Ghost Army in the News

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In a ceremony at the U.S. Capitol in March of 2024, three of the last surviving members of the Ghost Army received the Congressional Gold Medal. Among them were 100-year-old Bernard Bluestein from Illinois and 100-year-old Seymour Nussenbaum from New Jersey. Both men were part of the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops, a secretive World War II unit known for its creative use of deception to mislead German forces and save thousands of American lives​.

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Edward E. Boccia served his country during World War II as a private in the 603rd Engineer Camouflage Battalion in the Ghost Army (23rd Headquarters Special Troops), which was presented a Congressional Gold Medal in March 2024.

“Ghost Army: The Combat Con Artists of World War II” will be on display at Soldiers Memorial Military Museum from Sept. 25, 2024, through Jan. 12, 2025.

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For five decades—from his discharge from the U.S. Army until his death in 1995— John Hapgood was a prolific illustrator for America. He also did illustrations for other magazines like The New Yorker and department stores like Lord & Taylor and Bloomingdale’s. Far more notable, however, was the job he performed during the Second World War.

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Private John J. Williams had a secret. For at least fifty-two years, the World War II Army radio man was sworn to secrecy, unable to add specific details to his account of being among the 156,000 Allied forces who stormed the beach at Normandy, France, on June 6, 1944. John J. Williams was posthumously honored March 21 in Washington, D. C. , during a Congressional Gold Medal ceremony at the U. S. Capitol that honored all 82 officers and 1,023 enlisted soldiers in the Ghost Army. His grandson and son — Columbia [...] read more

DOVER — James “Tom” Anderson has never been one to seek out the spotlight.

Perhaps it is just a throwback to his time in World War II spent as a member of the undercover 23rd Headquarters Special Troops unit that used various methods of trickery in aiding the Allies.

Known as the Ghost Army, Mr. Anderson was a member of a top-secret, first-of-its kind U.S. Army unit that fooled and distracted the enemy on the battlefields of Europe, saving thousands of lives in the process.

The known seven surviving members of the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops unit were honored at a ceremony in Washington in March, where they each received the Congressional Gold Medal.

In Mr. Anderson’s typical low-key fashion, the resident of Dover chose not to attend the festivities, but rather received his Congressional Gold Medal in the mail.

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“Rarely, if ever, has there existed a group of such few men, which had so great an influence on the outcome of a major military campaign.”

The preceding quote, taken from a now-declassified report detailing the missions of a secret World War II unit, was read by Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, as he presided over a recent Congressional Gold Medal Ceremony honoring the members of the Ghost Army – the highest honor Congress can bestow upon anyone.

Using inflatable tanks, sound effects, radio trickery, and creativity to fool the Germans about the size and location of American units, the 1,100 members of the 23^rd Headquarters Special Troops and 200 from the 3133^rd Signal Company, carried out a combined 24 battlefield deceptions in France, Luxembourg, Belgium, Germany, and Italy.

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On Thursday, Mr. Bluestein and two other members of the Ghost Army — Seymour Nussenbaum, age 100, and John Christman, 99 — received the Congressional Gold Medal on Capitol Hill before a crowd of more than 600 that included family members and friends.

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MEDFORD - Around here, the McGlynns are known for their decades of service in Medford and Massachusetts politics. But this week, the late Jack McGlynn will finally be honored, for his most heroic service - a secret kept for more than half his life.

The Congressional Gold Medal will be presented at the U.S. Capitol Thursday to the secret Ghost Army of WWII. One thousand artists, designers, and audio techs who used inflatable props and sounds to distract and deceive the enemy.

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Although a U.S. Army report credited the Ghost Army with saving the lives of between 15,000 and 30,000 servicemen, its story remained untold for decades as information about the force stayed classified until 1996. On Wednesday, the top-secret unit will finally get its just due when it receives one of the country’s highest awards, the Congressional Gold Medal.

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The nation’s capital is set to honor a secret World War II unit called the Ghost Army, as well as one of its members — Marion “Pat” Pastoric, of Chester Township — with the Congressional Gold Medal March 21. In a March 11 interview, Pamela Pastoric, 69, expressed her excitement at attending the event and representing her late father, who passed away in 2003. “I have been waiting for this for 10 years,” Pamela said. Pat was born Dec. 8, 1921, in Columbus. He was one of three sons to parents born in what [...] read more

LA CROSSE, Wis. (WEAU) - Donald Fox has many memories of his father Frederic Fox scattered around his La Crosse home.

His story of becoming a part of history begins right before World War II.

“What he majored in in college, what he liked most was musical comedy. You know, he’s 22 years old and you get big ideas. And he said, well, I’m going to go to Hollywood,” said Donald Fox. “Then December 7th, 1941, comes along and my father was smart enough say, well, I’m going to enlist before I get drafted.”

The high-ups at the Pentagon learned of Frederic Fox’s theatre background. They found him to be a good fit for a top secret unit known as the “Ghost Army.”

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The shadowy World War II units that duped German forces with inflatable tanks, fake radio communications and stand-in generals will be honored with the Congressional Gold Medal later this month.

Active in the latter part of the war, the U.S. Army's so-called Ghost Army was a diverse mix of artists and engineers, career soldiers and conscripts.

Notable figures among them included fashion designer Bill Blass, photographer Art Kane and painter Ellsworth Kelly, who grew up in Oradell.

For Thomas Sherlock, the most prominent figure was his father, Bayonne native Joseph Sherlock, a U.S. Army Technician turned Oradell-based industrial designer who died in October 2010. The recognition of the Ghost Army is a reminder of the sacrifices his father made but kept close to his chest, Sherlock said.

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From D-Day to the crossing of the Rhine, the 23rd used inflatable tanks, trucks and artillery pieces; bogus radio traffic; 500-pound loudspeakers blasting recordings of divisions on the move; and other means of fakery to confuse the Nazis. In the process, it may have saved the lives of 15,000 to 30,000 American troops, according to Army historians.

Now, the unit is set to receive the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest honor Congress can bestow, at a March 21 ceremony on Capitol Hill.

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On September 7, U. S. Embassy Luxembourg, Limpertsberg History Friends, and the Ghost Army Legacy Project unveiled a new monument in Limpertsberg dedicated to the Ghost Army, a special U. S. Army Unit that played a key role in the liberation of Luxembourg in WWII. [...] read more

Denise Wong interviews Ghost Army author and filmmaker Rick Beyer.

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A new exhibition at the Nevada Museum of Art has history buffs talking. “Ghost Army: The Combat Con Artists of World War II” is now open to the public and museum officials say it promises to be a unique experience where art and World War II collide.

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A World War II hero marks a milestone birthday in Kent County. Thursday, Feb. 2 marks 100 trips around the sun for Tom Anderson, a WWII veteran and master of deception. Anderson was part of the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops, better known as the "Ghost Army." "We had rubber tanks and rubber people and everything was an imitation," said Anderson. "We could draw the Germans any place we wanted them, and it worked."

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The Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee approved proposed designs by teleconference Nov. 15 for a congressional gold medal recognizing the Ghost Army, tactical deception soldiers comprising two U. S. Army units that deceived the German army on the battlefields of Europe during World War II. [...] read more

Owensboro resident Kenneth Miller, 98, was honored Saturday for his service during World War II as a member of the “Ghost Army,” officially known as the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops. The Ghost Army, a tactical deception unit, was recently awarded the Congressional Gold Medal. Miller is one of only 10 living members of the Ghost Army. [...] read more

"We had fake airplanes, fake balloons. You name it, I did it," Manny Frockt said of the once-secret "Ghost Army," whose creations are in a traveling exhibit [...] read more

One of nine surviving members of a top-secret World War II military unit was awarded with the Congressional Gold Medal during a ceremony in Palatine to honor the “Ghost Army. ” WGN News "Cover Story" by Mike Lowe. [...] read more

Bernie Bluestein was 19 years old when he spotted a vaguely worded notice on the bulletin board at his Cleveland art college in March 1943. It was the middle of World War II, and the United States Army was seeking recruits for a new, non-combat camouflage unit that would draw on the art of deception to misdirect the enemy. [...] read more

This week President Joe Biden signed a bill awarding the Congressional Gold Medal to some unsung heroes of World War II: the so-called "Ghost Army" – top-secret military units that deployed inflatable tanks and artillery, decoy soldiers, and fake communications to fool enemy forces. Jane Pauley reports. [...] read more

Two top-secret units that saved 30,000 lives by using INFLATABLE TANKS, sound effects and radio trickery to lure Germans away from US units in Europe will be awarded [...] read more

President Biden signed a bill that bestows the Congressional Gold Medal to the members of “a traveling roadshow of deception” that built inflatable tanks and trucks to trick the Germans. [...] read more

Renowned architect Gilbert Seltzer has died at age 106. During World War II, he was one of the 1,100 men who made up the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops, also known as the Ghost Army, who helped the allies win the war with a series of creative deceptions that included inflatable tanks and wooden airplanes. Sunday TODAY’s Willie Geist remembers a life well lived. [...] read more

He was one of the last survivors of a band of Army con artists who duped German forces with their arsenal of fakery, including inflatable tanks and scripted radio transmissions. [...] read more

There are endless stories of courage and heroism by the soldiers of World War II, told and retold in countless books and movies. However, some of those soldiers took their stories and secrets to their graves without receiving the honor and recognition they deserved. One of them was my father. [...] read more

Summer is traditionally a time for relaxing, for leisure — maybe traveling to a scenic locale. Seventy-seven years ago this summer, many of America’s most-promising young men spent the summer in France — not on vacation but waging a desperate war against Hitler and his legions. We are bound to continually honor and recognize their courage and sacrifice. This summer, a campaign is underway to give official recognition to one group of deserving GIs who have been denied that honor for decades: The Ghost Army. [...] read more

Radio interview previerewing August 18 Ghost Army Presentation by Roy Eichhorn. [...] read more

Sure, the Ghost Army could be duly recognized fifty years from now, but wouldn’t it be great to hang these medals around the necks of these eleven unsung heroes sooner rather than later? [...] read more

​FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. — All was not always as it seemed to enemy troops during World War II courtesy of units assigned to the U. S. Army’s 23rd Headquarters Special Troops. Skilled in deception tactics, this covert unit of 1,100 service members — 20 hailing from Missouri — were known collectively as the Ghost Army, and they used a variety of unique tactics to keep the enemy off the heels of American Soldiers. Roy Eichhorn, founding member of the Ghost Army Legacy Project, told the unit’s history to engineer Soldiers at Fort Leonard Wood [...] read more

Branson’s big-screen honored soldiers of a largely unknown army this weekend. In honor of Ghost Army Recognition Day, Branson IMAX showed a documentary on the highly secretive World War II army units. [...] read more

Thousands of history books, novels, movies and TV shows depict the many conflicts and battles of World War II. It sometimes seems there are no stories left untold. Yet there are examples of tactical daring, personal courage and sacrifice that have never received the full recognition and honor they deserve. One of them is the Ghost Army. [...] read more

In the weeks following D-Day, a highly specialized group of men arrived in France. The 1,100 men of the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops were there not to fight, but to deceive — mounting a “traveling road show” of inflatable tanks, fake radio broadcasts and more, designed to convince Hitler’s generals that Allied forces were massing where in reality they were not. [...] read more

A California High School student who is advocating for the Ghost Army has received an award from the National World War II Musuem in New Orleans. [...] read more

WOONSOCKET – In the 1940s, dozens of city residents who worked at the Alice Mill participated in a secret war effort that would help turn the tide of World War II. The only thing was, they didn’t know it at the time. [...] read more

A movement is in the works to award members of the recently declassified WWII "Ghost Army" unit with a Congressional Gold Medal. Rick Beyer, president of the Ghost Army Legacy Project, joins us to discuss the tactics this group used to become successful. [...] read more

Let us pause to remember and honor the “Ghost Army,” the top secret World War II-era Army unit that staged 20 daring and deceptive operations near the front lines of Europe. [...] read more