What D-Day Actually Looked Like: Jack Lieb’s Private Color Footage of Utah Beach | Footage Farm Ltd

An exceptional historical artifact: rare, genuine 16mm Kodachrome color film captured by American newsreel cameraman Jack Lieb on D-Day, June 6, 1944. While officially filming in black-and-white for Hearst's "News of the Day," Lieb used his personal home movie camera to document his journey. This excerpt focuses strictly on the Normandy invasion section of his footage, featuring the crossing on a British landing craft and the immediate, chaotic aftermath of the seaborne landings on Utah Beach. This section covers the following: 00:12 Docks, 101st Airborne Division loading onto landing craft for transfer to larger ships. Close shots smiling troops. Press aboard LCI with Commander of Invasion Group and Captain of LCI Number 5 Lt Patten. Wes Haines trimming beard and troops of 101st relaxing on deck, one imitates Hitler. 01:50 Ships mascot puppy having life jacket fitted. 02:12 Lt Patten briefing crew re that afternoons sailing, crew waving hats and cheering. 02:26 The Crossing and Landings: The footage opens with Landing Craft Infantry (LCI) No. 4 and its Commander navigating into the channel, transitioning from a moonlit convoy at sea to daylight shots of the fleet. 03:48 The perspective shifts to stark, black-and-white automatic camera footage taken from a British landing craft, documenting the approach and landings of Canadian troops on Juno Beach, including a distinct detail of troops carrying rifles wrapped protectively in cellophane. 04:58 The film then returns to color, showing soldiers Wes Haines and Pete Carrol carrying equipment as they wade ashore. This segment highlights beachhead activity: troops digging in for cover, Allied aircraft patrolling overhead, grounded ships, and the meticulous process of searching for landmines. 05:38 Securing the Beachhead: The aftermath of the first day is marked by an MP standing before the flag at the Green Beach Headquarters, glimpses of the foxholes dug for the first night on the beach, and the first groups of German prisoners of war (POWs). High-ranking military presence is shown with General Collins speaking directly with his men, alongside casual footage of the press corps eating, including correspondents Jack Lieb, Larry LeSueur, and Bob Landry. 06:43 Return and the Home Front: Filmmaker Jack Lieb is then seen on board a ship returning to England, with the coastal cliffs approaching Bournemouth coming into view. 07:17 The narrative briefly shifts to the home front with dramatic black-and-white footage of V-1 flying bombs (buzz bombs) overhead, anti-aircraft guns working to knock them out of the sky, and the chaotic aftermath of an attack as rescuers dig out the wounded from the debris. 08:02 The Push to Cherbourg: Returning to France in color, Jack Lieb travels on an LST (Landing Ship, Tank) alongside a unit of the 3rd Armored Division as they wait to land at Cherbourg. The footage documents the massive logistical effort of beachhead activity, including troops constructing slipways on the shore to facilitate more landings. 09:45 The Fall of Cherbourg: The heavy toll of the fighting is evident in elevated sweeping shots of the heavily destroyed Cherbourg docks and a ruined bridge. 10:24 The atmosphere shifts to liberation as French women greet the troops with flowers, contrasted against a long, striking column of German POWs being marched through the streets—including one injured or weary soldier being transported in a perambulator (pram). 11:01 The section concludes with a symbolic moment of wartime defiance—a portrait of Adolf Hitler being used as a dartboard by the troops. 11:17 This is followed by the first official liberation ceremony of the area, where General Collins presents a French Tricolor flag, uniquely crafted out of parachute silk, to the Mayor of Cherbourg. #ww2 #dday #militaryhistory #wwii #wwiiincolor #FootageFarm #HistoryArchive #16mmKodachrome For broadcast quality material of this clip or to know more about our Public Domain collection, contact us at [email protected]