Last Primary MOS
7236-Tactical Air Defense Controller
Last MOSGroup
Air Control/Air Support/Anti-Air Warfare
Service Years
1942 - 1948
Last Photo
Personal Details
Home Country
United States
Year of Birth 1921
This Military Service Page was created/owned by
LtCol David Gurfein (Bull)
to remember
Marine Capt Arthur Gurfein (Big Art).
If you knew or served with this Marine and have additional information or photos to support this Page, please leave a message for the Page Administrator(s) HERE.
Attorney, Father, Grandfather, Great Grandfather, role model, mentor, hero
Other Comments:
Former professional basketball player. One of the original NY Knicks. Captain of the LIU Blackbird's NIT Championship basketball team
Western Pacific Campaign (1944-45)/Battle of Peleliu
From Month/Year
September / 1944
To Month/Year
October / 1944
Description The Battle of Peleliu, codenamed Operation Stalemate II, was fought between the United States and the Empire of Japan in the Pacific Theater of World War II, from September–November 1944 on the island of Peleliu, present-day Palau. U.S. Marines of the First Marine Division and later soldiers of the U.S. Army's 81st Infantry Division, fought to capture an airstrip on the small coral island. This battle was part of a larger offensive campaign known as Operation Forager which ran from June–November 1944 in the Pacific Theater of Operations.
Major General William Rupertus, USMC—commander of 1st Marine Division—predicted the island would be secured within four days. However, due to Japan's well-crafted fortifications and stiff resistance, the battle lasted over two months. In the United States, it was a controversial battle because of the island's questionable strategic value and the high casualty rate, which exceeded all other amphibious operations during the Pacific War. The National Museum of the Marine Corps called it "the bitterest battle of the war for the Marines".
