. >> dan barton's two older brothers were marines.43 he came a marine raider. >> many people were telling me, you're too soft. you're not going to beat the japanese. >> larry joined the navy and requested sea duty. >> i was a kid out of high school. high school friends had been killed in north africa. >> herman celebrated his 19th birthday with the 96th infantry birthday. >> on my 19th birthday, they had a foxhole-to-foxhole network set up and sang happy birthday. >> an island 360 miles off the coast of japan, okinawa, the emperor's doorstep. >> it was the door to japan, and they knew that better than we did. >> the japanese government, after the wall of iwa jima, knew the americans were going to strike at okinawa. they knew that once okinawa fell, it was only a matter of time before the invasion of japan. >> okinawa, the most strategic point invaded thus far. >> the proximity to japan made okinawa critical to the allied plan. get an unconditional japanese surrender, even if they had to go to tokyo to get it. the island is 60 miles lo