WWII Veteran, Witness of Iconic Iwo Jima Flag and Star of New Documentary, to be Featured at The National Press Club

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Nov 21, 2012, 01:35 ET

National Press Club President To Host Honor Flight Film Screening and Moderate Panel Discussion

WASHINGTON, Nov. 21, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- On November 27, at 6:30 p.m., The National Press Club will show a free screening of the documentary Honor Flight followed by a presentation of WWII veteran Harvey Kurz's story to the Library of Congress and a question-and-answer panel discussion, ending at 8:30 p.m. Harvey Kurz will be available for press interviews starting at 3:00 p.m. the day of the event.

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The story of Harvey Kurz, an 86-year-old World War II veteran who saw the iconic flag go up at Iwo Jima, is featured in the new film Honor Flight, a heartwarming documentary about four living World War II veterans and a Midwest community coming together to give them the trip of a lifetime through the non-profit Stars and Stripes Honor Flight. The trips are called "Honor Flights" and for the all-but-forgotten veterans, who are in their late 80s and early 90s, it's often the first time they've been thanked and the last trip of their lives.

The documentary gained national attention this summer when its Milwaukee premiere broke the Guinness World Record for largest film audience in history with over 28,000 people in attendance. Directed and produced by filmmakers in the late 20s and early 30s, the film started as a short video on YouTube and, now, paperwork has been submitted to the Academy Awards for Best Documentary. Trailer Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=GM_XBIWCfNg.

Kurz's story will be presented to Bob Patrick, director of The Veterans History Project, to be included in the Library of Congress archive. The Veterans History Project is the largest oral history archive of veterans in the United States. Congress created the Veterans History Project in 2000 as a national documentation program of the American Folklife Center (www.loc.gov/folklife/) to collect, preserve and make accessible the first-hand remembrances of American wartime veterans from World War I through the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand the realities of war.

Schedule
6:00 - 6:30 pm - Reception (cash bar), Harvey Kurz and panelists available for interviews
6:30 - 8:00 pm - Honor Flight film screening
8:00 - 8:30 pm - Panel, Q&A with the filmmakers

The panel will be moderated by Theresa Werner, President of The National Press Club. Panelists include: WWII veteran Harvey Kurz, Library of Congress Veterans History Project Director Bob Patrick, Founder of Stars and Stripes Honor Flight Joe Dean and Honor Flight filmmakers Dan Hayes (Director) and Clay Broga (Producer).

To register for the event and for more information, go to: http://www.press.org/events/free-viewing-%E2%80%9Chonor-flight%E2%80%9D-and-panel-discussion
The event is free and open to the public, and will take place in the ballroom.

Stars and Stripes Honor Flight (SSHF) is a Wisconsin-based hub of the national Honor Flight Network. The Honor Flight Network is a nonprofit organization that is committed to sending every remaining WWII veteran in their area to visit the memorials in Washington, DC, built in their honor. Staffed by dedicated volunteers, the Honor Flight Network is comprised of 117 hubs in 34 states.

The documentary Honor Flight will be premiering in theaters across the country on December 7. For more information on the screenings, visit: http://www.honorflightthemovie.com

SOURCE National Press Club