In the Shadow of the USS Franklin

In Update #29, I covered our filming aboard two museum ships in Massachusetts — the USS Massachusetts (BB-59) and the USS Salem (CA-139) — as well as at the College of the Holy Cross and with Father Joseph O’Callahan’s nephew, Jay O’Callahan. Father O’Callahan, the Catholic chaplain aboard the USS Franklin (CV-13), received the Medal of Honor for his extraordinary actions under … More Update #31: The Final Interview – Father Earle Markey, S.J.

If you look at Production Update #11 on the project website (linked here), you’ll see some predictions I made about when the film would be finished—and, as it turns out, I was wrong. At the time, I projected that filming would be completed in 2024 and that the film itself would be finished by the … More Update #30: Filming in Philadelphia – Interviewing the Experts

One of the best researched, referenced, and written books about the USS Franklin (CV-13) is Saving Big Ben: The USS Franklin and Father Joseph O’Callahan by John R. Satterfield. This book has been a valuable source of information throughout the development of this documentary. Because of John’s background as a retired naval reserve officer and his knowledge of the USS Franklin (CV-13), I’ve … More Update #29: Filming in Massachusetts at the College of the Holy Cross

In the summer of 2020, after the COVID lockdown had relaxed, I was eager to get out of the house and went to the old Quincy Shipyard just south of Boston, only a few miles from my home. I visited the museum ship berthed there, the USS Salem (CA-139), the only preserved heavy cruiser in the world. … More Update #28: Filming in Massachusetts on the USS Salem (CA-139) and at the Jesuit Cemetery

When the USS Franklin (CV-13) was bombed near the coast of Japan on 19 March 1945, countless acts of bravery, heroism, and self-sacrifice followed, many of which were later recognized. The men of the Franklin became the most decorated crew in U.S. naval history. Among them, Father Joseph T. O’Callahan became the first chaplain to be awarded the Medal of … More Update #27: Filming in Massachusetts – Interviewing Jay O’Callahan

My first USS Franklin (CV-13) reunion was in July of 2017 in Boston. I had been invited by my friend Ray Bailey, a Franklin crew member. Ray had been a lifelong friend of my father’s, who was also a World War II Navy veteran (though he did not serve aboard the Franklin). After my father passed away, my friendship with … More Update #26: Filming in Massachusetts on the USS Massachusetts (BB-59)

In 1969, NBC premiered The Ship That Wouldn’t Die, a documentary about the USS Franklin (CV-13). Filmed aboard the carrier before she was sold for scrap by the Navy, the program was narrated by Gene Kelly and featured interviews with men who were serving as officers or crewmen during the Japanese bombing attack on March 19, 1945. One … More Update #25: Filming in Pittsburgh – Interviewing the Shields Family

In the late fall of last year, I started a side-project that stemmed from the research I have conducted for the documentary. Those of you who attended the Franklin reunion in March may remember hearing me talk about it. After years of research that has resulted in over 7000 pages of archived documents pertaining to the USS Franklin … More Update #24: A Two-Part Series in Naval History Magazine and Music Rights for the Film

March 19, 2025 marked the 80th anniversary of the bombing of the USS Franklin (CV-13) aircraft carrier near the coast of Japan during WWII. This anniversary was observed during the latest Franklin reunion that was held in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, fabulously organized and hosted by Susan and Darren Hamm. This also marked the final Franklin reunion that we will film for … More Update #23: Final Reunion Filming for the USS Franklin Documentary – 2025 Mt. Pleasant, SC

For the final update of production from 2024, we will go back to the Alameda shoot that we conducted in July. In addition to filming at the USS Hornet Sea, Air & Space Museum, which you can read about in Update #19 on this website, we conducted an interview with a USS Franklin veteran family member, Don LaVigne, who is the … More Update #22: Back to the Filming in Alameda