Hero of Two Nations
Strategic Air & Space Museum—October 24, 2011 – December 16, 2011
- Hero of Two Nations — Jumpin' Joe Beyrle
- Newspaper: "Sgt. Beyrle 'Back From Dead' With Fantastic Adventures as Nazi Prisoner"
- "Ya Amerikansky tovarishch!" — "I am an American Comrade!" — Joe Beyrle to Russian Soldiers after escaping P.O.W. camp
- "I was not 'liberated' - I escaped." — Joe Beyrle
- "Cigarettes kill people these days, but in 1945 they saved my life." — Joe Beyrle
Joe Beyrle enlisted in the U.S. Army after graduating high school in June 1942 - just six months after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The first in his family to graduate high school, he turned down a scholarship to Notre Dame University to serve his country. Beyrle volunteered for the parachute infantry and was given the nickname “Jumpin' Joe” for his enthusiasm for the job.
Listen Now Listen to the NPR Interview with Thomas H. Taylor, official biographer of Joe Beyrle
On June 6, 1944, Beyrle parachuted into the Battle on Normandy and was caught by Nazi soldiers. His family was mistakenly told he was killed in action. However, he escaped the prison camp seven months later and ran into a Soviet battalion.
With the only Russian phrase he knew, “Ya Amerikansky tovarishch!” (“I'm an American comrade!”), and his last pack of Lucky Strike cigarettes (a brand only sold in the U.S.) he was able to convince the commander that he was an American ally. “I said, 'I want to go with you and defeat Hitler,' Beyrle later told an interviewer. He fought with the Russians for a month until he was wounded in battle and taken to a Russian hospital.
When he was well enough, Beyrle was sent home. His family was thrilled to discover he was still alive. Joe was married in the same church that held his funeral service two years earlier. As his story became known, Beyrle was honored by the United States and Russia for his exceptional service. The only soldier ever documented to fight for both U.S. and Russian armies, Beyrle passed away in his sleep at age 81 in December 2004.
Learn more about Joe Beyrle's remarkable story, and see more than 200 artifacts from Joe Beyrle and World War II, at the Strategic Air & Space Museum, from October 24, 2011, to December 31, 2011.
- “Joe Beyrle's wartime experiences are an inspirational reminder of the bravery of an entire generation … [He] embodied the spirit of U.S.-Russian friendship.”
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U.S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton - “Joe Beyrle did not spare himself, acting with courage and conviction… His contribution to our common Victory has been highly valued.”
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Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov - “A member of the 101st Airbornes Screaming Eagles, an expert rifleman, wireless operator and explosives expert, [Beyrle] was possessed of not only a strong body, but also an unyielding spirit.”
—
Yury Zarakhovich, friend of Beyrle
Presented by:
- Mammel Family Foundation
- Suzanne and Walter Scott
- Gail and Mike Yanney
- Dixon Family Foundation
- David Scott Foundation
- Anne and John Nelson
- The Nebraska Medical Center
- Mutual of Omaha Foundation
- Ann and Ken Stinson
- Union Pacific
- U.S. Bank
- Shirley and James Young
- HDR
- First National Bank
- The Gallup Organization
- The exhibition is sponsored by the Blavatnik Family Foundation and organized by The Foundation for International Arts and Education, Bethesda, Maryland, and the State Russian Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.
October 24, 2011 – December 16, 2011
Joe Beyrle:
Hero of Two Nations
at the Strategic Air & Space Museum
- 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Thursday – Tuesday - 28210 W. Park Highway
Ashland, NE 68003 - (402) 944-3100
Joe Beyrle's Timeline
From high school student to presumed dead to returning war hero, use the timeline below to relive the fascinating tale that was Joe Beyrle’s life.
December 7, 1941
Attack on Pearl Harbor. U.S. declared war the next day. Beyrle was a senior in high school.
1942
June 7, 1942
Beyrle graduates high school - the first in his family to do so. He turns down a scholarship to Notre Dame University and instead enlists in the army.
September 17, 1942
Beyrle is inducted into the U.S. Army. He volunteered for parachute infantry for the extra $50 that he could send home to his family each month.
1943
1944
June 6, 1944
Beyrle's third combat jump lands him in the middle of the Battle of Normandy, where he is captured by German soldiers. One of the soldiers takes his tags and later dies. When his body was found, it was believed that Beyrle was killed in action.
September 8, 1944
Beyrle's family is sent notice of his death.
October 23, 1944
Through a German Government report on its captives, the U.S. military discovers that Beyrle is still alive and a P.O.W. The next day, Beyrle's family is sent notice of the mistake the next day.
1945
January 22, 1945
On his third escape attempt, Beyrle succeeds in breaking free of the Nazis and later runs into a Soviet battalion. The commander allows Beyrle to join them in battle.
February 1945
Beyrle is wounded in battle and taken to a Russian hospital. Later, the famous Marshal Zhukov visits the hospital. When he hears Beyrle's story, he arranges for him to be taken home as soon as he is well enough.
March 7, 1945
Beyrle is placed on an English ship back to America to be reunited with his family.
1946
September 14, 1946
Beyrle marries JoAnne Hollowell at St. Joseph's Church - the same church that held his funeral two years earlier.
