Stevens, George, 1904-1975, contributor. United States. Army. Signal Corps. Special Coverage Unit, contributor. moving image Unedited footage. lcgft Nonfiction films. lcgft 1944. zxx Stevens and the SPECOU arrive in France aboard the British ship HMS Belfast and rejoin American troops as they move through Normandy. Scenes include troops on ships and landing craft, ship's guns firing, barrage balloons, aircraft, soldiers on the beach; troops passing through bombed out villages; a medal ceremony with General Bernard Montgomery, and scenes of everyday camp life. Scenes depicted are not in chronological order. Sources used: Five came back by Mark Harris; "Lt. Col. George C. Stevens, World War II color film" document in NAVCC acquisition file, ACQ: Stevens, George (Jr.). Stevens and the SPECOU land in Normandy aboard the British Navy cruiser HMS Belfast -- Shots of the fleet of ships and landing craft, ship's guns firing, barrage balloons overhead, officers on the bow of the ship, aircraft overhead, troops looking toward the shore, and men on the beach -- Out of sequence shot of massed ships at a dock, possibly pre-D-Day at embarkation point --Troops on foot pass bombed buildings in a severely damaged village -- Stevens and Mellor walk through town, talk to French civilians, possibly in Cherbourg, France -- Stevens and Moffat visit an airfield, panning shots of bombed out hangers and other buildings -- Jeeps and tanks and trucks loaded with American troops pass through another severely bombed town -- Dead German soldiers on the side of the road -- General Bernard Montgomery pins medals on two soldiers at a ceremony attended by General Omar Bradley and General George Patton; event is covered by numerous still photographers and cameramen -- Scenes of camp life, soldiers receive cigarettes and candy, relax, talk, smoke, load into trucks and line up for food after disembarking -- Military messenger arrives, delivers a message and leaves immediately -- At a campsite at Sainte-Mère-Église, near Carentan, France, additional scenes of camp life with Moffat and others cooking, eating and cleaning up, walking around camp. During World War II, film director George Stevens was commissioned as an officer in the United States Army Signal Corps. In late 1943, he was directed to organize a Special Coverage Unit (SPECOU) of cameramen and sound recorders to photograph the Americans landing in Europe on D-Day. The unit was embedded with American and Allied troops as they moved through France, Luxembourg, Belgium and Germany. The entire collection of George Stevens' World War II footage was selected to the National Film Registry. Montgomery of Alamein, Bernard Law Montgomery, Viscount, 1887-1976, depicted. Bradley, Omar Nelson, 1893-1981, depicted. Patton, George S. (George Smith), 1885-1945, depicted. Stevens, George, 1904-1975, depicted. Mellor, William C., 1903-1963, depicted. Moffat, Ivan, depicted. Belfast (Ship) World War, 1939-1945--Amphibious operations. World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--France--Normandy. World War, 1939-1945--Destruction and pillage--France. Military ceremonies, honors, and salutes--France. Military camps--France--Sainte-Mère-Eglise. Stevens (George, Jr.) Collection (Library of Congress) World War II color footage--Allied troops land in Normandy and move through northwest France http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mbrsmi/ntscrm.02531110