Daniel Altman was born in June 1921 in New York City, New York. He lived in an apartment where he shared a bathroom with his neighbors. His mother gave him baths out of the kitchen sink. He also used citrus peels as toilet paper. He grew up around Catholic-Italian and Jewish immigrants and they all got along. They often celebrated each other’s holidays and people were very neighborly. During the Great Depression [Annotator's Note: The Great Depression was a global economic depression that lasted from 1929 through 1939 in the United States], his family got by, and Altman did not know any different. His mother could make any food taste good. His father was a World War 1 veteran, but he did not talk to Altman about his experience. Altman was drafted into the Army in 1942. He wanted to fight because all his friends were fighting too. It was just par for the course at that time for men to go into the military. He wanted to go into the Navy at age 16, but his parents would not allow it. During the invasion of Normandy [Annotator's Note: D-Day; the Allied invasion of Normandy, France on 6 June 1944], everything was a mess. He had to fight his way onto the beach and then later, had to fight in hedgerows [Annotator's Note: man-made earthen walls that surround a field that are often overgrown with impenetrable vegetation]. His unit blew off the side of a mountain. He had a hatred for the Germans for what they did to the Jewish people [Annotator's Note: also called the Shoah; the genocide of European Jews during World War 2].

After World War 2, Daniel Altman served in Nuremberg [Annotator’s Note: Nuremberg, Germany] and guarded the Nazi prisoners on trial. He talked about how crazy the Nazi officers were and how their families were crazy too. He had a strong hatred for the Nazis for what they did to the Jews [Annotator's Note: also called the Shoah; the genocide of European Jews during World War 2], and he often teased the Nazi prisoners while they sat in their cells. Altman did not care for Russians either.

[Annotator’s Note: Voices can be heard in the background throughout the segment.] After two days of cancellation due to the weather, on 6 June 1944, Daniel Altman loaded up in a Higgins boat [Annotator's Note: Landing Craft Vehicle, Personnel or LCVP; also known as the Higgins boat] to invade Normandy [Annotator's Note: D-Day; the Allied invasion of Normandy, France on 6 June 1944]. He saw so many good men that died. He named a few Jewish and Italian guys that perished on D-Day and thought they were great men. Altman landed on Omaha Beach and began running off the Higgins boat immediately. He heard a friend call him, and then his friend was shot in the head. Altman grabbed him and pulled him out of the water. He saw that he had died, so Altman left him and continued to move inland. Altman later learned that his friend did survive Normandy and lived until 92 years old. Altman joined his squad, and their mission was to blow a ridge with Bangalore torpedoes. The beach was all torn up from the battle with equipment, vehicles, and bodies all over. His unit was able to break through inland at the cost of many American lives. He told a story about how an American was blown up in a foxhole because he went for a Luger [Annotator's Note: German P08 Luger 9mm semi-automatic pistol] he saw. It was a boobytrap laid by the Germans. The Germans also used bouncing betties [Annotator's Note: German S-mine, Schrapnellmine, Springmine or Splittermine] and other mines and booby traps that many American G.I.s fell for and became casualties. He described his time in the hedgerow [Annotator's Note: man-made earthen walls that surround a field that are often overgrown with impenetrable vegetation] and how difficult it was to fight through them until someone came up with the idea of using a bulldozer and attached a point to it. This helped his unit break through.

[Annotator’s Note: Voices can be heard in the background throughout the segment.] Daniel Altman and his unit [Annotator’s Note: 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division] participated in combat during the Battle of the Bulge [Annotator's Note: Battle of the Bulge or German Ardennes Counter Offensive, 16 December 1944 to 25 January 1945]. Altman broke his wrist during the Bulge. He had to wear a makeshift cast and was returned to the front. He also wounded his eye when a burst of shrapnel blew over him. The clothing and equipment he was issued were not very good. The shoes were horrible and the helmet was cheap. The weapons he was given were from World War 1. While he was in the Hurtgen Forest, he was given mountain rations that had to be shared with three men. On Thanksgiving, he was given cold turkey. The fighting in the forest was artillery fighting. He carried a Bible with him throughout his time in Europe and often wrote notes in it. There were many times when he thought he would not make it back home. Altman remembers when the Malmedy Massacre [Annotator’s Note: The Malmedy massacre was a German war crime committed by soldiers of the Waffen-SS on 17 December 1944 near the city of Malmedy, Belgium] occurred and blamed Senator McCarthy [Annotator’s Note: Joseph Raymond "Joe" McCarthy, a Republican senator from the state of Wisconsin] for the lack of punishment the Germans received for killing the American soldiers. The only politician of his time that he liked was Harry Truman [Annotator's Note: Harry S. Truman, 33rd President of the United States]. He did not like FDR [Annotator's Note: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States] because he was a womanizer and cheated on his wife. Altman participated in the Red Ball Express [Annotator's Note: one of several American military truck convoy systems that transported supplies from the coast of France to Allied forces advancing across Europe] during combat delivering gasoline to units on the front lines. Altman suffered from shell shock [Annotator's Note: post-traumatic stress disorder; a mental health condition triggered by a terrifying event either experienced or witnessed] after the war due to the loud sounds of German artillery. During the Battle of the Bulge, Altman was a sergeant that managed his squad. He often killed German soldiers who tried to disguise themselves as Americans.

[Annotator’s Note: Voices can be heard in the background throughout the segment.] Daniel Altman and his unit [Annotator’s Note: 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division] participated in combat during the Battle of the Bulge [Annotator's Note: Battle of the Bulge or German Ardennes Counter Offensive, 16 December 1944 to 25 January 1945]. His days during the Bulge were spent trying to get acclimated to the cold weather. He was very happy when he was issued galoshes to put over his boots. Many of the troops developed frost bite. After the Bulge was completed, Altman joined the Third Army. [Annotator’s Note: Video break at 0:53:12.000.] Germany was a butcher shop and killed their own people and made their women prostitutes. He liberated some of the concentration camps and saw the horror of what was done to innocent people. The camp stunk very badly. He hated the Germans for doing this and he does not understand how a human being could do that to another. His war experience ended with guard duty of the Nazi prisoners in Nuremberg [Annotator’s Note: Nuremberg, Germany]. The prisoners were transferred by train and were led by guards into the court. He then earned enough points [Annotator's Note: a point system was devised based on a number of factors that determined when American servicemen serving overseas could return home] to go home. [Annotator’s Note: Interviewer readjusts mic on interviewee 1:02:42.000.]

Daniel Altman returned to the United States and lived in Newark, New Jersey with his wife and in- laws. He was greeted with a big sign and a fantastic dinner. He was so happy to be home and see American faces. Altman felt a strong animosity toward the Germans for a long time. He was glad to leave the Army and had no intention of staying in the military. He found a job as a troubleshooter and then at an air conditioning company. He and his wife had three kids. [Annotator’s Note: Interviewer helps interviewee adjust the mic at 1:07:35.000.] He knew a lot of veterans that had trouble with post-traumatic stress, but he did not because he had a loving wife. His parents performed different treatments on him when he hurt himself as a kid. He had one officer that was anti-Semitic towards him. The Southerners hated the blacks.

Daniel Altman’s most memorable experience of World War 2 was when his friend was shot on the beach of Normandy [Annotator's Note: D-Day; the Allied invasion of Normandy, France on 6 June 1944] and he thought he had died. Later he found out that he survived. He also remembers Master Sergeant Roberts who got a lot of guys killed due to his recklessness. Altman served because his friends did it and he did not want to be an outsider. He also wanted to do something for his country. The war made him appreciate the American people. The memories of his service have faded because he absorbed himself with his family. He thinks World War 2 does not mean anything to Americans today. He has strong feels against Barack Obama [Annotator’s Note: Barack Hussein Obama II, 44th president of the United States] and Hilary Clinton [Annotator’s Note: Hillary Diane Clinton, 67th United States Secretary of State, and First Lady of the United States from 1993 to 2001]. Altman believes there should be institutions like the National WWII Museum [Annotator's Note: The National World War II Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana], and that we should continue to teach World War 2 to future generations because war is not a nice thing, and it gives people background. While he was in service, he was often asked why Jewish males were circumcised. He was given cigarettes all the time while he was in service.