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AGENDA SET FOR GHOST ARMY CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL CEREMONY

Three Ghost Army Veterans to Join Speaker Johnson, Congressional Leaders at Capitol

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

WASHINGTON, D. C. – Three surviving members of the Ghost Army, the top-secret WWII units that used creative deception to fool the enemy, will join House Speaker Mike Johnson, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, and other Congressional leaders at a special ceremony on March 21 at the Capitol to honor the Ghost Army with the Congressional Gold Medal. The long-awaited ceremony will take place at 11 a. m. on Thursday, March 21 in Emancipation Hall (Capitol Visitor Center) at the U. S. Capitol Complex in Washington, D. C. [...] read more

GHOST ARMY VETERANS TO RECEIVE CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL AT MARCH CEREMONY

Speaker Johnson, Congressional Leaders to Honor Surviving Members at the Capitol

Monday, January 22, 2024

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The long-awaited ceremony to present the Congressional Gold Medal to the Ghost Army, the secret WWII units that used creative deception to fool the enemy, will take place at the Capitol on March 21.

House Speaker Mike Johnson will host the special event, along with House and Senate leaders and sponsors of the legislation passed in 2022 authorizing the award, Congress's highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements by individuals or institutions. It will be the first time the Gold Medal, designed and produced by the U.S. Treasury Department, will be unveiled.

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GALP Launches 2024 Fundraiser

Monday, November 20, 2023

The Ghost Army Legacy Project today launched its 2024 Fundraiser. Our goal is to raise $30,000 by the end of the year. As of December 20, we have raised 84% of our goal through 73 donations! The soldiers of The Ghost Army used inflatable tanks, sound effects, and imagination to fool the Germans on the battlefields of Europe. Only 8 of the intrepid soldiers who carried out this bold mission are left. The Ghost Army Legacy Project is ensuring that these men and their accomplishments are never forgotten. [...] read more

Ghost Army Exhibit Heads to Nevada

Opens March 4, 2023

Saturday, January 14, 2023

The Ghost Army exhibit created by the National World War II Museum opens at the Nevada Museum of Art on March 4. The exhibit, titled Ghost Army: The Combat Con Artists of World War II was created in consultation with the Ghost Army Legacy Project, and sponsored by E. L. Wiegand Foundation. The exhibit was most recently at the Illinois Holocaust Museum in Skokie, Illinois. Ghost Army features inflatable military pieces, historical narrative text panels detailing unit operations, profiles of unit officers, archival photography and sketches and uniforms from unit officers. The [...] read more

Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee Makes Recommendation on Gold Medal Design

Friday, November 18, 2022

The Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee, which advises the Secretary of the Treasury on the design of all US coins and medals, has made a recommendation for the design of the Ghost Army Congresional Gold Medal. The committee reviewed a portfolio of 16 candidate designs for the front and back. Committee members enthusiasticly endosed the reccomendations of the the three liaisons designated by Sen. Markey and Rep Kuster (Rick Beyer, Roy Eichhorn, and Stephanee Leech) and voted unaimously to recommend GA-O-03 for the obverse and GA-R-O5 for the reverse.

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George Dramis Gold Medal Celebration

Thursday, July 21, 2022

RALEIGH, NC – WWII Veteran George Dramis, 97, will be honored at a special ceremony Saturday at the Waltonwood Lake Boone assisted living community to mark the recent award of the Congressional Gold Medal to the Ghost Army, the secret WWII units that used creative deception to fool and distract the enemy on the battlefields of Europe. [...] read more

Bernie Bluestein Gold Medal Celebraton

Friday, July 8, 2022

Ghost Army Veteran Bernie Bluestin, 98, will be honored at a special ceremony Saturday, July 16 at Harper College. President Biden recently signed into law awarding the Congressional Gold Medal to the Ghost Army, the secret WWII units that used creative deception to fool and distract the enemy on the battlefields of Europe in which Christman served. [...] read more

llinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center to Unveil Ghost Army Exhibit from The National WWII Museum

Wednesday, May 4, 2022

Skokie, IL – On June 16, 2022, the traveling exhibition Ghost Army: The Combat Con Artists of World War II will begin its national tour at Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center . Produced by The National WWII Museum in New Orleans and exclusively sponsored by E. L. Wiegand Foundation, the exhibit tells the story of the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops—the first mobile, multimedia, tactical deception unit in US Army history. The unit waged war with inflatable tanks and vehicles, fake radio traffic, sound effects and even phony generals, using [...] read more

President Biden Signs Bill to Honor Ghost Army

Congressional Gold Medal Awarded to Secretive WWII Units

Tuesday, February 1, 2022

The 23rd Headquarters Special Troops carried out more than 20 deception missions, often dangerously close to the front, in France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany. This “traveling road show of deception,” of only 1,100 troops appearing to be more than 20,000, are credited with saving an estimated 30,000 American lives. U.S. Army analyst Mark Kronman stated, “Rarely, if ever, has there been a group of such a few men which had so great an influence on the outcome of a major military campaign.”​ A sister unit the 3133rd Signal Company Special, carried out two deceptions in Italy in 1945.

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Congress Passes Bill to Honor Ghost Army

Bill to Award Congressional Gold Medal to Secretive Army Units Awaits President’s Signature

Wednesday, January 19, 2022

“What made the Ghost Army special was not just their extraordinary courage, but their creativity,” said Rep. Annie Kuster (D-NH), the House sponsor of the bill, speaking on the floor of the House Wednesday. “Their story reminds us that listening to unconventional ideas, like using visual and sound deception, can help us solve existential challenges like defeating tyranny.”

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Senate Passes Ghost Army Congressional Gold Medal Act

Wednesday, December 15, 2021

The United States Senate today passed legislation to award a Congressional Gold Medal to the 23rd Special Headquarters Troops and the 3133rd Signal Service Company, the WWII deception units popularly known as The “Ghost Army.” The efforts and contributions of these soldiers were kept classified for more than 50 years. Passage came via unanimous consent.

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Bipartisan Bill to Honor WWII Ghost Army Receives Necessary 67Th Co-Sponsor in the Senate

Wednesday, November 17, 2021

​The existence of the Ghost Army was top secret for more than 50 years until it was declassified in 1996. That’s when the public first learned of the creative, daring techniques the Ghost Army employed to fool and distract the enemy about the strength and location of American troops, including the use of inflatable tanks, sound effects, radio trickery and impersonation.

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Bipartisan Bill to Honor Ghost Army Passes Halfway Mark for Senate Co-Sponsors

Monday, July 19, 2021

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The campaign to award a Congressional Gold Medal to the “Ghost Army” – the highly secretive WWII Army units that created ingenious deceptions on the battlefields of Europe – gained 13 new co-sponsors in the U.S. Senate this week for a total of 40. It has passed the halfway mark to the 67 co-sponsors required to bring the bill, S 1404, up for a vote. [...] read more

Ghost Army in the News

‘Ghost Army’ that fooled Hitler will receive Congress’s highest honor

Washington Post

Monday, March 18, 2024

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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Secret Ghost Army Member to Receive Posthumous Honor

Geauga County Maple Leaf

Sunday, March 17, 2024

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 man’s father to be honored in Washington, D.C. for role in “Ghost Army”

WEAU TV - Wausau, Wisconsin

Saturday, March 16, 2024

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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North Jersey men were among 1,100 who served in secretive WWII Ghost Army that duped Nazis

The Bergen Record

Thursday, March 14, 2024

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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Fort Wayne veteran Bill Blass to posthumously receive Congressional Gold Medal

Fort Wayne Business Weekly

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Fort Wayne native and renowned clothing designer Bill Blass will be posthumously honored with the Congressional Gold Medal for his service in the secret WWII Ghost Army, renowned for their creative deception tactics, according to the Ghost Army Legacy Project.

Blass, a 23rd Headquarters Special Troops member, will be recognized along with others at the U.S. Capitol on March 21. Of the 82 officers and 1,023 soldiers who served in the Ghost Army, there are just seven surviving members, now aged 100, three of whom are expected to attend the ceremony in person, along with the families of many other Ghost Army veterans.

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Windham resident to receive Congressional Gold Medal for late father’s service as ‘Ghost Army’ officer

The Windham Eagle

Friday, March 1, 2024

If he were still alive, former U.S. Army Captain William Barton Skelton, Jr. would shrug off being awarded the Congressional Gold Medal for his exploits during World War II and say he didn’t deserve it. But for his daughter, Malinda “Mindy” McKinney of Windham and her two sisters, it’s long overdue recognition for their father’s participation in a top-secret unit that ultimately helped the Allies defeat the Nazis and change the world.
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This WWII 'Ghost Army' soldier tricked the Nazis. Now, the New Orleans professor will be honored.

New Orleans Times Picayune

Friday, February 23, 2024

On March 21, at the U.S. Capitol, a bygone company of American soldiers, most of whom are long dead, will be awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, one of the country’s highest honors, in appreciation of their outstanding service in World War II.

What the so-called Ghost Army did 80 years ago went unheralded for decades, because it was all top secret.

The long-overdue award is being presented for a military success. But the Ghost Army was also an artistic triumph, maybe the greatest examples of trompe l'œil ever. And one of the artists who helped make it happen spent his long subsequent career in New Orleans.

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'Combat Con Artists' of World War II Who Hoodwinked Nazis Get Long Overdue Top Honor from Congress

Military Times

Tuesday, February 20, 2024

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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Ghost Army Monument Unveiled in Limpertsberg

Monday, November 20, 2023

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

A Talk With Ghost Army Author Rick Beyer

KOLO-TV Reno Nevada

Friday, March 17, 2023

Denise Wong interviews Ghost Army author and filmmaker Rick Beyer.

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Nevada Museum of Art Welcomes "Ghost Army"

2 New - KTVN TV

Thursday, March 9, 2023

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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World War II 'Ghost Army' Vet Celebrates Century of Cleverness and Courage

WBOC-TV Salisbury, MD

Friday, February 3, 2023

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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CCAC approves designs for Ghost Army congressional gold medal

Coin World

Friday, November 18, 2022

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

​Miller honored for service as member of Ghost Army during WWII

Owensboro Times

Tuesday, September 27, 2022

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

'I Faked Everything': WWII Vet, 98, Honored for Tricking Nazis with Illusions in 'Ghost Army'

People Magazine

Tuesday, August 9, 2022

"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

Chicago area ‘Ghost Army’ soldier honored for role in WWII’s ‘Traveling Road Show of Deception’

WGN-TV

Thursday, July 21, 2022

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

How the Ghost Army of WWII Used Art to Deceive the Nazis

Smithsonian Magazine

Tuesday, July 5, 2022

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

Honoring America's WWII "Ghost Army"

CBS Sunday Morning

Sunday, February 6, 2022

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

America's WWII Ghost Army is finally honored:

Daily Mail

Thursday, February 3, 2022

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

​Ghost Army, a World War II Master of Deception, Finally Wins Recognition

New York Times

Thursday, February 3, 2022

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

Gilbert Seltzer, member of the Ghost Army during WWII, dies at 106

NBC Today Show

Sunday, September 19, 2021

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

Gilbert Seltzer, Soldier in the World War II ‘Ghost Army,’ Dies at 106

New York Times

Saturday, September 11, 2021

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

It’s time for Congress to honor the Ghost Army of WWII

Dallas Morning News

Monday, August 23, 2021

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

World War II “Ghost Army” deserves long-denied honors

The Morning Call

Sunday, August 22, 2021

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

Ghost Army Presentation August 18th at ​New Mexico Military Museum

KSWV Radio

Saturday, August 7, 2021

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

Long: Time to honor the 'Ghost Army'

Roanoke Times

Thursday, June 10, 2021

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

Creativity on the battlefield: Special presentation at Fort Leonard Wood offers lessons learned from Ghost Army deception tactics

U.S. Army

Wednesday, June 9, 2021

​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

Ghost Army Recognition Day in Branson

OzarksFirst News

Monday, June 7, 2021

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

Cagle and Boccia: Winning the war with weapons of mass deception

St. Louis Post Dispatch

Thursday, June 3, 2021

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

​The Ghost Army’s Battlefield Deceptions Could Finally See Congressional Honors

St. Louis Public Radio

Friday, May 28, 2021

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

Centennial High School Senior to Receive National Award

23ABCNews Bakersfield CS

Tuesday, May 4, 2021

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 ‘Secret War’ takes center stage in virtual event

Woonsocket Valley Breeze

Thursday, April 22, 2021

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

​Recognition Sought For WWII ​'Ghost Army' Unit

By Jessie Karangu for Military Times

Monday, April 19, 2021

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

Congress Stands Up for 'Ghost Army'

by Jennifer Harper, Washington Times "Inside the Beltway"

Tuesday, April 13, 2021

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

Please Support Our Ongoing Efforts

The soldiers of The Ghost Army used inflatable tanks, sound effects, and imagination to fool the Germans on the battlefields of Europe. The Ghost Army Legacy Project is ensuring that these men and their accomplishments are never forgotten.

Give via credit card by clicking the yellow “Donate” button.

Or, send a check to:

Ghost Army Legacy Project
1305 S. Michigan Ave. #1104
Chicago, IL 60605

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