Not really certain if this is the right forum so will mods move it if required.
Joe Rosenthal has died aged 94.
The picture he took of the flag raising on Iwo Jima must surely rank as one of the most iconic of war pictures ever taken.
R.I.P…Joe
Was it not posed ?
Moderator’s Note: Doesn’t really seem to be a debate here, so off we go to our forum for “general discussion: from frivolous chatter to deep thoughts; from harmless diversions to life-changing announcements”.
While it wasn’t the first flag raised on Mt. Suribachi it wasn’t a staged pose and Rosenthal almost missed the shot. The controversy, aside from it being the second flag raised, arises because of a miscommunication between Rosenthal who was asked whether a picture was posed. He answered “yes” thinking the question referred to another photo.
Marc
As MGibson states it wasn’t the first flag, that was considered to small so a second flag was raised.
RIP.
A movie is coming out based on the book by the son of flagraiser John Bradley. I’m planning to stop by the little museum in Elzaville, KY this weekend (my wife is a vendor in some “Covered Bridge Festival,” that Flemingsburg is having) the community has put together for Franklin Sousley (one of the three flagraisers who did not survive the battle–Sousley is the one with the slung rifle in front of Ira Hayes).
Of the two flagraisings that day, now only former Corporal Chuck Lindberg (who is in the photo of the first and less epic raising) is still alive.
Sir Rhosis
To add to the explanation of the “posed” shot.
After the flag was raised and tied off, Rosenthal asked all the marines there to stand around it and give him a “gung-ho” pose. This picture is the one that he admitted was posed when asked if that “great picture” was posed (he had not yet seen his own photo). At the time he did not know he was being asked if the flagriasing picture was posed.
There is 16-mm movie footage of the flagraising that shows it is clearly not posed. It also shows that Rosenthal, by luck, snapped his shot at the exact right moment, as only a millisecond later the flagpole is upright and the six guys stumble all over each other getting it in place.
There is also another photo taken showing the little flag being lowered as the big one goes up that also shows it is a continuous action, not something set in place and “posed.”
Sir Rhosis
Sir Rhosis
This page features several Iwo Jima photos, including the two flag raisings and the posed shot Rosenthal snapped soon after the iconic picture was taken.
Huh. I’ve seen that photo lots of times. But I thought it was a statue. 
Did someone make a statue of that photo, or have I always mistaken the picture?
Yep, they made a statue based on the photo. It’s the Marine Corp war memorial and it’s in Arlington VA. Photos and info here and here.
From the National Park Service site here.
Sailboat
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Raising_of_the_flag_-_colored.jpg
Here is a colored photo to show and differentiate all six men.
FWIW, Staff Sergeant William Genaust captured the event on color 16mm film. And his footage reveals one mistake about the statue that is not obvious in the photo. The footage shows the six men gather around the pole to raise the flag, then shows the flagraising, then the men tying the flagpole down, then shows the group gathered around the flag. In the movie footage, it is clear that Sergeant Mike Strank is not wearing a helmet, just his soft cover (cap). But since he is all but obscured in the iconic photo by Franklin Sousley, anyone who hasn’t seen the Genaust film is none the wiser.
Also, after the 1954 dedication ceremony, Jack Bradley refused all interviews and rarely spoke of the photograph, did not even own a copy of it, his son says. He gave one brief interview about the events in 1985 at the behest of his wife “for the grandchildren.”
Sir Rhosis
I guess my question would be why does it take 4 guys to raise a flag?
Well I figure if it was my countries flag being raised then I damn well would want a hand in raising it.
Really big flags, like the second one, are pretty heavy and with the wind hitting it, they were at the top of a mountain, it takes a lot of guys.
The statue is really interesting. There is an ‘extra’ hand in there, representing the hand of God, or is it fate?
Plus, the “flagpole” was actually a long piece of pipe they found from some Japanese installation that had been on Suribachi. It weighed, according to the three survivors of the raising, around 200 pounds.
Sir Rhosis