by the arthur vining davis foundations-- dedicated to strengthening america's future through education. by the annenberg foundation. the summerlee foundation. by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. narrator: in the early 1940s, while serving aboard the aircraft carrier uss "enterprise," enlisted man charles wheeler heard some unlikely news about a new officer. i heard about one of our new pilots that come aboard ship, that he was a mexican boy. and i thought, "i ain't believing that." wheeler, too, had mexican ancestry, but he'd never seen a mexican-american pilot until he met ensign manuel gonzales from california. they soon grew close. we bonded over our mexican background, and it was like having a new friend. on the morning of december 7th, 1941, the ship was at sea, 2 days behind schedule. it should have been safe in port at pearl harbor. prior to going into any port, we always sent a few of our aircraft in to make arrangements. so, very early in the morning, they launched the dive-bombers, and ensign g