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The National Archives and Records Administration(NARA) is the nation's record keeper. Of all thedocuments and materials created in the course ofbusiness conducted by the United States Federalgovernment, only 1%–3% are determined permanentlyvaluable. Those valuable records are preserved and areavailable to you, whether you want to see if theycontain clues about your family’s history, need toprove a veteran’s military service, or are researching anhistorical topic that interests you.

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June 1, 2017

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When the National Archives investigated the true identity of theflag raisers in Bill Genaust's footage of the first and second FlagRaisings on Iwo Jima and the iconic photograph by Joe Rosenthal,staffers discovered that the agency never received the original filmshot on February 23, 1945. Supervisory Motion PicturePreservation Specialist Criss Kovac provides information aboutBill Genaust and how the film was shot, developed, assembled,and used during the World War II and throughout history.

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Criss KovacSupervisor of the Motion Picture Preservation Lab

National Archivesat College Park, MD

The Winding Journey of Bill Genaust’s Iwo Jima Flag Raising Footage

Criss Kovac ~ National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)

Scope of Collection

480,000 film reels242,000 audio

recordings 113,000 video

recordings

Archives II and Research Room College Park, MD

National Personnel Records Center, St. Louis, MO

Marine Corps Holdings in NARA’s Motion Picture Collections

• Primary RG 127 collections estimated at 17,000 reels of motionpicture film• Predominantly unedited; covers full spectrum of USMC

activities foreign and domestic• Inclusive of raw and compiled combat camera footage• ~12,000 reels of color 16mm film (WWII through 1980s)• ~4,500 reels of black and white and color 35mm

(predominantly WWII and Korean War eras)• Smaller percentage in edited training and documentary films• Many additional training and documentary films in U.S. Navy

Record Groups

Genaust Personnel File among NARA’s Military Service Records

• Provides details and summaries of Genaust’s military service• Named among “Persons of Exceptional Prominence” files made

available digitally in 2014• Contains Correspondence with family members and supporting

details

Letter from Genaust’s Mother requesting his return home, October 14th, 1944

Genaust’s Enlistment photo

and dates

The Preservation Lab Six Staff

Treats over 3,000 reels of film per year

Full Photochemical Ability

HD - 2K - 4K Film Scanning

Responsible for determining which copies of a film record are permanently retained

Our MissionTo identify and preserve the most original record copy

To faithfully preserve the imagery in historically accurate manner

To provide context to our records and make them accessible

What Is NARA’s “Original?”

We do not have the camera original shot by Genaust.

NARA’s “originals” were made from the original, or copied from copies of the original.

NARA holds it in two different record groups, three series, and within two reels in one record group (4 iterations total)

~?tP ~22 bff'TtA--tzu:..t,... ~71 HOTOGRAPHER: GENAUST

DATEFEB 1945

DUPL. NEG. MASTER 16MJttOL - -di'

35M?t 0 L . LENGTH I • I ; 19

IWO JIMA FLA.G RAISING

Marines raising American Flag on Mt. Suribachi, Iwo Jima, on D-Day i-4. (This is the original shooting.)

(Above scene was taken out of reel of f'i lm with which it was originally included-16mm Index #2438-and is filed separately. .«1:1XJJ[X:fl%.Dl«:l•X tKxlI~~~X«~~•xxDC~+X«Xxx~IK

xpg:r:xm ~nxmxmm1JHxU:i:xuxx XX««.XYI~ 1 16mm orig. color master f

'C...~..::...:..~-----,_- 2 16mm color master dupes r QUALITY: GOOD

HQ NO. IWO JI:MA. FLAG MCS Photo 600 (12/68-10700)

2 16mm color dupe prints f'i

MJVG 1 of' 1

CROSS REFERENCE

LOCATION:-Iwo Jima ARMIES:-USMC Enlisted FLAGS:-American (1945)

led in Vaults led with prints in Archives ed w/prints in Archives

INDEX NO. 3224 12060 Navy-MCS Quantico, Va.

INDEX #

D B&W D COLOR

I REEL #

1-1 l ~ ~

OF FOOT AGE £?~ ORIG

NEG

16 MM

MASTER DUPE FGM 1-NEG D 1-POS

JUN ' 1 980 6 B

2 - Q80

35 MM

PRINT DUPE

1~ ~~ ~

NEGATIVE POSmvE I ouri:.. NEG. MASTER I6MM 35~ ... ~ j LENGTH J r1

Col . -2--1'5 ft. SUBJECT:

I WO JI~'1.A OPERATIONS MCU MCU MS

c • cu LS LS ~!S c.p !~S MS

LS

Marine l ooking t hr ough ar t i ll ery binocul SS..~ cu.e. M~rines lift wounded J ap soldi er on onto t r uck . J ap s oldier on stretch~r . M4A3 t ank firing out ri ght f rame . °EXDlosions where shells are hitt ing . 1'"'arin-e t aking of f c ombat boots . ~2rine putting on J au hog- nail boo ta. ~Ru . boo-ts . ... !3.D t ank . Lar ge number of shells on gr ound near t Bnk . Mari nes looking a t heavy J ap gun emulae e ment .

nt: • T ~'l :

J -:,ff' l

k ft n

rs .

her

CROSS REFERENCE

LOC ATION- Iwo Jirna fvIE DI CINE- \\lounded ,

J a pane s e TANKS- M4A3 Tfa.NKS!'.'.Fore ign , J ap V.~SSELS -LSD VESSELS- LSD VESSELS~LST UEF.PONS - Shells , "

Explosions TER:~;~IN -i\ilt .

Surriba ch i DEAD- USMC DEAD- Fo r e i gner s ,

. J a oa ne s s

. i '.N I~L» LS -Doo-o

C ined C:t t NPC

SUBJECT

A LS 0 PR1 NI' FLAG RAISING ON nro JIMA:

QUALITY

MCU Telephone talker on Iwo Jima. CU Japanese personnel on stretcher being loaded abd

truck ambulanceo IS Red Beach, Iwo Jimao MCU Personnal swapping GI shoes for Japanese shoes on

beacho MCU Japanese howitzer cann0n gun emplacement on same. LS From hill: lSTVs on beach. MS Flag raising on Mt. Suribachio MLS Grm.l!Th~f, c~mbat mar~n~s at flag raisingo IS From(· 'Various amphibious assault & supp:->rt ships

in harbor. MCU DUKW loaded with dead personnelo MIS De~ch strewn with American & Japanese deado MCU Combat marines with dog mascot. MLSWb'unded marine being assistedo MIS ~Iarine tank driver being assistec ck to first-

aid station by inf antr;f-):len. MCU 50 0al machine gun emplacement.

CROSS REFERENCE •

G.L., islo Iwn Jim..a COMM. telephone WOUNDEJJ, · :J ~p VEHICLES, ambulance

.S.J%i;%, beach, Iwo Jima CLOTHING, shoes GUNS, Jap LAND. SHIPS, IST FLAGS, U.S. • ashore MTNS, Suri be.chi CEREMONIES, flag

.raising ENL9 D Men, USMC, mil TASK FOHCES, anchored LAND VEHICLE.5, DUKW DEAD, USMC DEAD, Jap A. I.-., dog WONDED, USMC M.S. first ... aJ.d sta. GUNS Oc 1

429

What Do We Know?

Warrant Officer/ Division Photo Officer Norm Hatch ordered Staff Sgt. Genaust & Pfc. Bob Campbell to film the second flag raising.

What Do We Know?

Photo Officer Herb Schlosberg, of the 4th Marine Division, takes Genaust film from Iwo Jima on February 27th to be developed at the Naval Photographic Lab in Anacostia, MD.

RANDUU TO: LtOol. George A. ROLL.

Subj ctz Itblol"J' of Photogrophic Oi'fic r' trip tr TnI'g t to Y..o ·, Hawaii, then to 'V"T D ortment, shin8ton, D. c.

Upon the compl. t1on ot the op r t1on t ction of the D-2, t orarr orders will b r qu t d

fro to ODlOPAO (ko ak, Hn: 11), tor th Photogl' hio O!'tioer.

2. Oi'fioer will then So to the To.rgot Ar to ee i1' the arq !'11tl for h1D to carry.

4. If CIITCPAC th o era th 01'1'1c r to t ':v:f Dopartnent, llineton, D. c., there he ll r ort to

Captain STEICRilll, us1m, 1n tho Office of s cretlll7 of th 1 avy. II thon will be sent to Photo o1onco Lab 1n Anna.coat1 to

ork w1 th LtC • cu;Ali and Lt HOPKINS 1n ttins out tho Public Rele on th op r t1on as oon pos 1blo.

5. bring ck Of tills

On the roturn trip to va, tho 01'!'1cor will e of all. v1 1'1 maJ1¥ co 1os

tram Public l tions.

What Do We Know?

Film reviewed for use in troop and public newsreels, and 7th War Loan Drive.

Used in To the Shores of Iwo Jima

Original Kodachrome does not make it to NARA

CITATION:

"For meritorious achievement in connection with operations against the enemy while serving a1 the Photo2ranh1c Officer of a Marine division from 15 October 1944 to 22 June 1945. Throughout the division training period, Warrant Officer HATC~, with expert professional and administrative ability, planned and coordinated the training of all diY1 ion photographers in suoh an outstanding manner that t .h y achieved a peak efficiency . A photographic pl n, whereby all agencies in the divislon were fully cov­ered, was devised by Warrant Officer HATCH for the IWO JIMA, VOLCANO ISLANDS, from 19 February to 26 March, a pictorial record was produced that va the finest both in quantity and quality to haYe emerged from the Paciti~ ~a~ up to that time. rr nt Officer HATCH detailed photographers to make co l t color motion picture coverage of medical, tank, r­tillery, communications and infantry actiY1t1e on !WO JIMA and the resulting films have been of ine t1-mable value in training the units of his d1v1•1on. On 8 Maroh, he was detached and proceeded to th United States where he assisted in cutting and d1t­ing the publioally released film "To The Shore of !WO JIMA 11 • The unparalleled success ot his photo­graphers and the high praise of the American Pr and Public are in direct proportion to Warrant Off1c r HATCH' s professional skill and untiring devotion to duty. His conduct throughout was in keeping with th highest traditions of the United States Na•al Ser 1c •

Digitization of the Genaust Footage428 NPC 2924 was scanned at 4K resolution for inclusion in the Smithsonian Channel’s Documentary The Unknown Flag Raiser of Iwo Jima.

The entire reel, including footage Genaust shot prior to, and after, the flag raising are also included. Much of this footage also made it into To the Shores of Iwo Jima.

United News (for viewing by troops only in WWII) footage digitized.

Joint restoration with the Academy Film Archive of To the Shores of Iwo Jima.

Christina.Kovac@nara.gov

Thank you for attending!