celebrate. the battle helped change the course of the war. how the bay area remembers the six month long fight and why it was so pivotal. and while their families were interred in rudiment are you camp these japanese americans were fighting for their country. how the nation honored them decades later. all straight ahead on "second look." good evening, i'm julie haener

and this is look look. it is one of the most famous photographs of its generation. a sailor kissing a nurse in the midst of a celebration in new york's times square. that seen, 55 years ago captured the joy of a nation that had just gotten the news. four long years of war were over. the japanese had surrendered and world war ii had come to an end. from new york to san francisco people poured into the streets to mark the end of the long night of war. it's difficult for younger generations to comprehend how much world war ii had consumed american society. nearly everyone knew someone who died in the war. and nearly everyone back home had done what he or she could to help the war effort. that's why there was such a celebration when the fighting s over. ten years ago ktvu's bob mckenzie brought us this look back at august 14, 1945, the day the war ended.

>> reporter: 37:87 p.m. eastern wartime. >> the japanese have accepted our terms fully. that's the word we've just received from the white house in washington. this, ladies and gentlemen, is the end of the second world war. >> 55 years ter, it's hard for us to imagine the wave of relief and joy that spread across the world on august 14, 1945. the long bloody, frightening war was over, really over. in san francisco crowds filled the streets. bankers and streetsweepers, welders and nurses, people from all walks of life wanting to be together and share the moment. [ music ] [ applause ] >> reporter: pat castor was the manager of the emporium's book department. when she left work that day she stepped out into a roaring mob. >> it was a joyful chaos. it really was a joyful thing. but i felt very strongly that i

had to get home. as long as things were running. i wasn't frightened. i was afraid that my cable car might be pushed over or not -- we -- i couldn't get home. >> reporter: young was 13 then and after school helped her father in the restaurant. the crowds that day were so big the restaurant ran out of food. she went home to chinatown. >> we went up there after the restaurant closed. and there were firecracker, a lot of firecrackers and thrown very haphazardly. one popped right above my head. and i understand that went on all day the firecrackers and all of the celebrations. >> reporter: at the dry docks and naval bases and uso centers, wives and girlfriends tossed con pet at this at one another. their men were alive and would be coming home. the joy was ignited across the country, around the world. in new york an unprecedented crowd packed every inch of time square and spread up broadway

and down 42nd street. people who didn't drink got drunk. people who had held back their tears for four years let them go. new york raised the ruckus on a grand scale. >> my name is rita hayward this is a great day. i would like to add my name to this victory. >> in the united states, perhaps the san francisco bay area felt the most relief. this was the major u.s. city closest to the war in the pacific. here soldiers and sailors had killed time while waiting to be shipped to the war. here the military had gotten ready for a possible japanese attack on our ports, our shipyards and naval bases. for years san francisco had practiced blackouts. the dowsing or covering of every light in the city to make it harder for those japanese planes to find their targets. the attack never came, but it could have. >> we had to shut everything. we had black-out blinds and no -- you didn't even go out in the front of your house with a

great. i remember one time when the city was blacked out, silently i could see army trucks go by on their way in the dark. they blacked it out so that nobody who might be flying above could see that movement. >> reporter: now all of that was over. in the shipyards which kept turning out ships for the pacific war right to the last moment men and women laid down their tools and walked away. they had done their jobs. in the process america had become an industrial giant. but no one was thinking about that yet. the war was over and the boys were coming home. over the next few months they came cruising into san francisco bay. judgey andy survivors of the biggest war in history. if they had been scared out there, nobody would know about it. it was time to kiss the girls and think about the future. but for some, the war could not be finished, not laid to rest until the dead came home. it was a long wait. but on october 10, 1947, the

ships carrying soldier's bodies steamed slowly into san francisco harbor. a few of the bay area citizens lining the marina were there to receive the body of a son or husband. but most were there simply to show respect for these young men who had given up their lives. the world had freed itself from japanese imperialism and nazi brutality but at such a terrible cost. 292,000 american men killed in battle. 670,000 wounded. wives had become widows. children would grow up without fathers. parents' dreams for their son's futures had been ended with a bomb or a bullet. the effects of the war and the way it ended can't be calculated. buildup hundreds of millions of lives had been changed by it. it left scars on the memories of everyone who lived through it. in a sense, perhaps, world war ii will only be over when no one any longer remembers it. >> still to come on "second look" how the bay area remembers those who fought in one of the most pivotal battles

of world war ii, guadal canal. and a bit later the story of that battle, a six-month long fight to get a foothold in the pacific.

. looking back, the course of world war ii seems so natural to us, ending in victory over the germans and the japanese. but in the midst of the war, nothing seemed certain except the fighting and the dying. and then came a turning point in the pacific. the battle of guadal canal. and ever since the veterans of that war and of that battle have gathered in san francisco to remember. we have two of those memorials. amber lee's report from 1999. the record from david steve son reports in 2006. >> reporter: hundreds gathered at lands end in san francisco to honor the uss san francisco and the 107 service members who died aboard it at guadal canal.

>> you reflect back on the wonderful men we left there who died protecting this country. [ music ] >> reporter: this ceremony is sted yearly at the uss san francisco memorial, built in 1950 from a bridge section of the decommissioned ship. >> it brings back a lot of memories. every time i come here, i came today but people who i knew best on the ship. >> reporter: veterans today spoke of the battle of guadal canal adds one that helped put japan on the defensive during world war ii. other spoke of the personal devastation from the fight. >> i saw a good lot of men die there. >> reporter: he served six years as the captain's cook and as a medic. the rules of racial segregation were ignored during battle as soldiers of different colors you to and died amongst each other. >> but once the battle was over we were completely different

from each other and that's a crying shame. >> you went nights being reigned upon without food and low ambition. and with the modern war with how the extremes work out and how we feed and move our armies now doesn't compare to the trials and tribulations they had. [ music ] >> reporter: today's ceremony was a chance for veterans and veterans to-be to share their mutual admiration and to visit old friends and memories of friends past. >> i have a sense of being overwhelmed by memories. and i read the names of the guys that i knew that were dead. and running all the ways through it is a little thread of why did i survive? and it creates a certain type of guilt. >> 73-year-old clifford spencer was wounded during the japanese attack on the uss san francisco. he says he journeys from san

diego to san francisco each memorial day weekend. others come from around the state to pay tribute to the men who fought beside them, the men who died at sea during the battle. >> they were buried wrapped in canvass, weighed down so they would sink, and then slipped off a flag-draped platform in eternity. >> i walked in blood. among everything they say blood running down decks and all of that. we had all of that. blood was just running everywhere. i walked and you had to be careful how you walked or you would be stepping on somebody. >> reporter: parent of berkeley said he lost three close friends during the battle. he says that night caused him many nightmares and his memories are still painful. >> it wasn't something i like to walk around and talk about so i just didn't talk about it. >> reporter: he helped treat the injury that faithful night even though he was wounded himself. he received several medals for

his service at guadal damage. they are reminders of his fallen comrades. >> you are struck with sadness, of course, to think that a series of faces seems like it comes back to you of people who are not here, who died in the battle. >> reporter: when we come back on "second look" george watson recounts the story of guadal canal and the role it played in the american victory in the pacific. and a bit later, decades later, the nation remembers the japanese americans who fought for the united states in world war ii.

. world war ii ended on august 14, 1945 when the japanese finally surrendered. but the beginning of the end might have come three years earlier when the first u.s. marines landed on guadal canal in the so monday islands. they came ashore unopposed but it would take six months to kill, capture and drive out all

of the japanese forces on the island. it was a classic battle of attrition. one nation was equipped to survive it. the other was not. the george watson brought us the story of this pivotal battle in the war in the pacific. >> reporter: this is red beach on the island of guadal canal. this was the sight of the first american pacific of the war in the pacific. a lot of people ask where is this place? certainly if you asked any of the 10,000 marines who landed here in the late summer of 1942 they wouldn't have had any idea. but this was the farthest expansion of the japanese army. from here they planned to invade new guinea cut off supplies to australia and new zealand and inn veiled australia. but on august 7, 1972 they were going to take away the airfield and the island and in so doing answer the question of an anonymous marine private. his question was where the hell is guadal canal. on august 7th they landed

without a casualty. japanese were taken completely by surprise. by the 8th of august they got what they were after the field. henderson field was 3600 feet long but only partially completed. there were about 2,000 japanese on the island when the navy began the pre-invasion bomb barredment. to a man they fled inland. they have left behind an enormous amount of supplies, construction equipment, weapons, food and saki. it was a good thing, too. because admiral frank jack fletcher deemed the situation too dangerous and withdrew his aircraft carriers. that left the still unloading transports with no air protection they were forced to pull out. that left the marines stuck on guadal canal with less than 30 days worth of wood. it was better known as operation shoe string. japanese were landing reinforcements almost by will. they shelled the marines on the

island. by mid-october they had a plan to retreat to the hills and fight on as gorillas. that's how close they were to losing the island. at sea the japanese scored victory after victory. but in the end they lost almost as many ships as the americans. the telling point was america had the industrial wherewithal to replace her ships. the japanese did not. as the tide began to turn measures grew desperate. the americans ruled the air by now and japanese commanders were forced to beach their transports in order to unload troops before american aircraft could sink them. 45 years later, this same japanese transport still has a guadal canal beach for a home port. this troop transport was part of a fleet of 11 japanese transports carrying 12,000 troops and 10,000 tons of desperately needed supplies. frank particularly trying to unload by dawn they were discovered by american flyers and the slaughter began. 8,000 japanese troops were killed. 10,000 tons of supplies were lost.

the loss of men and supplies was practically a death sentence for the japanese on the island. this ship, one of a thousand memorials on guadalable. the japanese made a last-ditch effort to try to retake henderson airfield. the marines were dug in on the ridge the last barrier between the japanese and the airstrip. the enemy could see what they had come to recapture. as usual, the attack came at night. >> usually they were right on the river slopes. they were not necessarily on the low ground. we would be on the former slope here and they would be just on the reverse slope. so we were normally about 70 yards apart. in other words, you just walked a few metres and you start leaving grenades at each other. they would heave them at us. we would heave them at them. it was easier because it was too dangerous to get up on the ridge because you would get shot for sure. >> reporter: out of 2100 men

the japanese lost 1300. in a second attack they were virtually annihilated but come within 1,000 yards of henderson. a memorial marks the futility of their heroic actions. stands on the spot to which they first withdrew mount austin. on bloody ridge itself a american memorial honors the defense on an island nobody heard of. these artifacts of the war have en gathered and preserved. fred coleman a native islander establish today because he deeply loves the americans who came to his distant homeland. it is ironic he should feel so. all of the deprivations were brought to bare to people who asked for none of it. strategically the soloman islands were in the wrong place at the right time. so why did this man create this eerie, yet calmly fascinating place? >> my people were healthy in

1942. first point. second point, my uncle was killed with your people, a general. and then he just died. my father side i never forget england, australia, new zealand and america. the question there because why? because they sacrificed themselves. and we have peace in our country. >> i am really glad i got a chance to come back 45 years later. i feel that i owe some respect and honor the fellows and the men that we left behind. and that we left a lot of good people here. [ music ] >> when we come back on "second look," they fought for america while america locked up their families. decades later, the memorials and medals for japanese american veterans.

. in 1942, the u.s. government forced japanese americans from their homes and

into interment camps where they lived while many of their brothers and sons were fighting and dying. in the u.s. military in world war ii. in 2000, a memorial was dedicated to honor those who served abroad and those who maintain their loyalty on the homefront. ktvu's robert handa filed this report at the time. >> reporter: the japanese american resource center museum in san jose showing the wrenching experience of japanese americans during world war ii displays depict the interment of 120,000 american citizens and the war efforts by japanese american soldiers. but there was never a national memorial for those japanese americans until today. [ music ] >> reporter: in washington, d.c. a new japanese american memorial was dedicated today. reno headed a group of officials in a bittersweet ceremony. >> this site will be as much a civil rights as a war memorial. it will be a reminder to us all

about race i am racism, about suffering and justice and courage. >> reporter: many say the memorial was overdue. sakamoto was a military intelligence officer in world war ii while his family was interred. >> in the pacific war we fought two enemies, one was discrimination at homefront. and the enemy in japan. >> reporter: sakmoto prevailed. he was with douglas mcarthur on the uss missouri. he calls the national memorial a victory for japanese americans. >> it is a very important symbol because despite the bigotry and adverse situations, we made great progress in becoming accepted and proving ourselves as loyal american citizens. and i think that is important.

>> reporter: he says proof of that acceptance, mike honda, a former internee and just elected the south bay congressman. >> it encourages me to continue to be an advocate for those who don't have voices, to be constantly vigilant on people's constitutional rights regardless of how tense the situations may be. >> reporter: that same year, some americans who fought valiantly during world war ii were awarded the medal of honor 55 years after the war ended. the army had determined the soldiers had been overlooked possibly because they were japanese americans. ann mcdermott reports from la. >> reporter: these gis proudly fought in world war ii. decorated in record numbers, even as they died in record numbers, even as their families, many of their families were forced into camps. an old world war ii film tries to explain why these young men fought. >> they have wanted to prove to

other americans how wrong it is to judge a man by the pigment of his skin or the shape of his eyes. >> reporter: well, they proved it. and now more than half a century later some are getting tangible proof, a medal of honor, the nation's highest award for value our. a few years back the army reopened the files of dozens of japanese american and pacific islander soldiers from world war ii to see if any might have been denied awards because of possible prejudice. it was determined that more than 20 of these men should have, in fact, gotten medals of honor. one of them is senator daniel inaway who lost an army in a battlefield. another is joe sakado wounded in france. he is not sure he deserves a medal of honor. but he does know his old unit the 442nd regiment al combat team always seemed to be in the thick of every fight. >> we were, as a unit, we were

used like cannon todayer. >> reporter: and yet. >> i was willing to die for my country. >> reporter: a friend of his did after emerging from their fox hole and getting hit by german fire from a nearby hill. >> why? why did you have to get out of the fox hole? >> reporter: then he did what ultimately won the medal of honor. >> maybe i went out of my mind or either i just lost it and i just -- i was going to go take that hill back or else die trying. >> reporter: he took that hill. and more than 50 years later, he still thinks of the friend he left behind there and says part of his medal will always belong to his friend. >> yes, that's for him. >> reporter: and that's it for this week's "second look." i'm julie haener. thank you for watching.