SANDY KOZEL
During the bloody Battle for Iwo Jima, U.S. Marines from the 3rd Platoon, E Company, 2nd Battalion, 28th Regiment of the 5th Division take the crest of
Mount Suribachi, the island’s highest peak and most strategic position, and
raise the U.S. flag. Marine photographer Louis Lowery was with them and
recorded the event.
Louis R. "Lou" Lowery (July 24, 1916 – April 15, 1987)
Painting of Francis Scott Key standing on boat, with
right arm stretched out toward the United States flag
flying over Fort McHenry, Baltimore, Maryland.
Francis Scott Key penned a poem which is later set to music
and in 1931 becomes America’s national anthem, “The Star-
Spangled Banner.” The poem, originally titled “The Defense
of Fort McHenry,” was written after Key witnessed the
Maryland fort being bombarded by the British during the
War of 1812. Key was inspired by the sight of a lone U.S.
flag still flying over Fort McHenry at daybreak, as reflected
in the now-famous words of the “Star-Spangled Banner”:
“And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.”
Francis Scott Key (August 1, 1779 – January 11, 1843)
Francis S. Key was an American lawyer, author, and amateur poet
from Frederick, Maryland. It has been speculated that the U.S. motto
"In God We Trust" was adapted from a line in the fourth stanza of
the "Star-Spangled Banner".
The American flag was flown in battle for the first time, during a Revolutionary
War skirmish at Cooch’s Bridge, Delaware. Patriot General William Maxwell
ordered the stars and strips banner raised as a detachment of his infantry and cavalry met an advance guard of British and Hessian troops. The rebels were defeated and forced to retreat to General George Washington’s main force
near Brandywine Creek in Pennsylvania.
Retired singer Kenneth Ray Rogers is 81 today.
Kenny Rogers and The First Edition, sometimes billed as The First Edition, was an eclectic rock band whose styles ranged from rock
and roll to R&B, folk, and country.
Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers
