Legion history on the projector screen

For the second year, The American Legion's national convention featured a day of movies and short pieces centering on the history of both the Legion and the wars in which its members have fought - a kaleidoscope of decades, programs and services.

The lineup included episodes from the national American Legion centennial documentary "To Strengthen a Nation," and from the Department of Arizona's "Heroes of The American Legion" series; Legion-produced documentaries from the 1990s and 1950s; and a pair of professional short films.

The former, "Meuse-Argonne Offensive," was accompanied by an appearance from filmmaker Jo Throckmorton of Bloomington, Ind. He described how he recruited active-duty U.S. servicemembers from nearby to portray their World War I counterparts in what he called an "experiential film" that took viewers into the trenches, dealing with everything from gunfire to mustard gas.

Earl Chwala, from Walter Nelson Post 326 in Boyd, Wis, dropped in on the festival more than once during the day. "I found it interesting, " he commented. "The information, the history of it." Chwala's attraction to such things came with him - back in Wisconsin, he volunteers at a veterans home and enjoys the stories he hears there.

Selections from the festival will be made available on the centennial playlist on The American Legion's YouTube channel.