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Milton Nadler probably accumulated more stories by the time he was 30 years old. than most of us do in our lifetimes. Born in 1923 in Trenton, New Jersey, Milt served in the U.S. Army from 1942 to 1945. during World War II.
He died at the age of 98. in 2022. but what makes private first-class Nadler's story particularly impactful. is that he was Jewish. an enemy of the Nazis.
an American uniform. Let's get into this story. Here's Milt. I was on the street with my bicycle doing something, I don't know. And then Pearl Harbor happened.
So I was a paper boy for the Trenton Times, so they were passing out. Extras.
So I immediately grabbed all I could, went out an extra, extra, you know, to bomb me in Pearl Harbor, and I got nickels, dimes. It was only two cents for a paper, but whatever they gave me, thank you, thank you, thank you. I sold a ton of papers, I went back and got more. until I realized what really happened.
So uh I made a not a lot maybe Well, maybe five dollars that day, but at the five hours at that time, That was a lot of money. Because we were very, very poor. I had no father. I was supporting my mother and my sister.
So I had two or three little jobs in the morning before school and I did some of my little jobs. that I really couldn't study in school.
So I hate to admit this. But I finished the seventh grade, and that's all, and I went to work, because I figured I was going to be drafted anyhow.
So I might as well work. And I worked until I got into service, of course, you know. I enlisted in the Navy. and they kicked me out because they found out I was colorblind. and I had my uniform and everything and I told my mother and all of a sudden uh They give me the bad news.
And they said, well, we'll get you in the army right away. You don't have to worry.
So they did.
So my dog takes a regular army. And I went to Camp McCain. Mississippi, a brand new camp. And it had rained the day before. There was mud.
and bugs and oh, I'm a city kid. I don't like snakes and bugs. You know. And this is a funny story.
So I was sitting on the rock just figuring out what am I going to do now, what's happening, here I am in the Army. And this sergeant walks up to me. And he says Who are you? I says. Private Milton Adler, sir, he said, you don't call me, sir, I'm a non-com.
Okay. He says, you know what? You look strong enough. I'm going to put you on guard duty tonight. You can go from that tree to that tree from 10 to 12.
He says, follow me. We'll get your gun.
So it comes at ten o'clock. And I hear a rustle in the bushes. And how are So And I stuttered a little bit. Look who's here. And there was silence.
Russian Bush is again and I hear Huh? Look at here! and up comes the sergeant of the guard. He says, what'd you just say? I says, Hold!
look who's here you dummy oh you excuse me you you said you're supposed to say halt who goes there Well, I didn't know. The following morning at breakfast, about a hundred guys stand up and holler, Halt, look who's here.
So that stuck with me the whole time my service, I couldn't get rid of it.
So when I came home in 1945, I wrote it into the Reader's Digest. They sent me $300.
Solid.
So we go to England. I was so sorry for the English people. They were taking such a beating. In other words, a guy would go to work in the morning and come back at night. His house is gone.
because at that time the buzz bombs were going over. And we were standing there like a bunch of, oh, there's another one, like a bunch of dummies. I mean, as long as you can hear them, no problem. The miniature cat straight down. Uh a funny thing though.
Our dentist was a drunk. Before he'd pull any tooth, he'd drink a glass of whiskey of some kind.
So they sent him back to the States.
So they said, now we need somebody for a couple of weeks to become a dentist. Yeah. What about, I raise my hand, what have I got to lose? I'll learn something. Maybe I'll come back and be a dentist.
And I fill a couple teeth. There's nothing to it, nothing to fill a tooth. You make the hole a little bigger, you clean it out. little medicine there, you pack the stuff in real order, you smooth it out, goodbye, you know, anyhow. I'd fill a couple teeth.
And when the dentist came, he said he checked the teeth and I still did a good job, you know. The nice thing about it is we're winning. And when you're winning, You're happy. And But we I know we went when we into the Farmland of France.
Well the Germans had poisoned the wells So, you know, our water was terrible.
So we'd fill our canteen cups. Calvalos.
So half the time we had a buzz on, but we never got drunk.
Well, I wouldn't say that. it it this is the bad part now. We were in an encampment and a lieutenant came up in a jeep. And he says, about a mile down in the road, he says, there's a fence-in area. And a lot of people there.
It's probably a work camp. Would anybody be interested in going up? and seeing what it is. I think they're all Jewish people.
So I I said, sure, so I went up, we got in his jeep, we went up. And uh They were they're The people were so They were well, what happened is it was burned out. And they were making shells for the Germans. And as long as they were there, they worked 12 hours a day. They fed him.
The minute the plant burned down. The Germans left. and took all the food, whatever they had, and so on. They're starving here. Their teeth were black.
their eyes were in sunken and you know There was a pile maybe of six bodies. And the smell. You have no idea what the smell of the place was. And I said, I don't know what to do now. I'll go back and I'll get whatever I can.
gum, food, candy. Underneath our helmets we have a little cap. Give them some caps. Let's get whatever we can. We got whatever we can and laid everything out.
And they come out like animals, like just... worse than animals. I remember, I don't talk about it too much because it was a bad, bad time. Just after that, was the bulge. And we were captured, but we didn't realize it.
They were all around us. But they figure if they go and take us, what are they gonna do with us? They had to have to feed us.
So I'm on the radio And my captain was Captain Tim. And he came on the radio, he says, I want you to. Get all the battalions. and tell them to blow their breaches, you know, the 105s. Because the Germans had a shell.
If they captured the 105s, they turn them around and shoot them at us.
So I said, well, how do I know you are Captain Tim? You may be some German telling us to do that. He's well He said, when you write to Edie. That was my girlfriend. Tell her I said hello.
And only he would know.
So, okay, I get on the radio and I call all five battalions. And one guy, some wise guy, comes back to me, he says, how do I know? This is legitimate. I said, well, it's from Captain Tim. He said, how do we know?
I said, well, ask me a question. He's the who played left field for New York Yankees. As a Joe de Maggio, Okay. Also, I hear boom. Boom, boom, they're blowing up the bridges.
of the you know So up comes Captain Tim in the Jeep, he spins around.
Okay, here's a couple grenades, blow up the radio shack. I said, how can I, all that equipment in there, my mother's picture, all my clothes, my girlfriend's picture, he said, give me the damn grenades. And he blows up the radio shack. I don't know if I was crying or not, but it was a sad time. Because that was my home.
Since, you know. I said, well, what do you do now? He said, You see the woods? I said, Yeah. Go to the woods because the tanks.
Can't come there. The tanks are on the way.
Well, me and a lieutenant and another guy, we take off to the woods. And it's drizzling. and we're cold. Normans have it heavy stuff on. and we'd go all night and we ended up in a building.
And we get down a basement. And those old buildings had a wooden floor. All of a sudden I hear a boom. Mum German boats. We weren't crying, but we were close to it.
We were scared to death. And if they go, well, I'm 20 years old, I lived this long. You hear a door open, it's it's creaking like you like in a movie, you know. and I see three rifle butts. coming down.
It was a free French. How lucky can we be? But the Free French had a habit. They Shoot first, then they ask questions. And one was a woman.
I remember she had hair. Oh well. Black hair. And I don't know why I did this. I got down on my knees.
And I hit myself in the chest. And Howard Jewish. Jewish! Jewish. And I hear him talking.
She says Jesus. Drop your trousers. If I wasn't circumcised, I wouldn't be here today. because none of the German soldiers were circumcised.
So they gave us bread and water and we had to stay in there all day because the Germans were all over. But that following night they brought us to an army hospital. and they got us back to the outfit. The whole world knows I'm circumcised now. And a terrific job on the production and editing by Russ Jones and Monty Montgomery.
And a special thanks to the Library of Congress. for sharing Milt's story with us, Milton Nadler. And my goodness, what a sense of humor, by the way. What a storyteller. Just after he was born, well, His circumcision saved his life, and yes, it's true.
Everyone in the world knows Milt Nadler. was circumcised. The story of Milt Nadler. Here. on our American stories.
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