On a moonlit mountaintop in Afghanistan, Salvatore Giunta ran through a hailstorm of bullets to save a fellow soldier– his best friend– from capture. It was a heroic decision, but Sal didn’t see it that way. This is the story of an extraordinary band of brothers– and how Sal learned to live with what he did. Episode bibliography: Giunta, Salvatore and Joe Layden. Living with Honor: A Memoir. Threshold Editions, December 4, 2012. https://www.amazon.com/Living-Honor-Memoir-Salvatore-Giunta/dp/1451691467. Junger, Sebastian. “Into the Valley of Death.” Vanity Fair, January 2008. https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2008/01/afghanistan200801. Edwards, Elisabeth. “Korengal Valley: Why the Region Is Nicknamed the ‘Valley of Death’.” War History Online, Oct 24, 2022. https://www.warhistoryonline.com/articles/korengal-valley.html.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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How Marine Dan Daly Lived Forever
Dan Daly has been described as “America’s Fightin’est Marine,” who shouted that famous phrase, “Come on you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?” Here, we explore Dan’s legendary (and crazy) adventures– and how his incredible bravery helped shape the modern Marine Corps. Episode bibliography: Dieckmann, Edward. Dan Daly: Reluctant Hero. Marine Corps Gazette, November 1960. https://archive.org/details/sim_marine-corps-gazette_1960-11_44_11/page/24/mode/2up Roberts, Charley. "Devil Dog" Dan Daly: America's Fightin'est Marine. McFarland, November 4, 2021. https://www.amazon.com/Devil-Dog-Dan-Daly-Fightinest/dp/1476686769 O’Connell, Aaron. Keystone Battle Brief: The Boxer Rebellion, China 1900. Marine Corps History Division, United States Marine Corps University, 2019. https://www.usmcu.edu/Portals/218/HD/Brief%20Histories/Boxer%20Rebellion%20Lecture%20Notes.pdf?ver=2019-05-23-084222-070 Iber, Patrick. “The Marine Who Turned Against U.S. Empire.” The New Republic, January 11, 2022. https://newrepublic.com/article/164825/smedley-butler-marine-critic-american-empire. Gleichauf, Justin F. “Old Marine Corps—‘The Fightin’est Marine'.” U.S. Naval Institute, January 1990. https://www.usni.org/magazines/naval-history-magazine/1990/january/old-marine-corps-fightinest-marine Hough, F. O. “Daly of the Horse Marines.” Marine Corps Gazette, November 1954. https://archive.org/details/sim_marine-corps-gazette_1954-11_38_11/mode/2up?q=Daly&view=theater Naval History and Heritage Command. “Daniel Joseph Daly” Modern Biographical Files in the Navy Department Library, May 18, 2021. https://www.history.navy.mil/research/library/research-guides/modern-biographical-files-ndl/modern-bios-d/daly-daniel-joseph.htmlSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Judy Resnick in Space: Full Throttle Up
The Congressional Space Medal of Honor is awarded to those who go above and beyond– at the farthest edges of our frontier. Judy Resnick was one of our country’s first women astronauts, but what makes her a hero is something else: her willingness to face death in the name of serving a greater good. Special thanks to the NASA History Office, Performance Initiative Podcast, and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. Episode bibliography: Higginbotham, Adam. “Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space.” Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster, May 14, 2024. https://www.amazon.com/Challenger-Story-Heroism-Disaster-Space/dp/198217661X. Mullane, Mike. “Riding Rockets: The Outrageous Tales of a Space Shuttle Astronaut.” Scribner, February 6, 2007. https://www.amazon.com/Riding-Rockets-Outrageous-Shuttle-Astronaut/dp/0743276833. SWE Magazine. “Judith Resnik’s Living Legacy” All Together, January 26, 2021. https://alltogether.swe.org/2021/01/judith-resniks-living-legacy/. Galloway, Barbara. “Astronaut and Akron native Judith Resnik remembered as brilliant, strong-willed.” Beacon Journal, January 27, 2020. https://www.beaconjournal.com/story/news/local/2020/01/27/jan-29-1986-judith-resnik/1820447007/. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Report of the Presidential Commission on the Space Shuttle Challenger Accident: Chapter II - Events Leading Up to the Challenger Mission. https://www.nasa.gov/history/rogersrep/v1ch2.htm.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Charlie Plumb’s Unexpectedly Long Mission
J. R. Martinez interviews an old friend of his — Captain Charlie Plumb, a U.S. Navy fighter pilot who was shot down in Vietnam and spent six years in the infamous prison The Hanoi Hilton, right next to Medal of Honor recipient Bud Day. Charlie talks about living with guilt and finding forgiveness, even in the most unexpected place imaginable.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Bud Day: A POW’s Incredible Story
Shot down over Vietnam, Bud Day escaped from a prison camp and ran barefoot and wounded through the jungle. What happened to him over the next five long years is a brutal testament to his strength and heroism. And what his wife did while she waited for his return is proof of the power of hope– and love. Episode bibliography: Coram, Robert. “American Patriot: The Life and Wars of Colonel Bud Day.” Back Bay Books, June 2, 2008. https://www.amazon.com/American-Patriot-Life-Wars-Colonel/dp/0316067393.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Rewarded for bravery that goes above and beyond the call of duty, the Medal of Honor is the United States’ top military decoration. The stories we tell are about the heroes who have distinguished themselves by acts of heroism and courage that have saved lives. From Judith Resnik, the second woman in space, to Daniel Daly, one of only 19 people to have received the Medal of Honor twice, these are stories about those who have done the improbable and unexpected, who have sacrificed something in the name of something much bigger than themselves. Every Wednesday on Medal of Honor, uncover what their experiences tell us about the nature of sacrifice, why people put their lives in danger for others, and what happens after you’ve become a hero.
Special thanks to series creator Dan McGinn, to the Congressional Medal of Honor Society and Adam Plumpton.
Medal of Honor begins on May 28. Subscribe to Pushkin+ to hear ad-free episodes one week early. Find Pushkin+ on the Medal of Honor show page in Apple or at Pushkin.fm.
Subscribe on Apple: apple.co/pushkinSubscribe on Pushkin: pushkin.fm/plus
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