Behind these four men are two other Marines. They cannot be seen as clearly. They are Rene Gagnon of Manchester, New Hampshire, and Mike Strank. He lived in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, but was born in Jarabenia, in what was then Czechoslovakia.

BARBARA KLEIN: The next day, Joe Rosenthal’s film went by airplane to the island of Guam where it was developed and printed.

The pictures were given to Associated Press photo editor John Bodkin. It was his job to decide which ones to send to the United States. They would go on a machine that sent images by radio.

As histories tell it, he looked and looked at the first photograph, and said: “This is one for all time.” Within minutes he sent the picture of the six men raising the flag to the Associated Press headquarters in New York.

From there, the photograph went to newspapers across the United States. Most decided to print a huge copy on their front page.

STEVE EMBER: Most photo experts will tell you that the picture Joe Rosenthal made is almost perfect. The camera catches the flag as it rises. The flagpole cuts across the photograph. Wind blows against the flag.

​The experts also say you must look at the picture as the American public saw it in nineteen forty-five. The world had been at war for years. Victory was not yet certain. Many people worried about family members. Many had a deep fear of the enemy.

The picture shows strength and courage. It suggests that six young men are working together to defeat the enemy. Joe Rosenthal’s photograph seemed to say: the battle may not be over, but we are winning.