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Rudolf Michaels [detail from video]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: IPW Team #28, 5th Armored Division
  • Location of Service: Fort Monmouth, New Jersey; Fort Sam Houston, Texas; Camp Elliott, California; Camp Crowder, Missouri; Camp Ritchie, Maryland; European Theater
  • Highest Rank: Major
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/10008

View full service history

"The idea was to get them talking and to keep them talking and not to offend them or make them shut up or scare them to death or anything like that." (Video Interview, Part 1, 14:02)

Fleeing Nazi Germany, Rudolf Michaels came to the United States in 1938 at the age of 22. Drafted in 1940, he was assigned to the 5th Armored Division after the U.S. entered World War II. But in 1944, he was selected for training at Camp Ritchie, in the mountains of Maryland, where he and other German-speaking soldiers learned interrogation techniques to use on captured German soldiers in the European Theater in the last year of the war. (Michaels' interview is in two parts, conducted in sessions one week apart. Part 1 deals mainly with his intelligence work. Part 2 covers his experiences in the armored division, including the liberation of Paris.)

Interview / Recording

Transcript

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Interview / Recording

Transcript

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About this Item

Title

  • Rudolf H. Michaels Collection

Names

  • Michaels, Rudolf H.
  • Cohen, Jane Reed
  • G. Hoberman / L. Rogaski
  • Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) of Sacramento, CA

Home State

  • California

Headings

  • -  Michaels, Rudolf H.
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • White

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: IPW Team #28, 5th Armored Division
    • Location of Service: Fort Monmouth, New Jersey; Fort Sam Houston, Texas; Camp Elliott, California; Camp Crowder, Missouri; Camp Ritchie, Maryland; European Theater
    • Highest Rank: Major
    • Dates of Service: 1941-1945
    • Entrance into Service: Drafted
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Video: Digital Betacam [2 items] -- Digitized Copy (collected 2003-05-22)
  • Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Transcription of video recording (collected 2003-05-22)
  • Video: MiniDV [2 items] -- Oral history interview (collected 2003-05-22)
  • Video: VHS [2 items] -- Reference copy (collected 2003-05-22; 2006-03-03)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/10008

Cite as

  • Rudolf H. Michaels Collection (AFC/2001/001/10008), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image
  • online text
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Michaels, Rudolf H, Jane Reed Cohen, G. Hoberman / L. Rogaski, and Ca Retired And Senior Volunteer Program Of Sacramento. Rudolf H. Michaels Collection. 1941. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.10008/.

APA citation style:

Michaels, R. H., Cohen, J. R., G. Hoberman / L. Rogaski & Retired And Senior Volunteer Program Of Sacramento, C. (1941) Rudolf H. Michaels Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.10008/.

MLA citation style:

Michaels, Rudolf H, et al. Rudolf H. Michaels Collection. 1941. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.10008/>.