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One of the most decorated American soldiers...was a tiny young man named Audie Murphy.

He was born to a sharecropper family in Texas in 1924. His father left, and his mother died when he was 17. As one of twelve children, he dropped out of school early to support his siblings. He hunted for food and worked as a cotton picker. After Pearl Harbor in 1941, Audie wanted to serve his country. The Navy and the Marines turned him down due to his age and size. He was 5 feet 5 inches tall and he weighed just 112 pounds.
He enlisted in the Army the following year after his sister forged his affidavit. Murphy was sent to North Africa, and then to Italy and France. He first saw combat in Sicily and proved to be a great fighter.

Beginning as a private, he rose to the rank of second lieutenant. On January 26, 1945, his unit was near the French town of Holtzwihr. He had 19 soldiers left in his company when they were attacked by 250 German troops. Audie ordered his men to fall back while he stayed and called in an artillery strike. Their tank destroyers were in flames, but machine guns on them were operational. He climbed up the burning vehicle and opened fire against the Nazis. He held them off for an hour, single-handedly killing 50 enemy soldiers. He was exposed to gunners all along and his leg was wounded.

Murphy was promoted to first lieutenant and awarded Medal of Honor. It was just one of 37 decorations he received from the US, France, and Belgium. Upon return from the war, Audie appeared on the cover of Life magazine.

Young and good-looking, he was spotted by movie producers. He starred in more than 40 films over the next 20 years. In 1955, he played himself in To Hell and Back, an adaptation of his memoir.

Though he was a star, he was unable to rid himself of the horrors of war. Audie suffered from nightmares which led to insomnia and depression. He slept with a loaded pistol under his pillow and got addicted to sleeping pills. He spoke out about his problems to highlight the importance of special care for veterans. Murphy died tragically in a plane crash in 1971. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors.

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