TIP OF THE SPEAR BADASSERY.

Joseph Beyrle was born on this day 1923. This is THE one that you need to know about if you consider yourself and American. (You're welcome)

His story of toughness, both physical and mental, is far beyond what most people can muster. He was a true bad ass that took a lot of shit for a very long time, in the service of the USA. He was fortunate in many instances, one time being captured and interrogated by the Gestapo (certain death to follow), only to be taken from them by a very bad ass German officer who literally pulled a gun on the Gestapo to take him.

He also did two "gold runs" into France, whereby he was parachuted in, and had to make his way back via the raspberry beret underground. The rule was that, IF you survived, you couldn't do it again because you had exposure to the whole train of French resistance. Under torture, you'd give up too many people. I can't imagine the adrenaline rush of trying to escape back to England....this dude got off on it.

He jumped on D-Day from a burning plane at 120 meters (less than 400 feet) and landed on a church roof in St. Come-du-Mont.

After his 3rd escape from POW camp and heading east, he served under a Soviet tank battalion commanded by the woman Aleksandra Samusenko! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleksandra_Samusenko

He was given the task of demolitions, which was one of his specialties. He was badly wounded during combat with the Soviets, and passed around because medical care for the troops there was almost non-existent. He was personally given a golden ticket by Zhukov himself (he's the general who won the race to take Berlin). The golden ticket instructed anyone who encountered Beyrle to assist him in every way, and many people just wanted to see and touch the ticket as it was like a autographed photo of Elvis!

He received recognition for his service, one being The Order of the Red Banner from the Soviet Union, the Croix de Guerre from France, and the Bronze Star.

This mofo was the real deal.





Read up. You won't believe it.

https://www.amazon.com/Simple-Sounds-Freedom-Soldier-America/dp/0375507868


https://www.amazon.com/Behind-Hitle...4065f&pd_rd_wg=cq998&pd_rd_i=0891418458&psc=1

 

The prison photo is eery. He's got this look like "you don't know it yet, but you fucked up."

I watched a doc called "The Girl Who Wore Freedom." on a plane yesterday. Its a bunch of stories from survivors of the Normandy invasion from the French perspective. Fascinating.

 

Def a bad-ass among bad-asses!

 

That is pretty cool. I had not heard of him before. He was able to pull off that "you done fucked up bad" look as an old man too. If he was still alive I wonder what his opinion of the current crop of American America haters would be.

 

He has an awesome resting bad ass face

 

In the book, there are gruesome accounts from this man.

When he was captured on D-Day, he was grouped with some other POWs in a field near a tree. Hanging in that tree was a paratrooper that Beyrle knew, who was killed on the descent. As the German units would come up the road, they would take target practice at the trooper, rendering him unidentifiable. Beyrle and two others almost made a good escape, but could not reach their lines...the other two were shot IIRC.

Anyone wants to borrow my book, send an addy.

 

He was born in 1923 and the great depression came in at 1929 and lasted until 1933. I'm sure he and his family like others in that period were malnourished and struggled to find food. Many of these guys sick of not having a good life/eating poorly joined the Armed Forces just to get better food and to serve their country.

Then just a short 11 years after the great depression and on June 6 he and thousands of others became paratroopers and jumped into battle. And those 101st Airborne guys hooked a line to the plane and stepped out the door with ALL OF THIS strapped to their bodies.

A reserve parachute, his rifle, a 45acp side arm, a hunting knife, a machete, a cartridge belt, 2 bandoliers of ammo across his chest, 66 rounds of 45acp, a mine for blowing off tank treads, 4 sticks of dynamite, a trenching shovel, a first aid kit, a gas mask, a canteen of water, 3 days of "K" rations, 6 grenades, a blanket, a raincoat, a change of socks and underwear, and 2 cartons of cigarettes. And even if you didn't smoke you carried them to trade for stuff.

Those guys were all bad asses!

 

Mongo, so you think everything the Army did made sense?

 

Thank God for American badasses from our Greatest Generation - without them, I imagine the world would be significantly different.

 

I still miss my Dad. He flew in B24's over the Pacific. In a weird way I'm happy he's not alive to see the mess this country has become. He about popped his cork with the whole hostage thing in Iran back in '79. I think he would've "glassified" Iran back then if he had control of the football. I'm sure he'd go ballistic now.

 

9.428 times

 

My grandfather on my mother's side took a bullet storming Utah beach on D Day, rehabilitated in an infirmary in Belgium and then rejoined the fight in France. Whole different level of badass that generation was.
Like you Motofun, I'm glad he checked out before the safe spaces and apologize for American greatness generation took over.

 

You sure you got that the right way round? The Allies didn't invade Belgium until September.

 

Sent you a PM

 

It's headed your way tomorrow. Anybody else interested, contact Triple X.

Many times while reading this book I was amazed the those things could happen to one guy.

 

I wonder if he ever found that german air force officer that saved him after the war....

 

Before or after they bombed Pearl Harbor?