The Silent Soldier and the Portrait

Tuesday, Nov. 10, at 5 PM

Also airs on Fusion on Tuesday, Nov. 10, at 7 PM and Monday, Nov. 16, at 9 PM

Shot primarily in England and France, this documentary is the story of one of the last living survivors of a major World War II military tragedy, John Suter Waller, and two secrets that he kept for decades.

On Christmas Eve 1944, Waller was a 19-year-old soldier on his way to join in the Battle of the Bulge. A German U-boat sunk his troop’s ship, the USS Leopoldville, killing more than 800 U.S. military personnel.

The military instructed the survivors not to discuss it and Waller kept that secret faithfully for more than 75 years. His other secret involved a French portrait “purloined” from a ruined estate during the war.