Jack Werner was born in 1919 in Vienna [Annotator's Note: Vienna, Austria]. His father was a mechanical engineer and his mother was a housewife. He had an older sister. [Annotator's Note: The video goes in and out.] He went to school in Austria and graduated in 1937. They had a comfortable life and went on vacations every summer. His parents were musically inclined, and he played the piano. He wanted to be a jazz musician. He became interested in movies and made a movie of his graduating class. The total population was six million people, of which about 400,000 were Jewish and concentrated heavily in Vienna. They were very assimilated and were not kosher and did not observe the holidays other than Yom Kippur. His father was an atheist but his mother was more religiously inclined. Her father had been a rabbinical student in Czechoslovakia. Otherwise, they were culturally German or Austrian. They were not members of any parties but were interested in politics. His father was a Social Democrat. Werner was interested in individual rights and social progress. In the late 1920s, the Conservative Party bombarded the worker's dwelling in Vienna. It was a tenuous situation. They did not participate in any activism where a particular party was concerned.

[Annotator's Note: Jack Werner was born in Vienna, Austria in 1919.] Austria always had politicians who primarily were seeking a union with Germany. They had a party with a very strong anti-Semitic flavor. A former mayor, Lueger [Annotator's Note: Karl Lueger; Austrian politician and mayor of Vienna], was outright anti-Semitic and had a slogan, "who is a Jew, I determine." When the Germans marched in [Annotator's Note: 12 March 1938], Werner was in the Austrian Army for a few weeks. He was serving in an artillery regiment and was called in formation on the parade grounds. A German officer told all of the Jews to break ranks. They were separated and taken to be discharged. They were put into a labor battalion. Werner went home. His housekeeper of 20 years saw him in the German uniform and fainted. His father was discharged from his position as an engineer. His mother was arrested and taken out to scrub sidewalks. His father was eventually arrested for being a member of an international organization and interrogated at Gestapo [Annotator's Note: German Geheime Staatspolizei or Secret State Police; abbreviated Gestapo] headquarters for a week. Werner prepared to leave the country. His brother-in-law and sister lived in Switzerland. He left in August 1938. He merged with tourists who were hiking in the mountains. He could read maps and went to the western part of Austria. He finally walked to the border and was arrested. The border guard fed him milk and bread and told him to stay there until nightfall. He then helped Werner cross a lake into Switzerland. At dawn he was arrested by a Swiss policeman who took him to Chur [Annotator's Note: Chur, Switzerland]. He was fed very well. Werner asked him to call a contact in Zurich. The guard took him to the railroad station. Werner arrived in Zurich and a man met him at the platform who took him to another train to Geneva where he would be met by a Rabbi.

[Annotator's Note: Jack Werner walked out of Austria in August 1938 and made it by train to Geneva, Switzerland.] Werner's brother-in-law and sister lived in Zurich [Annotator's Note: Zurich, Switzerland] and helped him get there. His parents stayed in Austria until after Kristallnacht [Annotator's Note: Night of Broken Glass; November Pogrom; 9 and 10 November 1938]. After he arrived in Geneva, and a man took him to his home for a week. He could not get out much. The Swiss would turn him over to the German authorities. The man arranged for him to get to France. 1 September, the time when Mussolini [Annotator's Note: Italian fascist dictator Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini; also know as il Duce] and Chamberlain [Annotator's Note: Arthur Neville Chamberlain; British Prime Minister] signed the pact that allowed Germany to take Czechoslovakia [Annotator's Note: Munich Agreement, 30 September 1938], a car drove up with two American women in it. They drove him to the French border. A French soldier let them go through and they dropped him off in a village where he got a train for Paris [Annotator's Note: Paris, France]. He arrived in Paris on Yom Kippur [Annotator's Note: Day of Atonement, holiest day of the year in Judaism]. He had the address of a family. He went there and they took him in. He lived illegally until May 1939. In April 1939, the American embassy informed Werner that his visa was ready. His parents had gotten him permission to go to England. He went to London to see them for a couple of days. Werner then got on a ship to the United States and arrived on 8 May 1939 at the age of 20.

[Annotator's Note: Jack Werner snuck out of Austria and made his way to the United States, arriving on 8 May 1939.] Werner's brother-in-law and sister bought a car to see the United States in. They slowly made their way across the country on a wonderful trip. They stayed on a dude ranch for a while. They thought they might wait out the war there. They pushed on to Vancouver, British Columbia [Annotator's Note: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada] where some friends had settled. They looked for job or business opportunities. They found a Swiss scientist who was making soap from kelp. Werner worked for him for a while cutting kelp in Puget Sound [Annotator's Note: in Washington state]. Some friends from Paris [Annotator's Note: Paris, France], who were in the movie industry had arrived in Hollywood [Annotator's Note: Hollywood is a neighborhood in Los Angeles, California]. Werner wanted to be a movie director and hitchhiked from Portland, Oregon to Hollywood. That career did not pan out. His friend became famous, Douglas Sirk [Annotator's Note: born Hans Detlef Sierck; German film director]. Werner worked for a florist for about eight months and then he joined the Army. He ran into a friend he had known in Paris. It was December 1940, they were talking, and he felt it was time to do something about Hitler [Annotator's Note: German dictator Adolf Hitler] and wondered if the United States was going to get in the war or not. He enlisted at Fort MacArthur, San Pedro, California in January 1941. He stayed in the Army until August 1945.

Jack Werner felt that he was at home when he came to the United States. It seemed that this is where he belonged. It was not just fighting Hitler [Annotator's Note: German dictator Adolf Hitler], but it was an educational experience. It was becoming part of a new society and a new structure. He never spoke German from the time he left Europe, never again. He joined the Army and went to Fort Ord in Monterey, California where the 7th Infantry Division was being activated. He was also at Camp San Luis Obispo [Annotator's Note: Camp San Luis Obispo in San Luis Obispo, California]. December 1941 was Pearl Harbor [Annotator's Note: the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on 7 December 1941]. He was deployed on the California coast to defend against the Japanese. He left by submarine from San Francisco [Annotator's Note: San Francisco, California] in April 1943. He volunteered for a group known as the 7th Infantry Scouts [Annotator's Note: 7th Infantry Division Provisional Scout Battalion, 7th Infantry Division] on a mission to land on Attu [Annotator's Note: Attu Island, Aleutian Islands, Alaska]. There were two submarines, the USS Narwhal (SS-167) and the USS Nautilus (SS-168), which he was on. They went to Alaska and practiced debarkation into rubber boats. They were to land 24 hours in advance of the Division's attacks and cut-off any fleeing Japanese [Annotator's Note: Battle of Attu, 11 to 30 May 1943]. The night they opened the hatches, they were hit by the cold air of the Bering Sea. Some of the men just walked into the icy waters. They made it into their boats and paddled ashore. It was not defended. They climbed to the pass they were to hold and established a defensive line in the snow. They were unequipped for the weather. It was cold, rainy, misting, and snowing. They had trained in desert warfare with tanks. The Japanese never tried to break through. 85 percent of them were evacuated with trench foot [Annotator's Note: immersion foot syndrome]. Werner was lucky and did not get it. The weather was so bad, they never even saw the enemy, there was never any face-to-face confrontation. His commander was Captain Willoughby [Annotator's Note: US Army Captain William H. Willoughby], but he was in the back. He was a good officer. Werner liked him. He was anti-Semite, but he was very nice. Werner had time to work on his Attu diary as his unit did not exist anymore.

They [Annotator's Note: Jack Werner and the rest of the 7th Infantry Division] returned to Hawaii [Annotator's Note: following the campaign in the Aleutian Islands, Alaska] in September [Annotator's Note: September 1943]. In February 1944, they went to Kwajalein [Annotator's Note: Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands; Battle of Kwajalein; 31 January to 3 February 1944]. It was a one Division affair. They went in and cleaned up the islands. They went back to Hawaii. In September they were told they were going to Palau [Annotator's Note: Palau Islands, Oceana]. This all takes a long time, there were huge distances. They went but then they were diverted to the Philippines and went to the Bismarck Archipelago [Annotator's Note: Bismarck Archipelago, New Guinea]. They stayed on ship to wait for the other Divisions. They were now under command of General MacArthur [Annotator's Note: General of the Army Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander, Southwest Pacific Area]. They landed on Leyte Island [Annotator's Note: Leyte, Philippines] in October 1944. It was not a good landing. As they got off the ramps, mortar rounds landed on the boat and killed some of his buddies. Werner found himself in charge of the company [Annotator's Note: H&S Company, 13th Engineer Combat Regiment, 7th Infantry Division]. There was some desultory fighting. Snipers had tied themselves high up in the trees. Reinforcements came in and they returned to the beach. From then on, they only had small skirmishes. The population helped them in every way.

[Annotator's Note: Jack Werner fought on Leyte Island, Philippines from October 1944 until April 1945]. In that time, the Battle of the Philippine Sea [Annotator's Note: Battle of the Philippine Sea, 19 and 20 June 1944] was happening. They had no protection because all of the ships had gone out to fight the Japanese force. They went up to Okinawa [Annotator's Note: Okinawa, Japan] and landed 1 April 1945, Easter Sunday. They expected fierce resistance but did not get it. They had a completely unopposed landing. They pushed southwards towards the Japanese forces. They reached the Shuri Line [Annotator's Note: defensive line around Shuri, Okinawa, 26 May 1945]. They counter-attacked and Werner's crew was hit by mortar fire. He lost three men. The rest, including Werner, were wounded. He was operated on and taken back to the beach. He was put under the wing of a destroyed fighter plane while the kamikazes were attacking. Werner had been promoted to First Sergeant and was offered a field commission which he rejected. He would have had to stay another year and he did not want to do that. Eventually the sailors came and got him. They took him onto the hospital ship USS Hope (AH-7). That was a lasting impression of the war. He was hoisted up and saw nurses and doctors all in white. He was placed in a bunk and thought he was in Heaven. They came under the attack of kamikazes as they pulled out. They landed on Saipan [Annotator's Note: Saipan, Mariana Islands]. He stayed a few days and then went back to Hawaii.

Jack Werner was the highest ranking non-commissioned officer of his company [Annotator's Note: H&S Company, 13th Engineer Combat Regiment, 7th Infantry Division]. There was very sporadic fighting [Annotator's Note: Battle of Okinawa, 1 April to 22 June 1945; Okinawa, Japan]. Not only were people wounded or killed, but a lot of replacement was going on; men being shipped out to different units. [Annotator's Note: Werner asks his wife to bring him water and there is a break in the video.] He does not have any memories that would substantiate what is seen in movies. He never saw any Japanese other than dead ones. On Kwajalein [Annotator's Note: Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands], there was nothing left. It was stark and repulsive. There was nothing living. On Leyte [Annotator's Note: Leyte, Philippines], he was not aware of what happened until later. He knew a mortar landed behind him and hit a lieutenant, but he did not see his body. On Okinawa, there were a lot of men moaning who had shrapnel in their faces and bodies. The worst he experienced was in the field hospital when he was taken there. Dozens and dozens of bodies and blood streaming on the floor. That was not on the front lines, it was the rear. Werner did not think it could happen to him. On Attu [Annotator's Note: Battle of Attu, 11 to 30 May 1943, Attu Island, Aleutian Islands, Alaska], he had no fear. After each amphibious landing, you get a little more scared. Your odds are going down. By the time of Okinawa, he was apprehensive. The Japanese were fiercely defending every inch of territory. Okinawa turned out to be the bloodiest battle of World War 2. Werner had already been hit so he was not there [Annotator's Note: for the worst part of the battle].

Roosevelt [Annotator's Note: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States] died 12 April [Annotator's Note: 12 April 1945]. Jack Werner was wounded on 8 May. He was emplacing a machine gun with his team in anticipation of a massive Japanese attack. They were hit before they could fire the gun. Werner pleaded with his men to not lie down. The Japanese were firing mortars and antiaircraft shells at them. When you lie down, you expose your body more. Werner stood and all of his men were lying down. That did not do them any good. There were five men. He did not know them well. [Annotator's Note: The interviewer talks about reading Werner's diary.] Werner's lieutenant appeared to be fearless and would do everything the soldiers were doing. He was active. He was also evacuated due to frostbite. [Annotator's Note: The interviewer discusses knowing a crewman on the submarine USS Nautilus (SS-168) that Werner had been on.] The commander of the submarine was in the conning tower when Werner and the other Scouts [Annotator's Note: 7th Scout Company (Provisional), 7th Infantry Division] got into their rubber boats. He gave them their compass readings and said good luck before submerging. There were about 80 soldiers on each of two submarines. A destroyer brought reinforcements in with heavy weaponry. It was the first American territory ever taken by a foreign power [Annotator's Note: Attu Island, Aleutians, Alaska].

Jack Werner's worst experience in the war was not viewing dead bodies at Kwajalein [Annotator's Note: Battle of Kwajalein, 31 January to 3 February 1944; Roi-Namur, Kwajalein, Marshall Islands], but the poor man, Rawls, in the foxhole next to him on Attu [Annotator's Note: Battle of Attu, 11 to 30 May 1943, Attu Island, Aleutian Islands, Alaska] who got hit in the head. He was a farm boy who was very attached to Werner. He was a very sweet boy who had no idea of where he was or why he was there. It was so sad that a young kid like that from Mississippi had the bad luck of being there at that time. Werner always knew why he was doing what he was doing, but this kid was totally innocent. Werner's experience is not just an Army experience, but the making of an American. He cannot imagine being what he is today without having been in the Army. His formative years made him what he is, rightly or wrongly. He is hesitant to talk about the military no matter what. He did not understand the Vietnam War [Annotator's Note: Vietnam War, or Second Indochina War, 1 November 1955 to 30 April 1975] at all. He does not understand the Iraqi War [Annotator's Note: Iraq War, 2003 to 2011] or the Afghanistan War either [Annotator's Note: War in Afghanistan, Operation Enduring Freedom, 2001 to 2014; Operation Freedom's Sentinel, 2015 to present]. He should have been totally opposed to it, but he was not. That was his Army experience totally.

[Annotator's Note: The interviewer asks Jack Werner what in his childhood in Austria made him what he is today and Werner laughs.] Very little. He had a wonderful youth and wonderful parents who came to the United States in 1943. They went through much more than he did, like the London Blitz [Annotator's Note: German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom from September 1940 to 11 May 1941]. Werner was always fascinated with America. A German novelist, Kurt May, wrote about the American West. Werner read every single book of his. The attraction for Werner was the unlimited space. His father was born in Czechoslovakia, about 45 minutes from Vienna by car. America seemed to be safe, in his view then. It is a big country you could get lost in. Werner was crazy about Jazz. Duke Ellington [Annotator's Note: Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington; American composer, pianist, and jazz orchestra leader] and Josephine Baker [Annotator’s Note: Freda Josephine McDonald; American-born French entertainer, French Resistance agent, and civil rights activist] came to Vienna. Gangsterism was a big attraction, in a theoretical sense. He knew nothing about America really, but he had concepts and ideas. There was nothing negative. Everybody was rich. It was nonsense, but that is what he thought. He never intended to stay in Austria. All of his friends left and became successful in other countries.

Jack Werner often wonders if the younger generation could have done what his generation did. His story should be titled, "Luck". He had nothing but luck in everything he did. He could have been killed dozens of times, been arrested by the Austrian gendarmerie [Annotator's Note: Austrian Federal Police], or the Swiss gendarmerie [Annotator's Note: cantonal police of Switzerland], the French police, and sent back to Germany and the ovens [Annotator's Note: Holocaust death camps]. He could have been killed in the war. A friend killed next to him could have been him if the bullet had come centimeters over. He was lucky in his profession right after the Army. He was lucky to find a woman he considers to be an extension of his war experience. He wanted to not just do what he did in the Army, but what he could do for those who survived. He wrote a letter to General Marshall [Annotator's Note: US Chief of Staff and General of the Army George C. Marshall] and asked him to intervene in the cleaning up of the displaced persons camps in Europe. He intervened with his Senators to help refugees and he found his wife. He was on his way to Europe after his discharge and found his wife on Madison Avenue [Annotator's Note: New York, New York], who had been in five camps [Annotator's Note: concentration camps]. That was luck. Some were not lucky. [Annotator's Note: The interviewer gives his views on the younger generation in comparison.] Werner ascribes his good luck to his parents. They always had a wonderful relationship. Your children's lives will never be the same as yours. His generation was from a period in history of unparalleled growth and change. The war made America a completely different country.