Tales of Bad-@$$ Dentists

[Drang]

This seems to be a good fit for Mindset, but can certainly be moved elsewhere if deemed appropriate.
Meet Captain Ben Salomon – The U.S. Army Dentist Who Single-Handedly Held Off a Banzai Charge on Saipan - MilitaryHistoryNow.com

Captain Ben Salomon, however, was not like the vast majority of dentists.

A graduate of the University of Southern California Dental School in 1937, he was drafted into the U.S. Army three years later. Beginning as an infantry private, he became a distinguished marksman and machine gunner. Salomon would also practice his dentistry skills on the men in his unit.

Because of course the Army would take a dentist and make him an infantry private...

In 1942, Salomon was commissioned a first lieutenant and reassigned to the Army Dental Corps. He spent two years at the Schofield Barracks in Hawaii before being deployed with the allied invasion force for Saipan. There he volunteered to take the place of a battalion surgeon who had been killed in a mortar attack.

On July 7, nearly 5,000 Japanese soldiers launched a suicidal banzai charge against U.S. forces on the island. Before long, Captain Salomon’s aid station was filled with around 30 wounded GIs. Several Japanese broke through the American lines and made it to Salomon’s tent.

...

When the banzai attack was finally defeated, a relief force was sent to Salomon’s aid station. They found the heroic dentist slumped dead over his machine gun with the bodies of nearly one hundred Japanese soldiers lying before him. Salomon had been riddled with 76 bullets. A surgeon who later examined his body concluded that 24 of his wounds occurred before he died.

[blues]

The story lends itself to so many offhand humorous remarks but such bravery and self sacrifice demands nothing but respect.

Thanks for sharing it. So many heroes go otherwise unnoticed.

[Drang]

I hope folks click through and read the full article. Didn't want to over-quote a copyright article.

OTOH, the CMOH Citation is in the public domain:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Captain Ben L. Salomon was serving at Siapan, in the Marianas Islands on July 7, 1944, as the Surgeon for the 2nd Battalion, 105th Infantry Regiment, 27th Infantry Division. The Regiment's 1st and 2nd Battalions were attacked by an overwhelming force estimated between 3,000 and 5,000 Japanese soldiers. It was one of the largest attacks attempted in the Pacific Theater during World War II. Although both units fought furiously, the enemy soon penetrated the Battalions' combined perimeter and inflicted overwhelming casualties. In the first minutes of the attack, approximately 30 wounded soldiers walked, crawled, or were carried into Captain Salomon's aid station, and the small tent soon filled with wounded men. As the perimeter began to be overrun, it became increasingly difficult for Captain Salomon to work on the wounded. He then saw a Japanese soldier bayoneting one of the wounded soldiers lying near the tent. Firing from a squatting position, Captain Salomon quickly killed the enemy soldier. Then, as he turned his attention back to the wounded, two more Japanese soldiers appeared in the front entrance of the tent. As these enemy soldiers were killed, four more crawled under the the tent walls. Rushing them, Captain Salomon kicked the knife out of the hand of one, shot another, and bayoneted a third. Captain Salomon butted the fourth enemy soldier in the stomach and a wounded comrade then shot and killed the enemy soldier. Realizing the gravity of the situation, Captain Salomon ordered the wounded to make their way as best they could back to the regimental aid station, while he attempted to hold off the enemy until they were clear. Captain Salomon then grabbed a rifle from one of the wounded and rushed out of the tent. After four men were killed while manning a machine gun, Captain Salomon took control of it. When his body was later found, 98 dead enemy soldiers were piled in front of his position. Captain Salomon's extraordinary heroism and devotion to duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself his unit and the United States Army.

His CMOH recommendation was originally denied because, as a dentist, it was felt that his actions (in direct combat) were in violation of the Geneva Convention.
<insert Tactical Face Palm meme here>
President George W. Bush finally awarded Dr. Saloman's CMOH in 2002.the

Oh, and according to Ben L. Salomon's Wikipedia page, two other dentists have been awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor: Alexander Gordon Lyle, and Weedon Osborne, both USN, and both for actions in WWI.
(The Wikipedia article has further discussion of the reasons for the denial of the award.)

[blues]

Born: 9/1/1914, Milwaukee, WI

Died: 7/7/1944, Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands

[wvincent]

No dentist jokes about this one.
That's what you call a "Stud"
24 bullet wounds? That fella was as woodpecker lips.
Rest easy Captain Salomon.

[RoyGBiv]

Bada$$ indeed.

There's a poke around a Salomon (different spelling, I know) fighting in the Marianas that I can't seem to finish.