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Jack Valenti [2003]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army Air Forces/Corps
  • Unit of Service: 448th Bomb Squadron, 321st Bomb Group, 57th Bomb Wing, 12th Air Force
  • Location of Service: Corsica; Ancona, Italy; European Theater
  • Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/25850

View full service history

"War has a distinguishing thing: It's something you don't want to do again but it's something that you're proud you did." (Video Interview, 48:44.8)

Jack Valenti was working his way through college night school when he enlisted, one month after the Pearl Harbor attack. Though he had never flown, he had aspirations to serve as a pilot and became one, flying 51 bombing missions over Italy. Valenti and the crew of his B-25 never backed down from enemy fire. Only bad weather could deter them from their primary targets, but they always found alternative drop sites. In this 2003 interview, admitting he has never talked so extensively about his war experiences, he is honest about the fear he experienced on every mission and how his training helped him deal with that emotion.

Interview / Recording

Transcript

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About this Item

Title

  • Jack J. Valenti Collection

Names

  • Washington Storytellers Theatre
  • Valenti, Jack J.
  • Geyelin, Philip L.
  • Matusow, Barbara

Home State

  • Washington (D.C.)

Headings

  • -  Valenti, Jack J.
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army Air Forces/Corps.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Army Air Forces/Corps
    • Unit of Service: 448th Bomb Squadron, 321st Bomb Group, 57th Bomb Wing, 12th Air Force
    • Location of Service: Corsica; Ancona, Italy; European Theater
    • Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
    • Dates of Service: 1942-1945
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Transcription of video recording (collected 2003-12-29)
  • Video: VHS [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2003-12-29)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/25850

Cite as

  • Jack J. Valenti Collection (AFC/2001/001/25850), 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:

Washington Storytellers Theatre, Jack J Valenti, Philip L Geyelin, and Barbara Matusow. Jack J. Valenti Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.25850/.

APA citation style:

Washington Storytellers Theatre, Valenti, J. J., Geyelin, P. L. & Matusow, B. (1942) Jack J. Valenti Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.25850/.

MLA citation style:

Washington Storytellers Theatre, et al. Jack J. Valenti Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.25850/>.