The Real Guy who Saved Private Ryan | Father Francis L. Sampson
Saving Private Ryan was inspired
by the true story of Sergeant Fritz Niland
and the man who rescued him, Father
Francis L. Sampson, an Army chaplain. In
the Steven Spielberg WWII movie, Tom
Hanks' character, Captain John Miller, is
a former school teacher who leads a
mission to find Private James Francis
Ryan, portrayed by Matt Damon, after it is
discovered that three of Private Ryan's
brothers have been killed in action.
Captain Miller is fictional and so is the
mission.
In real life, Father
Sampson, an Army chaplain, found out that
three of Sergeant Fritz Niland's brothers
had presumably been killed in action. He
contacted the War Department and started
the necessary paperwork to have Sergeant
Niland sent home. Unlike the movie,
Sergeant Niland's location was known and
there was no daring mission to track him
down. However, Father Sampson's experience
during WWII is itself worthy of a movie.
Get to know the real-life WWII hero,
Father Francis L. Sampson, and find out
how the true story of Fritz Niland differs
from Saving Private Ryan.
Related Article: Saving Private Ryan: History vs. Hollywood
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