Audie Murphy: The Most Decorated WWII Soldier Became a Hollywood Star

Off to War

Murphy said he always wanted to be a soldier. After the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, Murphy tried to enlist, but the Army, Marine Corps, and Navy all turned him down for being underweight and underage. Standing at only 5’5” and weighing just 110 lbs, Murphy wasn’t looked at as a promising candidate for a soldier. Being underage did not help. But his sister was the one that got him into the army. She provided a document that falsified his birth date by a year, and thus he was accepted by the U.S. Army on 30 June, 1942.

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Source: All That’s Interesting

Following routine basic training, Murphy was sent to North Africa in 1943. In Morocco, Murphy was assigned to Company B, 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division of the U.S. Army. Murphy rose through the ranks quickly, making a name for himself. “Murphy was a daredevil; he took chances that others just wouldn’t take. He was too daring for most of us,” stated Brad Croeker, a Company B private. “His middle name was Lucky.”

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