George: No, well it was the excitement of the whole thing. The war was over. Actually it was a good thing she was with me. If I had grabbed that nurse, and say I was alone there, it would have really made me look bad. But the fact that she was my date there, it didn’ t mean anything. She was happy to have won the war. Everyone was happy.
Veterans Chronicles: Any other strangers try and kiss you that day?
Greta: Well, I went back to the office and my bosses, they were two brothers, they said,“ Okay, let’ s close the office. We’ re going home.” I said, okay, that’ s great. So after they left, I did my usual putting away of instruments and neatening up the office, and changed my clothes. When I came out of the subway station, a young man in a uniform came over and kissed me gently on the cheek. And that was it.
Veterans Chronicles: What was your reaction when you saw the kiss on the cover?
Greta: I saw it the first time in a small book called The Eye of Eisenstaedt. I immediately contacted LIFE magazine, and they were kind of cynical because they figured lots of women would
come forward and claim it was their picture.
Veterans Chronicles: When did you see that famous picture?
GEORGE MENDONSA-“ THE SAILOR.” A U. S. NAVY VETERAN OF THE PACIFIC, HE NEVER FORGOT THE DEVOTION OF THE NURSES WHO TENDED TO HIS WOUNDED COMRADES.
George: I got out of the Navy early January 1946 and a fella here in Newport, a good friend of mine, his name was Francis Sylvia, he calls me up and said to me,“ Where were you the moment the war ended?” And I say,“ Well I was in Times Square, New York.” And he said,“ Well I know you was,” and I said,“ How the hell do you know where I was?” He says,“ Well I got a LIFE magazine, and in the picture of this magazine is a sailor kissing a nurse.” This was 1980. So I said,“ Well bring that magazine over to the house.” So he comes over to my house and I looked at the magazine I said God damn it, that is me. When I looked in that magazine at the sailor, I had the sensation like I was looking in a mirror. I knew it was me but I didn’ t remember doing it. Well I found a lot of proof: scars, lumps, different stuff. I found a lot of stuff in that LIFE magazine that was proving I was the guy.
Veterans Chronicles: So you didn’ t know for 35 years that that was you?
George: Well on the 35th anniversary of the war ending LIFE came out with the magazine. And that’ s when I first saw it, because I didn’ t remember anything about the picture.
George Mendonsa
FALL 2015 17