up next on a second look, from combat footage to propaganda films. the famous movie directors who put their skills to work in the american effort to win world war ii it's straight ahead on a second look. hello everyone i'm welcome to a second look. i'm frank somerville. tonight hollywood goes to war. when the united states entered world war ii some of the most famous directors in the movie industry stepped forward to volunteer their skills, their experience, and their expertise. in some cases they made

propaganda films rallying the nation to the war effort. in others they put their lives at risk documenting the combat itself. one of those was john ford. assigned to the pacific island of mid-way. they stood at the pacific filming the battle. ford himself was knocked off that roof and received shrapnel wound. he produced a documentary called the battle of mid-way. and in 2000, ktvu's bob mackenzie found a former american sailor who was not part of ford's film and who's heroism went unrecognized for half a century. >> reporter: for more than 50 years nobody knew that art lewis was a hero. that he had risked his own life to save other people's lives in world war ii. that's because lewis never talked about what he had done and because the men who hand

out medals and write military history had overlooked him. it's time we told his story. >> reporter: on june 4, 1942 a naval battle that changed the course of history began near the pacific island of mid-way. an outnumbered and outgunned task force faced military armada. the military forces had the advantage of surprise. they had cracked the japanese secret code. the war in the pacific would turn on this battle. art lewis was an 18-year-old sailor on the destroyer batch. his job was to shoot down enemy planes. japanese dive bombers who came in dropping torpedoes, often pointing directly to the gunners. >> talk about feeling.

>> reporter: not abjectly afraid. >> i had no anger at all. >> reporter: art lewis has parkinson's disease and lives in the hospital. the disease has taken a toll on his body but not on his spirit. and his memories of mid-way are vivid. >> this one guy, i knocked him down. he went down to a slow dive. hit the dive and skidded. and when he jumped out of that car. he blew out of his 45. >> reporter: if anyone still doubted the vulnerability of great ships, the battle finished the question. within minutes several were

sunk. hundreds of soldiers in them. a vessel could turn into a blazing coffin in seconds. try to imagine what it would be like to stand on a ship while it went into burning melting metal. >> when they're going perpendicular. they can't hit you. to launch a torpedo you had to get sideways. you have to get toward a mile at least. and here comes something, like a freight train. >> reporter: the battle of mid- way raced for three ways with the american fleets scoring most of the kills. but then the great u.s. carrier york town was killed. first by enemy, then by bombs then submarines. >> those bodies were flying through the air. some of the guys had gotten off

but some of them didn't. it was a bad thing. >> reporter: art lewis's destroyer went to help. lewis was one of the ones who volunteered to swim to the survivors with buoys so they could stay afloat until they were rescued. >> and we had to help guys we thought were half way alive. because if they were dead, you couldn't use them. you have to have a hell of a job i tell you. >> reporter: how he survived that day he says he hasn't any idea. there were many heros that day and many were recognized. but it wasn't until 50 years later that lewis was awarded with the star of valor. >> what about any of the guys

you helped. did you ever see them again? >> never again. but 35 years after the fact, this woman is in carolina or some place. says, i want to thank you for saving my father's life at the battle of mid-way. that was an awesome -- >> reporter: most of those sailors probably didn't even know who saved their lives. but art lewis knows, maybe that's enough. >> reporter: as bob mentioned the japanese sank the american airplane york town. robert valor was born only a few years later in the san diego area and he grew up to become an understand water explorer. he was the man who located the titanic in 1985. in 1998, 56 years after the york town went down, and 56

years after robert valor was born. he found the york town lying at the bottom of the pacific ocean. in 2001, robert valor was a guest on mornings on two and talk about locating that famous world war ii air carrier. >> still, we're going to show some video. still fairly intact. >> you know the last time they saw her she was upside down and when we found her she was right side up. we're coming in on the bridge. we looked in the bridge and we could see the flight deck of the york town. in fact, when we were going along the side here it is. this is where the air boss is as he commanded the take offs and landings of that ship. >> when you find something like this there must be a lot of excitement because you've been looking for that for so long. but that also has to be coupled with the fact that the people went down. >> that's right. >> we have survivors with us. i served in the u.s. navy for

30 years so i realized that these are very special places. still to come on a second look, bob mackenzie takes us along on one of the workhorses in europe. also known as the flying fortress. a bit later the deadly dangerous facing the photographers who went offshore to chronicle the landing on d day. [doorbell rings] hey. hey. what's this? it's u-verse live tv. with at&t u-verse... you can watch live tv from your device.

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tonight on a second look, the hollywood director's who volunteered their film making talents during world war ii. among them was william willer who's movie mrs. winicker would win an oscar. he would also produce a documentary known as the memphis bell. incredibly the 10 men survive

over a dozen missions. bob mackenzie got his own chance to fly in a b17. while it wasn't nearly as dangerous or harrowing, it was still very memorable. >> i flew my first 19 missions in 21 days and we were practically a zombie at that time. getting up at 4:00 every morning. briefing, flying the mission and getting to bed at 3:00 in the afternoon. for a wake up the next morning to do it again. that was 19 times in 21 days. >> reporter: how old were you then? >> i was old, i was 24. >> reporter: maybe because world war ii were the last war anybody believed in. the war relics still have a romance to them. but these are not just museum relics, they fly. >> reporter: we joined a few very frivolous passengers as these war birds took a brief

flight. world war ii bombers were made to fly at 12,000 feet and higher but they were also made to fly low. flying at times at 500 feet we could read the name on a tractor. a channel 20 camera man got some good views of us. maybe because we've seen so many old war movies we found there was something moving about being aboard a b17 in flight. after all this was a piece of flying history. the b17 was originally built as a defensive plane to patrol u.s. coastlines. a journalist who saw an early model said it's a veritable flying fortress. the name stuck. the flying fortress became a flying plane and the u.s. bought thousands of them. they dropped more bombs on enemy targets than any other plane in the world. the men who flew them were boys in their late teens or early 20s with bodies young and tough enough to stand the bouncing and the icy winds that blew

through cracks and the temperatures that sometimes went to 40 below zero. and missions that sometime kept them in the air for 12 to 15 hours. they flew in formation for mutual protection. the job was to bomb an enemy target and come back. but getting there often meant going through a hail of flak and enemy fighting planes. >> they're coming around. >> reporter: on our ride we had no flak or flighters to worry about. and the temperature was cool but tolerable. but if we were enjoying the ride, chip robins was in heaven. robins is a long time airline buff who owns a plane. >> this was something i dreamed since i was 2 years old. the first time i saw a b17 i felt this is where i belong.

>> the one thing that is not alike an airliner, it's bumpy. one thing you have to say you sure know you're flying. >> reporter: another advantage we had over the airplane jockeys of world war ii we knew we were coming back. most of the time the b17 gave more punishment than it took but not always. nevertheless b17s were famous for what they could withstand and still make it home. a legendary number of times b17s landed with half their systems destroyed coming in as the old song says on a wing and a prayer. often among those who came back came back terribly wounded or worse. even planes that came down had their survivors. an b17 bomber remembers a time he had a plane shot out from

under them. >> 17 died, two survived. >> reporter: you were one of the two. >> one of the two. >> how did you survive? >> i blew out, i had my parachute hooked up. i hooked up and i went out. >> reporter: for us the b17 was a piece of history. for the men who once blew the plane it was a piece of their youth. when we come back on a second look. wherever the troops went they went. the incredible footage recorded by john houston camera man in the battle of san prieto. a bit later, remembering perhaps the best sale man america had. oscar winning director frank capel.

tonight on a second look world war ii combat films and the men who made them. when the troops went ashore on d day in 1944 so did a platoon of combat film photographers organized by hollywood director george stevens and they faced

the exact same deadly dangers as the soldiers around them. ktvu's bob mackenzie described that bloody landing especially at omaha beach. >> reporter: for the men who climbed into lsts and scts the long wait was over. >> we have a misty rain on and off. rain all over the place. you're getting wet. >> reporter: frantic german defenders tried to alert berlin. >> as the battery comes along closest to you. you see it walking on. you try to move out of the the way as as soon as you can. because they're over you,

going, going. and about that time, a wave turned it over. and there was just a bloody mess. that was my first experience of it. just along the way. i seen corpses put in caskets. >> on most beaches the casualties were light. but at omaha beach something went wrong. the bombers had overflown their targets and the natzi guns were still intact. many drowned before they reached the shore. some took their first two or three steps on french soil and died there. the beach was wide and deep there was nothing for cover until a man could reach the wall, .1 of a mile ahead.

hundreds never got that call. omaha beach was a bloody mess. those who did make it across the beach got about as far as the break water. any man who stuck his head up was asking for machine gunfire. that went on for about 2-1/2 hours. finally a navy captain offshore harry sanders assessed the situation and did something very risky. he brought his plane on to shore. there were 5,000 casualties just on this beach just on that morning. legendary director houston had just finished filming the falcons when world war ii began and he volunteered and was attached to the 143rd infantry division assigned to make documentaries. his most famous was about the battle of san prieto an italian

town 60 miles from naples. photographers moved just along the troops capturing combat. they didn't release the film to the public until 1945 and here now is part of the battle of san prieto. when we come back on a second look, from world war ii propaganda to it's a wonderful life. the life and time of directors frank capa. >> follow second look on facebook and twitter.

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the movie makers who covered the world war ii battles. many of his films were aimed at the troops to tell them what they were fighting forment when frank caper died, bob mackenzie look back at his life and career. >> ladies and gentlemen, frank capra. >> >> reporter: it was jimmy stewart being honored at this film institute tribute but the audience stood up for frank capra as if he was the honoree. and rightfully so, it was in capra's films where stewart became well known. >> the actors, if that front line collapses, the show is over. >> reporter: it was typical of capra to pass credit to his actors. but the solid performers like stewart it was his own idealism

and essential sweetness that permeated his films and made him popular. jefferson smith and smith goes to washington believed in his fellow men and stood up for corruption. >> i guess this is just another lost cause mr. smith. all owe people don't know about lost causes. they are the only causes worth fighting for. the reasonable reason any man ever pays for them. because of just one plane and simple rule, love thy neighbor. >> love thy neighbor, stand for what's right. those were the messages in capra's films.

mr. dees goes to town. pocket full of miracles. he believed in the ideals he portrayed in his films. he was married to the same woman for 56 years. as for sex he liked to present it in its innocent level. as in his big hit it happened one night. astounded clark gable by showing some leg. but the frank capra movie one that will probably be around as long as there's christmas, it's a wonderful life. in that 1946 film, jimmy stewart is the owner of a small town savings and loan. he plans to commit suicide because he hasn 't made much money, his business is failing

but before he can do it. an angel comes and shows him what would have happened if he had not lived in his town. >> every man in that transport died. harry wasn't there to save him because you weren't there to save harry. george, you really had a wonderful life. don't you see what a mistake it would be to throw it away? >> in the late 40s and 50s, capra continued to make pictures as his popular declined. in state of the union he kept on affirming american ideals. the retired capra winner of three oscars spoke to an audience of young film makers restating his beliefs.

>> if there are such things as ideal and people who believe in ideals, and live them. people like deeds and bailey, of course they do. there's probably one in every block. people who care about somebody else. >> ♪ that's it for this week's second look. i'm frank somerville. we'll see you again next week.

stay tuned for a special sneak peek of the new fox series "gang related." action! move! move, damn it! damn it, move! this is the opening of "24: live another day." we start with cia ops chasing somebody. the series begins running, you know? freeze it right there. that jack bauer has survived, intact, to live another day is good news for a lot of people. what the hell have you been doing the past four years? i was really excited that "24" was coming back. i couldn't believe it. there's fireballs. there's action. it's all good, "24" kind of stuff. it's a high-octane thriller with, literally, time ticking down. it's a self-destruct program. damn it! why is he here? why is he back? jack bauer is a traitor and a psychopath. is he here to harm the president? is he here to help the president? we don't know. if an american president is assassinated on foreign soil, you're looking at a world war. london and the cia will never be the same.