A picture is worth a thousand words, but it can't always tell the whole story. The sailor in the classical photo VJ Day in Times Square, George Mendonsa, died last month at age 95.
On Aug 14, 1945, Japan surrendered to the United States, ending World War II. American photojournalist Alfred Eisenstaedt took his camera to the streets of New York. In Times Square, people were celebrating the victory everywhere.
"I saw a sailor running along the street taking hold of any and every girl he met. Whether she was a grandmother, heavy, thin, old, didn't make a difference" Eisenstaedt said.
He then took the photo, which later became one of the most famous photos in history. But Eisenstaedt forgot to ask for the pair's names!
Since then, many have come to Eisenstaedt to say they are the pair in the photo. One book, The Kissing Sailor, describes every detail of the photo, as well as interviews with all the people in the background of the photo. The authors stated that Greta Zimmer Friedman, a nurse, was the woman pictured.
Mendonsa described what happened that day. According to him, he and his friends were in a theater at the time. People rushed in, shouting that the war was over. They then ran out and joined the street celebration in Times Square.
Although it was quite sudden, Friedman, who died in 2016, said she didn't mind the kiss. "It was just somebody really celebrating …it wasn't a romantic （浪漫的） event. It was just … thank God, the war is over. "
