THE DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM, ABILENE, KANSAS

Dwight D. Eisenhower 

was America's 34th President.

Gregg buying our tickets at the museum.  On opposite walls there were two very large murals, and all around the foyer, paintings depicting scenes from President Eisenhower's life.

I will share more from our time at the museum in another post, but I wanted to continue the story behind the photo mentioned in my last one.

When I saw this statue with the photo behind it, we were at the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum.  It was a fascinating place to walk around, with a lot of World War II memorabelia.  Both Gregg and I are always interested in history and we took a long time looking at everything. 

I am always drawn to sculptures and one of the first I saw that day was a depiction of a very famous photo taken on V-J Day, August 14th, 1945.  The photographer was Alfred Eisentaedt.  The photo was published in Life Magazine and captured what must have been the relief and joy people felt when they heard that the war had ended.  

The nurse, Greta Zimmer Friedman, was actually a 21 year old dental assistant, walking in Time Square when the news came that the war had ended.  The sailor was George Mendonsa

The true story behind that kiss can be found here.

The story begins on the first date of 20 year old Rita Petry and 22 year old George who were watching a matinee at Radio City Hall.  They never saw the end of the movie.  People started pounding on the doors with news that the war had ended.  

There was great excitement on the streets, and they went into a bar where the bartender had set up drinks to overflowing.  By the time they got out of the bar George had had quite a few. As he and Rita were walking around Time Square, he saw a woman in a nurse's uniform.  He left Rita's side momentarily, ran over to the nurse and gave her the kiss you see below, frozen in time.   In his own way George was thanking all the nurses he had encountered, and had always admired them for the work he had seen them do.

Obviously you can't go around grabbing ladies and giving them a big kiss these days, but I am trying to put this into the context of the time.  Everyone was euphoric. 

The sailor and the nurse never saw each other again, and George married Rita, the smiling lady you see in the background of the above photo. When the article was written in 2012, they had been married for 66 years.   

I always find it fascinating to learn about the people in these photos.  

More can be read here also.

There were other statues I saw at the museum.