Gabriel Bruno, Allegheny Township

“There are no enemies, we are only here to kill each other” the German soldier said when Gabriel (Gabe) Bruno was captured in the Battle of Hürtgen Forest in November of 1944. Lying in a ditch after being shot three times, he was asked by the Germans if he had any cigarettes. Replying that he did, he was told he would have to offer them as they weren’t permitted to ask. In doing so, Gabe thought there weren’t enough for all of them, so he said, “Here, you’ll have to give them out. I don’t want to make any enemies!” That brought the reply of “no enemies” that he remembers so well. Gabe, after only four weeks of combat, became a prisoner for the remainder of the war.

Gabe Bruno’s story of his World War II adventures is captivating. Born in Italy, he came to Vandergrift in 1936 as a 14-year old. His dad, Jack, had come some years before to make a home. His mom had died while in Italy. He was drafted into the Army six years later on September 23, 1942 and went to Fort Riley, Kansas for basic training. After boot camp he was sent for further training as a Military Policeman and then assigned to Hollywood.

Yes, you read that right - Hollywood! “My adventure can be divided into two totally distinctive sections,” Gabe said. He went on, “The first part was probably the most exhilarating period of my life. It was full of excitement and memorable occasions. The second part was totally the opposite – wounded, near death, tortured, suffering, cold; but that eventually came to the end.”

Excitement and memorable occasions were generated when Gabe was assigned to the Hollywood Canteen (originated by Hollywood stars to entertain WWII soldiers). It was here that Gabe met and got to know many famous Hollywood Stars such as Errol Flynn, John Garfield, Betty Grable (he escorted her), Roy Rogers, Phil Silvers, Gabby Hayes and many others. His one treasure is his military belt that has over 27 Hollywood star signatures on it! “At that time, to a 20-year old young man from Vandergrift, Pennsylvania, who knew very little about the world, it was most exciting,” he said.

Hollywood Canteen that Gabe Bruno was assigned to as a Military Policeman

It wasn’t a year and half later this tour came to an end when Gabe was assigned from the Military Police to a casualty replacement in the 28th Division. Three more months of basic training took place and then he was shipped overseas arriving in Scotland. From there they were rushed to England to be shipped to France. After landing there they were sent to the front lines at the German border. This is where he learned what ‘causality replacement’ meant: replacing the soldiers who were killed or severely wounded and removed from fighting.

It was here that Gabe entered the Battle of the Hürtgen on November 12, 1944. The terrain of the Hürtgen Forest gave great advantage to the German army of late 1944. The Germans were heavily bunkered in the dense forest and also made use of the Siegfried Line defenses. Our army suffered tremendous casualties in the longest single battle the U.S. Army has ever fought in its history. We had over 24,000 direct casualties during the battle, plus another 9,000 casualties due to fatigue, illness, and friendly fire; casualties among the Germans also reached 12,000.

“I arrived at the combat zone totally unaware of what was happening,” Gabe said. “My first realization of it all sent me into shock as I saw for the first time a casualty up close and in person. The next thing I recall was being in a minefield. I had to be coaxed by a Lieutenant to get out,” Gabe went on. He continued, “After I survived that, came two of the most frightening days I ever lived. A lieutenant took about eight to ten of us who were detached from the regular outfit. Actually, we were the forward post trying to hold the Germans back.” The men were then told to hold the position at all costs. Gabe and two others were sent back for ammunition and when they tried to return to the front line they were encircled by the Germans. Trying to break through the German line they ran into machine gun fire. One was fatally wounded and Gabe was hit three times. “If these had been an inch in any direction, I would have been better off dead,” he said. “Fortunately, the firing stopped and a German who was sitting with a burp gun yelled at us, ‘the war is over for you now.’”, Gabe said.

Gabe was first sent to a prisoner of war camp for questioning and then shipped across Germany to another camp, Stalag 2A, north of Berlin, near Neubrandenburg, Germany. The trip was a very long four days during which they were bombed at least twice, once extensively by our own forces. Gabe was starved, dehydrated and didn’t know if he would survive another night. The prisoners were denied food and water. Gabe, in desperation, traded his Parker gold fountain pen for a turnip from a British soldier.

Huertgenwald area where Gabe was taken as Prisoner

Once in the camp, he was sent to the infirmary where he met a physician who was Italian. Conversing in their native tongues, the doctor told him to call off sick every morning and come to the infirmary to help him by being an interpreter. He eventually became part of the staff.

Gabe also tells the story about Harley Lucas, the camp leader. Although not known to him at the time, he was sent to the camp by the OSS to build a resistance in case the Germans attempted to kill the prisoners, as they threatened if the Allies closed in. Lucas did this by forming as soccer league with divisions which actually represented troop divisions. Prisoners such as Gabe were thoroughly checked out with outside sources to make sure they were not German moles to spy on them. Gabe became a trusted member of the leaders.

Interestingly, as the war ended, it was the Russians that liberated Stalag 2A and set the troops free. Gabe and the other American solders were repatriated to the United States and on January 3, 1946, Gabe was released from the service.

Residing in Allegheny County, Gabe, at 85 years of age, is still is a spry young man. Golfing 18 holes four times a week and gardening keep him on his toes. Although he put his WWII experiences behind him, didn’t really talk about it and didn’t join veteran groups, he recently joined the Southern Alleghenies Chapter of the American Ex-Prisoners of War. He wrote about his story and it was published in the Chapter’s “Stories of Valor”. He will be the Commander of the Chapter in 2008.

Married to Sue, they raised three sons and have four grandchildren.