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MILITARY CHANNEL |
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 MILITARY
CHANNEL:
Bringing viewers compelling, real-world
stories of heroism, military strategy,
technological breakthroughs and turning
points in history, Discovery Communications,
Inc. transitioned its Discovery Wings
Channel to the Military Channel on Monday,
January 10, 2005. While Discovery Wings
Channel focused exclusively on aviation, the
Military Channel will feature a dramatically
broadened programming mission, as well as an
all-new on-air look. The network's revamped
slate of series and specials is designed to
take viewers "behind the lines" to tell the
personal stories of servicemen and women and
offer in-depth explorations of military
technology, battlefield strategy, aviation
and history. The Military Channel also
provides access to military personnel and
hardware, allowing viewers to experience and
understand a world full of human drama,
courage, innovation and long-held
traditions.
Military
Channel |
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PROGRAMMING HIGHLIGHTS FEBRUARY 2005 |
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Special
Programming
Carrier Week
In honor of Discovery's 20th
anniversary, this week-long themed event
will include one world premiere film,
ANATOMY OF A SUPERCARRIER, along with
special encore presentations of four classic
Discovery Channel programs.
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World
Premiere
Monday,
February 14
8-9 PM |
ANATOMY OF A SUPERCARRIER
In every conflict since World War II,
the Navy's aircraft carriers have been
the United States' ambassadors of naval
might. Examine these vessels, their
crews and the incredible arsenal they
carry, including the aircraft that call
these flattops home. |
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Tuesday,
February 15
8-9 PM |
CARRIER:
FORTRESS AT SEA
This program profiles life on an
aircraft carrier. It combines the
visual excitement of flight deck
operations with extraordinary photos
taken from under the wings of fighter
planes, in cockpits, in the air and
under the planes as they catapult off
the ship. The program chronicles the
voyage of the carrier USS Carl Vinson
from San Francisco to Hawaii, Japan,
Hong Kong, Singapore and into the
Persian Gulf, where the ship and crew
participated in the enforcement of the
U.N. "no fly zone" below the 32nd
parallel. These extraordinary images
are combined with the stories of the
people on board the Vinson -- the
pilots, on- and under-deck personnel and
officers. |
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Wednesday,
February 16
8-9 PM |
CARRIER:
ARSENAL OF THE SEA
This special takes viewers aboard the
massive aircraft carrier USS Ronald
Reagan. It goes behind the scenes to
meet the people who populate this
high-tech floating arsenal. From the
flight deck to the bridge, the launch
operations room to the sleeping
quarters, CARRIER: ARSENAL OF THE SEA
tells the personal stories that
reveal how thousands of sailors live and
work on the Reagan. |
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Thursday,
February 17
8-9 PM
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CARRIER AT
WAR WITH TOM BROKAW
Tom Brokaw joins some of America's
troops engaged in battle to learn what
life is like on a carrier, away from
family, friends and all things
familiar. Viewers will find out what it
takes to thrive and simply survive,
fighting for your country at sea. |
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Friday,
February 18
8-9 PM |
CITY OF
STEEL: CARRIER
CITY OF STEEL: CARRIER
is a comprehensive inside look at the
aircraft carriers of today's and
tomorrow's United States Navy. This
program uses the construction of a new
carrier as its story backbone to give
viewers an understanding of these
remarkable ships and the weapons they
carry. |
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Specials
IN THE SHADOW OF THE BLADE
TBA Premiere: Thursday, February 3, 8-10 PM
They heard it
before they saw it, calling the distinctive
WHOP WHOP of its blades the sound of
freedom. For veterans of Vietnam, the UH-1
"Huey" helicopter was a lifeline, a "green
angel" that sang the soundtrack of their
youth. In the three decades since the war,
the sound of those blades has been mostly
silent, until a production crew and four
volunteer Vietnam veterans took a
battle-scarred Huey on a tour of the
country.
IN THE SHADOW
OF THE BLADE
follows the 10,000-mile flight of a restored
Vietnam-era Huey to 42 landing zones in
eight states across America as it again
carries the soldiers who once relied on it
for survival. The program captures moving
reunions, heart-wrenching stories and the
welcome home Vietnam veterans never
received.
IRAQ: THE
UNTOLD WAR
TBA Premiere: Monday, February 7, 10-11 PM
This is the story you haven't heard about
the people and places that make up our
current war in Iraq. With the help of top
officials and experts from the Iraqi
coalition,
IRAQ: THE
UNTOLD WAR
reveals new technology, communications and
airpower used to topple Saddam's regime.
BATTLEFIELD
DIARIES: LAST OF THE BUFFALO SOLDIERS
World Premiere: Monday, February 21, 10-11
PM
In August 1950, North Koreans begin to hit
U.S. forces hard on their western flank,
causing a swift retreat. The 24th Regiment,
the last segregated, all-black Army unit, is
sent to patrol the areas around Masan and
Haman, but they are poorly equipped.
GOIN’ BACK: IWO JIMA
World Premiere: Thursday, February 24, 8-9
PM
Coinciding
with the 60th anniversary of the
Iwo Jima landings,
GOIN’ BACK
travels with American war veterans and their
family members as they return to the
battlefields where the veterans fought in
their youth. A poignant, dramatic and
compelling combination of adventure and
firsthand accounts, GOIN’ BACK
follows veterans and their families as they
seek closure and completion by revisiting
the actual scenes of their lost innocence.
The iconic image of the flag-raising on Iwo
Jima is the best known of World War II.
GOIN’ BACK: IWO JIMA brings living
heroes back to this tiny Pacific island,
where the costliest battle in U.S. Marine
Corps history took place in the spring of
1945. A dozen surviving veterans revisit
the black-sand beaches, the tunnels and
foxholes, notorious Mount Suribachi, and the
all-important airfields where so many of
their comrades gave their lives.
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Series
BATTLEPLAN
One of the most important aspects of battle
is often overlooked in the telling of war
stories – the strategy.
BATTLEPLAN
takes viewers into the heart of famous
battles, examining exactly how the
commanders planned and fought. Through
detailed analysis and historical
comparisons, viewers learn how famous
strategies were developed and executed.
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World
Premiere
Tuesday,
Feb. 22
8-9 PM
[TV-PG] |
Assault from the Air
Go over the
top of the enemy in the third dimension
of a battlefield, known as "vertical
envelopment." This element became
reality in the 20th century
with the invention of the airplane, then
the glider and parachute, and finally
the helicopter.
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WORLD WAR II BATTLEFRONT
Each episode of WORLD WAR II BATTLEFRONT
focuses on a specific battle during the
war. Through remarkable color footage,
photographs and personal accounts, the
series illustrates the way World War II was
lived and fought by the men and women on
both Allied and Axis sides.
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North
American Premiere
Tuesday,
Feb. 1
9-9:30 PM
[TV-PG] |
Solomon Island
For the
first time since America entered World
War II, U.S. Marines would face Japanese
infantrymen on Guadalcanal in the
Solomon Islands. In the jungles, two
powerful armies would clash in a
six-month battle that would claim nearly
30,000 lives. |
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North
American Premiere
Tuesday,
Feb. 1
9:30-10 PM
[TV-PG] |
Operation Dragoon
With allied
victories in Italy, the tide of war
continued to turn against the Axis
powers. The Allies had to break into
France and push the Germans back to
their own border. The war continued
into the resort towns of southern
France. |
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North
American Premiere
Tuesday,
Feb. 8
9-9:30 PM
[TV-PG] |
North Africa
In November
1942, an armada of 850 Allied ships
mounted the first amphibious landing of
World War II. In North Africa, the
Germans came up against a formidable
American army and faced defeat for the
first time. |
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North
American Premiere
Tuesday,
Feb. 8
9:30-10 PM
[TV-PG] |
The Last Stronghold
Toward the
end of World War II, American B-29
high-altitude bombers struck into the
heart of Japan. What followed brought
the Japanese a nightmare unequalled in
history—one of the most horrendous
firestorms ever. |
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North
American Premiere
Tuesday,
Feb. 15
9-9:30 PM
[TV-PG] |
Gilbert Islands
In November
1943, a group of tiny Pacific islands
would become the scene of some of the
worst fighting in World War II. The
Japanese defended the islands furiously
against a U.S. invasion.
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North
American Premiere
Tuesday,
Feb. 15
9:30-10 PM
[TV-PG] |
Liberation of the Philippines
In late
1944, General Douglas MacArthur returned
to the Philippines as Americans began
the final push to retake the islands
after two years of Japanese occupation.
It would be a bloody confrontation with
one of the highest body counts of the
war. |
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North
American Premiere
Tuesday,
Feb. 22
9-9:30 PM
[TV-PG] |
Burma: The Forgotten Front
As Japanese
armies advanced through Burma to take
India in the spring of 1944, they met
resistance from British forces
determined to push them back. Japan's
goal of conquest instead became a
retreat, which took the lives of 50,000
men. |
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North
American Premiere
Tuesday,
Feb. 22
9:30-10 PM
[TV-PG] |
Battle of Norway
In early
1940, Norway, with its strategic
location and access to important natural
resources, became a prized target of
both the German and British navies.
Both countries would fight to be the
victor. |
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MILITARY CHANNEL ACCOMPANIES WORLD WAR II
VETERANS ON A PILGRIMAGE TO THE ISLAND THAT
CHANGED THEIR LIVES FOREVER
 Silver Spring, Md.—Coinciding with the
60th anniversary of the American invasion of
Iwo Jima during World War II, Military
Channel proudly presents the world premiere
of GOIN’ BACK: IWO JIMA. This
moving, one-hour special accompanies a dozen
American veterans—now in their 80s—as they
journey together back to the tiny island
outpost where they fought as teenagers in
the bloodiest battle in the Pacific during
the war. In the program, the veterans
recall their experiences on Iwo Jima and
have the opportunity to come to terms with
long-buried demons and emotions. GOIN’
BACK: IWO JIMA premieres on Thursday,
February 24, at 8 PM (PT/ET).
GOIN’ BACK: IWO JIMA follows a dozen
Marine Corps veterans from across the United
States as they revisit the barren Pacific
island’s black sand beaches, underground
tunnels, airfields, Mount Suribachi and the
site of the iconic raising of the American
flag. They returned to Iwo Jima with family
members in tow, recounting their terrifying
and heartbreaking experiences during the
invasion. They all lost friends and
comrades, some of them were wounded on the
island and all recall vividly the grim
duties they had to carry out. In GOIN’
BACK: IWO JIMA, these veterans finally
were given an opportunity to bring closure
to an unforgettable chapter in their lives.
Among the Marines who journeyed back to Iwo
Jima is Gordon Ward, who flew from
Kensington, Md., to recount the early
morning when he was wounded. That day,
after Ward was hit by mortar shrapnel, a
medical corpsman tending to Ward's broken
leg was hit by a shell, died and fell on top
of Ward. Luckily, another Marine noticed
Ward beneath the dead corpsman and loaded
Ward into a landing craft leaving the
island. That boat was hit by artillery
fire, and Ward almost drowned as he lay
facedown in water spilling into the shot-up
boat. A Marine aboard the boat lifted
Ward’s head out of the water until they
reached the hospital ship, saving his life
again.
Another veteran reliving the harrowing
experiences he had on Iwo Jima is Peter
Burns of Scottsdale, Ariz. Burns served as
a signalman, sending messages back and forth
to the ships from the shores of the island.
Among the experiences Burns recounts is how
he had to throw dead bodies onto empty boats
to be taken out to the hospital ships.
Burns cried as he remembered the day he
loaded the body of his childhood hero onto
one of the boats.
Returning to the island where a brutal
battle shaped so many of their young lives
was a necessity for the veterans who made
the trip. Whether they marveled at the dog
tags that were recently hung at a memorial
site or searched for caves where they had
buried their comrades, each was able to
leave again in peace.
GOIN’ BACK: IWO JIMA was produced for
Military Channel by Dark Horse Media. Rick
Okie is executive producer. Bill Howard is
executive producer for the Military Channel.
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