105th engineer battalion - also material on USO show Nov 1944

[Walt's Daughter]

This was taken from the 44th Evac Hospital's records. Wow, shows that the USO show was in Malmedy in Nov 44. I hope everyone realizes that these guys were right in the thick of it, for just a few week's later, this is where all hell broke loose and the Battle of the Bulge was in full swing. Also, so many of you know that Malmedy was the place of the famous massacre of US soldiers by the Germans.

 

Among some of the outstanding entertainment events was the “world premiere” of ‘Saratoga Trunk’, which took place in the First Army Theater in Malmédy. Various USO and Special Services shows helped to pass the time, baseball stars visited the place, and people like Mel Ott, Bucky Walters, and others drew big crowds. ‘Thanksgiving’ was properly celebrated with a big religious service for all units stationed in and around Malmédy, and an appropriate Thanksgiving dinner with turkey was served. Shortly before all this, the infamous “buzz bombs” made their appearance, usually passing safely over the unit’s heads enroute to Liège.