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Glenn Edward McDuffie collection, 1943-2014, Date accessioned: 2021-02-03

 

Summary

Creator:
McDuffie, Glenn Edward, 1927-2014
Extent:
1 folders
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

[Title of Item], [Date of Item], [Box and Folder number], Glenn Edward McDuffie collection, Special Collections & Archives, Florida State University Libraries, Tallahassee, Florida. https://purl.lib.fsu.edu/fa/02-21-2001

Background

Scope and content:

This collection relates to Glenn Edward McDuffie who served as a Gunner's Mate 3rd Class with the U.S. Navy during World War II. McDuffie claimed to be the sailor kissing a nurse in the World War II Victory over Japan August 15, 1945 photograph which was taken by Life magazine photographer Alfred Eisenstaedt. The collection includes various documentation, testimony, interviews, polygraph examination results, photographs, forensic examination reports, and documents related to supporting the claim by McDuffie.

Biographical / historical:

Glenn Edward McDuffie was born on August 3, 1927 in Kannapolis, Cabarrus County, North Carolina. He joined the US Navy on July 13, 1942 when he was only 15 years old, after finding a friend to forge his mother's signature. After being discharged on March 12, 1946, he returned home and became a mail carrier and semi-professional baseball player. In 1960 he moved to Houston, Texas and lived there until 2009 when he relocated to the Dallas, Texas area to be near his daughter. After the "kissing" photograph was released, many men came forward to claim they were the sailor in the picture, but none could sufficiently prove it. In 1980 McDuffie came forward but his claim was not proved until 2007 when a Houston forensic artist concluded it was him through a study of the bone structure of all 11 men who had claimed to be the kissing sailor. McDuffie kept busy with speaking engagements and appearances for the rest of his life, with his last appearance on February 21, 2014. He died at the age of 86 after suffering a heart attack on March 9, 2014. He is buried in Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery Dallas, Texas.

Custodial history:

Transferred from the Institute on World War II and the Human Experience to FSU Libraries Special Collections & Archives in July 2022.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

This collection is open to all researchers.

Terms of access:

All requests for permission to quote, publish, broadcast or otherwise reproduce from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Associate Dean for Special Collections & Archives. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Florida State University Libraries as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the researcher.

Preferred citation:

[Title of Item], [Date of Item], [Box and Folder number], Glenn Edward McDuffie collection, Special Collections & Archives, Florida State University Libraries, Tallahassee, Florida. https://purl.lib.fsu.edu/fa/02-21-2001

Location of this collection:
116 Honors Way
Tallahassee
FL
32306-2047
USA