Queens College previews ‘The War’

In vivid testimony to how memory fades with the passage of time, a mere handful of history students, older alumni and historians gathered at Queens College (QC) in Flushing recently, to preview and discuss three new documentaries currently running on Public Broadcast System (PBS) television stations, which deal with World War II.
A joint effort of the QC history department and history club in cooperation with local PBS stations WNET and WLIW, the presentation on Thursday, September 20 was moderated by Bobby Wintermute, who teaches military history at the school.
“The War,” a series by acclaimed film maker Ken Burns, was excerpted, along with two other programs, “New York Goes to War” and “New York War Stories” at the presentation, followed by discussion and questions. According to published reports, the premiere of Burns’ latest effort drew over 15 million viewers nationwide, surpassing that of his landmark “The Civil War” documentary.
Both Wintermute and Ward Chamberlain, one of the founders of public television in the U.S. and non-combatant veteran of the war in North Africa and Italy, both stressed that the programs where “not so much about the history of the war as the history of the U.S. in the war.”
Arnold Franco, a QC alumni, class of 1943, and veteran of the war in Europe, said, “The war started when the college was four years old. That first graduating class numbered about 1,600 and two thirds of them went to war. It was a seismic event for the college and 60 years later, it’s nearly forgotten.”
Franco, who lived “on Lefferts Boulevard” in Richmond Hill as a student and now resides on Manhattan’s East Side, donated $100,000 to research and fund a memorial for the 59 QC graduates who were killed in the war, and a veteran’s plaza where the names of those who served are carved into the paving stones.
When asked how one gets over the experience, Franco answered, “You don’t - it fades over a long time - it’s a long time before you don’t jump when a door slams and you don’t get the nightmares.”
To nods of assent from the other WWII veterans in the room, he continued, “I went to war as a 19 year-old boy and came home at 22, and the rest of my life was an anti-climax. I’ll be 84 (September 27) and I still feel the same way.”
One part-time QC history student was right up front - on the dais in fact.
Sol Abrams is an 80-something Bayside resident who audits history classes to keep his mind sharp and pass on his experiences.
He is also an Army veteran who survived combat on the tropical Pacific Island of Bougainville, which is slightly larger than Long Island.
During the battle, which raged from November 1, 1943 until the end of the war on August 21, 1945, 1243 U.S. and Australian troops were killed. Japanese deaths were estimated to be between 18,000 and 22,000.
Referring to war as “idiocy,” Abrams said he was thankful for a chance to help students understand not just the war, but those who fought it. When asked how he dealt with his memory of war, he said, “The key is to not feel a sense of guilt - either you get killed, or the other guy does.”
After the conclusion of the discussion, Franco, Abrams and others viewed the monument and plaza at the east end of the QC quad. The two were the first ones there, and Franco pointed out the names of some college chums to Abrams, reciting them aloud.
As each passed the stone bearing the names of the dead, no more words were spoken.