disorder". Durning was born in Highland Falls, New York on February 28, 1923, the ninth of ten children. Charles Durning is indeed a great actor and served his country honorably during WWII, including his landing at Normandy on D-Day. Charles Edward Durning (February 28, 1923 December 24, 2012) was an American actor who appeared in over 200 movies, television shows and plays. Durning was present for the Battle of the Bulge, the German counter-offensive in December 1944. The Hollywood Historic. He appeared in John Frankenheimer's I Walk the Line (1970) starring Gregory Peck, and three Brian De Palma movies: Hi, Mom! I made the following changes: When you have finished reviewing my changes, you may follow the instructions on the template below to fix any issues with the URLs. Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.18.160.21 (talk) 03:07, 7 July 2009 (UTC), Every time I watch Star Wars episode IV (1977), I am certain I see Charles Durning as a foot soldier, Trying to defend the ship as Princess Leia records her message to Obi Wan in R2D2. Cheers.InternetArchiveBot (Report bug) 05:27, 5 September 2017 (UTC), There's no reason to display the medals or decorations he is said to have received. The statement of Reynolds does however not mean that the name of the survivors are wrong or unknown. Historical Popularity Index (HPI) 44. Like Medal of Honor recipient Audie Murphy, Charles Durning was a highly-decorated soldier in World War II before he began an acting career. He was an infantryman,. I can't understand why you're so emphatic here, but so unwilling to prove your case in public. May he Rest in Peace! Thinking about how veterans of that era typically talk about the Army with regard to administrative matters only confirms this feeling that such records may be largely inaccurate. It had much to do with the nature of the wounds, and the length and location of hospitalization. in the Battle of the Bulge, he and the rest of his company were captured and forced to march through a pine forest at Malmedy, the scene of an infamous massacre in . My old buddy Dr. Steven Miller (who was my partner in the Shifting Baselines Ocean Media Project and would eventually be executive producer of Flock of Dodos as well as the current Lionfish PSA Campaign), quickly raised the funds for me to write and direct a commercial for the campaign. Search instead in Creative? the Battle of the Bulge and was one of few survivors of the Malmedy massacre, Durning earned two Oscar and nine . At least that last bit is what he told me, in detail. 1935). infamous attack on American POWs at Malmedy, Belgium, and was the sole survivor of 40 men who took out a German machine gun nest. Durning's rugged early life provided ample material on which to base his later portrayals. Sad news arrived on Christmas Day with word that longtime character actor Charles Durning . before D-Day), it and the Third Army were still in England, not yet having been in combat. In Tootsie, he played a suitor to Dustin Hoffman's cross-dressing lead character. Born in Highland Falls, New York, Charles Durning was the ninth of ten children. They are unable to identify his unit or any records of his being there, other than the French consul saying so in their 2008 presentation of the French Legion of Honor to him. And I said, yes, I am. In the Best Picture-winner, starring Paul Newman and Robert Redford, Durning won distinction as a crooked cop, Lt. Wm. I was watching Everwood this evening, and I saw Mr. Durning on it. Division. It's hard to say for certain, but as many as 50 Americans were able to escape, including Charles Durning, Malmedy-Massacre-survivor-turned-character-actor after World War II. Best Answer. He holds the Silver Star for valor and three Purple Hearts for wounds he suffered. Durning does not appear in either the muster reports or morning reports of any of the units involved. That at least would acknowledge the elephant in the room. December 26th, 2012 Tweet A few words of respect for Charles Durning who died on Monday at age 89. A report from the 12th Replacement Depot has him in England on December 20th, 1944. . This is four days after the start of the Battle of the Bulge and three days after the Malmedy Massacre.Oldbubblehead (talk) 06:39, 7 May 2014 (UTC). Hand color tinted photo of Charles Durning. "Hollywood Stars at D-Day", Soldiers Online Army.mil. the men in the pasture, and the other men who escaped the massacre because for one or other reason they were not at the crossroads when and where they were supposed to be when the massacre occured (I think for instance to a man the artillery observer battalion who had been left in Malmedy because he suddenly fell ill: he escaped the massacre but is not a survivor). On TV, Durning had a recurring role on Everybody Loves Raymond as the Barone family's long-suffering parish priest, Father Hubley. I really think that this aspect of the massacre is well documented and available to every historian. View more newsletters on our Subscriptions page. For example, tankers were returned to armored units, specialist troops (rangers, paratroops, etc.) But interestingly, in the detailed Wikipedia discussion of Malmady, they conclude that Durning was not a part of the event. Zodiac. Charles Durning, who overcame poverty, battlefield trauma and nagging self-doubt to become an acclaimed character actor, whether on stage as Big Daddy in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" or in film as. Alfred "Ed Moch" Cota. --rogerd 12:35, 27 December 2006 (UTC), I will put an {{NPOV}} template at the top of the page. I must acknowledge that several websites clearly state that durning was at the Baugnez crossroad when the massacre occured. Which is strange. Monkeyzpop (talk) 01:53, 16 October 2011 (UTC), we all have watched the cuban crime rags to ritches film with al pacino , i am personnely convinced that charles durning done a voice over for an emigration officer at the early stages of the film watch the start and the questions about the tattoo ,,,,if this is not charles durning voice then im an aardvaark. It contains a roster, list of decorations awarded, and some information on landing craft assignments. But while I don't know Durning and have only met him once, he is close with several close friends of mine, and I asked them to ask him about the Malmedy thing. [4] Given the scores of thousands of trained infantry replacements prepositioned in Britain in anticipation of D-Day casualties (over 88,000 replacements of all types had been 'stockpiled' in the UK by 7 Jun 44), it defies belief that the Rangers would accept a last minute replacement who was not even infantry qualified. The Malmedy massacre was a German war crime committed by soldiers of the Waffen-SS on 17 December 1944, at the Baugnez crossroads near the city of Malmedy, Belgium, during the Battle of the Bulge (16 December 1944 - 25 January 1945). All rights reserved. One one side they are based on the testimonies made by the American survivors, which must been seen as relations made by guys who had escaped to an almost promissed death, who were under shock, often wounded and who had some difficulties to make a coherent relation of the facts. Charles Durning, a Tony Award-winning actor whose prolific work in films and television included supporting roles in the classic comedy "Tootsie" and the TV sitcom "Evening Shade," died Monday.. There is a significant question as to who he served with upon returning to the Continent. So when was he a member of Third Army, during or after the war?EnigmaMcmxc (talk) 13:23, 26 December 2012 (UTC), It seems to me we should be able to track down (and then link to) Durning's Silver Star citation, which would provide date, circumstances and probably unit of assignment at the time. They had three children together before divorcing in 1972. Durning stated he took part in the D-Day landings, and the article notes he was with 1st Infantry. In addition to three Purple Heart medals for his wounds, Durning was presented the Silver Star for valor. In 2005, he was nominated for an Emmy Award for his portrayal of a Marine veteran in "Call of Silence," an episode in the television series NCIS, first broadcast November 23, 2004. After February 2018, "External links modified" talk page sections are no longer generated or monitored by InternetArchiveBot. Asteriks (talk) 18:46, 10 August 2008 (UTC). Who played Les in Tootsie? But then I found a book in Google Books on actors serving in the military (Duty, Honor, Applause) that talks about Durning's service in the Rangers, says some of his fellow rangers were killed at Malmedy but says nothing about his escaping.[2]. One possible explanation for his not being mentioned on this, or vocal generally on World War II, is that I found him listed in Halliwell's Filmgoers Companion as born in 1933. If you have discovered URLs which were erroneously considered dead by the bot, you can report them with, If you found an error with any archives or the URLs themselves, you can fix them with, This page was last edited on 22 April 2022, at 10:34. Go for it - its obviously a field of study that you enjoy and you have the chance to make your name. And the 20-plus years you've spent in uniform mean you have a highly sought-after skill set in the civilian world. Durning was reassigned to the 398th Infantry Regiment with the 100th Infantry Division, and participated in the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944. PFC Durning, Charles E. 32726378 was received at the 24th Evacuation Hospital in Le Cambe on June 15th. Such is the life of Charles Durning. Finally, this story about Durning present at the crossroad is running on several websites since many years. The two forces converged just before noon at the crossroads hamlet of Baugnez, two and a half miles south of Malmedy. --Chuck Baggett (talk) 02:48, 29 November 2017 (UTC), Cheers.InternetArchiveBot (Report bug) 12:27, 14 December 2017 (UTC), Recent edits have removed a reference while asserting a claim "from IMDb" about Mr Durning's ancestry. Born: 28-Feb-1923 Birthplace: Highland Falls, NY Died: 24-Dec-2012 Location of death: New York City Cause of death: unspecified. The French government apparently issued a statement mentioning Malmedy, but the closest I can come is this[1]. Chris Wiegand. Charles Durning is the 1,433rd most popular actor (down from 1,265th in 2019), the 2,493rd most popular biography from United States (down from 2,309th in 2019) and the 695th most popular American Actor. 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Everwood this evening, and the 20-plus years you 've spent in uniform mean have.
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