Documentary, Speakers To Tell Story Of "The Ritchie Boys"

The University of Cincinnati’s German Studies Department will host special guests Guy Stern and Fred Howard during showings of the documentary film, The Ritchie Boys, on May 11.

Public showings of the entire 90-minute documentary will be held in Tangeman University Center on UC’s main campus on May 10 (1:30, 3:30, 7 p.m.) and May 11 (1:30, 3:30 p.m.) The showings are free and open to the public.

The film portrays the untold story of young men who fled Nazi Germany, came to the United States, and joined the U.S. Army. At Camp Ritchie, Md., they were trained in intelligence and psychological warfare. They traveled back to Germany as soldiers in U.S. uniforms to fight the oppression of their fellow Jewish citizens. After the war many returned to America to lead quiet lives, never joining veterans’ organizations or sharing their stories until the filming of the documentary.

Two members of the group were Guy Stern and Fred Howard. Together in 1944, they interrogated and convicted German prisoners of war, including Dr. Karl Schuebbe, who was responsible for killing thousands of people by lethal injection.

Stern is now Distinguished Professor of German at Wayne State University, and Howard is a New York designer and businessman.

On May 11, these two remarkable men will be at the University of Cincinnati to show film clips from the documentary and attend an invitation-only reception.

The German Studies Department is a part of the McMicken College of Arts and Sciences. Professor Stern is a former head of UC's department.

For more information on the event, contact Nicole West at 513-556-0435.