“This was a very emotional moment for MacArthur and he wanted to let the Filipinos know he had set foot on their land.”

Charles Rosario Restifo

Charles Restifo, South Pacifc Signal Corps Photographic Compound [detail] War: World War, 1939-1945 Branch: Army Unit: 161st Photographic Company, Army Signal Corps Service Location: Fort Benning, Georgia; Pacific Theater; Philippines; Japan Rank: Staff Sergeant Place of Birth: NY

Armed with a camera, professional photographer turned soldier Charles Restifo waded into some of the most intense action in the Pacific Theater of World War II. His job was to record the war in pictures, and for much of his time in service, he had an irresistible subject: the flamboyant and controversial General Douglas MacArthur. Restifo was there when MacArthur made his triumphant return to the islands, but more importantly, he brought back rare pictures of actual combat and was one of the first photographers allowed into Hiroshima after August 6, 1945.