Pearl Harbor Anniversary Recognized at the Eisenhower Presidential Library

The Eisenhower Presidential Library will be remembering Pearl Harbor with a special event on December 7th. The movie “They Were Expendable” will be shown in the Visitors Center Auditorium on Thursday, Dec. 7 at 1 p.m. This free program is open to the public.

They Were Expendable is based on the real-life heroics of PT Boat squadron leader John Bulkeley, a Medal of Honor recipient. The film centers on the defense of the Philippines from December 1941 through April 1942. The resulting film is a somber, poetic study of courage, loneliness and sacrifice. A number of the men in the cast and crew had just returned from combat, lending the film authenticity.

The film received two Oscar® nominations for Best Sound and Best Special Effects and is now recognized as one of the best war films ever made. Directed by John Ford, the cast includes John Wayne, Robert Montgomery, Donna Reed, Ward Bond and Jack Holt.

Montgomery later served as President Eisenhower’s television coach. The Library holds the papers of Admiral Bulkeley. Copies of selected Bulkeley papers will be on display in the Visitors Center Auditorium for the day.