Joe Rosenthal, who took this iconic photo in 1945, died Sunday.

This photo is close to my heart, mostly because of my father. He recently retired after 32 years in the U.S. Marine Corps, having served in Viet Nam and Desert Storm, and of course, various peacetime postings. When I was in high school, he spent a great deal of time stationed at the base at Quantico, VA, where every time we entered or left through the main gate we saw their monument to the Marines who raised the flag at Iwo Jima.



Not long ago, I was surprised to find out that one of men in the picture was the same Ira Hayes, made famous in the Johnny Cash song. Well, made famous to those of us who had fathers who were into Johnny Cash, which just brings it all back to my dad again. You may remember my recent post about how me and Johnny go way back, well, now you know why! About Ira Hayes, apparently he did suffer an ignominious, drunken end much like in the song, but you can check here to read more about him, he's got an interesting story.

So, I just wanted to take this chance to say, "Love you Dad!" You make us all proud!

To read more about the photo itself, including a color-coded picture indicating who the flag raisers were, you can check here.

Labels: beloved corps, newsworthy