Sergeant Stanley Martin Lieber: 1st. Motion Picture Unit

     Because of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, early in 1942, Stanley Martin Lieber enlisted in the U.S. Army and entered the Signal Corps as a lineman. Posted stateside, Lieber maintained and serviced communication equipment and effected repairs to damaged telegraph/telephone lines and poles. Later, Lieber would transfer to the 18th. Army Air Forces Base Unit, better known as the 1st. Motion Picture Unit (FMPU) which was housed in Culver City, California. 

     The FMPU’s mission was to produce propaganda films, create training films and documentation, and also serve as the sole training provider for combat photographers and cameramen who would be deployed to the frontlines. Training, to include regular infantry combat instruction, for these men was conducted at Page Military Academy which was in nearby Los Angeles, California. Lieber was tasked with the writing of military manuals, scripting for training films, and illustrating. Lieber received the MOS (Military Occupational Specialty) of 288 (Playwright) though other sources list his MOS as 286 (Motion Picture Production Technician). Lieber would be discharged from the Army in late 1945 and with the war over, the FMPU was disbanded in December 1945. By the time of his discharge, Lieber had achieved the rank of sergeant and was decorated with the World War II Victory Medal and the American Campaign Medal. He also earned the right to wear the Honorable Service Lapel Button which was given to honorably discharged servicemen. It was better known as the “Ruptured Duck” due to the appearance of the oft said poorly rendered eagle which made up the button or pin. 

     Because of his service and significant post-war contributions, Lieber was inducted into the Signal Corps Regimental Association and made an honorary member of the 2nd. Battalion, 3rd. Infantry Regiment in June 2017. The 3rd. Regiment, nicknamed the “Old Guard”, is the oldest active duty unit in the Army, having been formed in 1784. Lieber would pass away in November 2018. 

     Stanley Lieber is much better known to us as comic creator Stan Lee.