Minor Characters in The Gallant Men

This article provides snapshots of minor characters in *The Gallant Men*. Some are recurring characters, and others are single-episode guests that play a significant role in the plot. The brief bios are listed alphabetically by surname.

## Sgt. Griff Benedict

**Griff Benedict** is Capt. Jim Benedict’s younger brother. He is portrayed by Robert Conrad.

SSgt. Benedict is temporarily assigned to Able Company in “And Cain Cried Out” and immediately clashes with the captain. The two have a lot of friction dating back to childhood, because their father favored Jim over Griff. Griff chafes at being assigned to his brother’s company, and Jim doesn’t trust Griff enough to put him in charge of a platoon in the field. Jim's decision is motivated partly by a genuine lack of trust in Griff's ability in the field, and partly by a desire to protect his younger brother. Strain between the brothers is exacerbated when Jim learns Griff began dating Jim’s girlfriend after Jim shipped off to Europe.

Conley Wright and Lt. Kimbro argue that Jim can't be both Griff's commanding officer and brother at the same time. They eventually persuade Jim to treat Griff in a manner typical for a sergeant of his rank. Griff proves to be a capable platoon sergeant, but takes one chance too many and unwittingly leads a patrol into a German trap. Most of the patrol is killed, and Jim and Griff manage to reconcile moments before Griff dies from a gunshot wound. Griff is not mentioned again in the series.

## Pvt. Henry Draper

**Henry Draper** is a crack shot assigned to Able Company in early 1944. He is portrayed by Peter Breck.

In "Retreat to Concord," Draper is a replacement recently assigned to Able. While his marksmanship and focus make him an excellent sniper, his abrasive personality turns off his squadmates. He is a loner, embittered and deeply hurt by the loss of close friends in the war.

Draper’s vocal atheism offends a devout community leader, jeopardizing the company's ability to build trust and goodwill with the citizenry. He refuses to help the platoon build a makeshift classroom for the town's children. However, before the war Draper was a teacher, and he revives his pedagogical past to teach the children and help re-establish a sense of normality for them. During a mortar attack, he comforts a terrified boy and in so doing appears to reconnect with his latent humanity and compassion.

Draper is killed while taking out the German mortar squad firing upon Nieto. His actions help spare the town further physical and psychological damage, earning the respect of the townspeople.

## PFC "Goldbrick" Gilmartin

**"Goldbrick" Gilmartin** (also called "Gil") is a friend of Pete D'Angelo. He is portrayed by Terry Becker.

Seen only in "Advance and Be Recognized," Gilmartin is a longtime Army buddy of Pete's. They met in basic training early in 1941. Gilmartin is a chatty, energetic man who comes across as loudmouthed and obnoxious. Like D'Angelo, he is a womanizer and an excellent gambler. In fact, his skills rival those of D'Angelo; during his brief stint with Able Company, Gilmartin easily rings up substantial winnings from the other members of the company. Even D'Angelo ends up owing Gilmartin.

Gilmartin is skeptical of Pete's nascent romance with a local woman named Nina. He is annoyed by Pete's infatuation and expresses his disapproval through merciless, pointed teasing. Pete eventually snaps and brawls with Gilmartin. Shortly thereafter, Pete accidentally shoots Gilmartin while on guard duty. A military police investigator suspects the shooting was intentional, but Gilmartin's account of the incident helps clear Pete's name. The two remain at odds for the remainder of the episode. After Gilmartin is glimpsed one last time at the front, he is not seen or mentioned again.

## Maj. Jergens

**Jergens** is a commander in the 36th Division. He is portrayed by Robert Fortier.

Jergens is among the first characters seen in the pilot episode. During the landing at Salerno, he holds the rank of captain. Conley Wright is assigned to his company as a war correspondent. He is shot during the beach assault and it is implied that Jergens is killed. Wright subsequently attaches himself to Capt. Jim Benedict’s Able Company. Sometime between the events of the pilot and “Retreat to Concord,” Jergens recovers and receives a field promotion to major. He becomes Benedict’s commanding officer for the duration of the series.

Dialogue in "The Ninety-Eight Cent Man" reveals Jergens is a career Army man, having enlisted some years before the war. He was stationed in the Philippines in 1937, where he worked with Sgt. John McKenna.

In his appearances, Jergens is a terse, direct officer who directs Able Company to various strategic targets. He passes along orders from further up the chain of command and expects them to be carried out. Jergens appears in seven episodes. The character’s first name is never given.

Fortier played a similar role in *Combat!* as Capt. Jampel, the company commander in charge of Lt. Gil Hanley and Sgt. Chip Saunders.

## Kathlene Palmer

**Kathlene Palmer** is a war correspondent and photographer. She is portrayed by Gail Kobe.

Strong-willed and professionally-focused, Palmer meets Able Company in early 1944 on a magazine assignment. She arranges an airplane flight so she can take aerial photos of American units massing for a planned advance. Capt. Benedict tells her reporting the movements would jeopardize security and confiscates a roll of Palmer's film. When she objects, fellow reporter Conley Wright takes Benedict's side.

Wright and Palmer have an acrimonious relationship fueled in part by Wright's disdain for Palmer's brassy ambition. In turn, Palmer thinks Wright's more deferential frontline dispatches are superficial and soften the brutal realities of the Italian campaign.

Palmer asks Wright on a date while they are both in Naples. Palmer explains she has always been a competitive person, and feels like her job is made even tougher by her gender. She feels an internal conflict between her work and a personal desire to settle down in a quieter routine. The evening is cut short by an air raid on the city. Palmer dashes out of an underground shelter to aid two orphans the pair had spotted earlier in the evening. She successfully rescues them from a damaged basement, but is trapped and killed by debris when she tries to retrieve her film. Wright is moved by her death, but still says women should not be allowed near war zones.

There were at least 117 women accredited as correspondents and photographers in World War II, according to the Library of Congress. Palmer may have been loosely modeled on famed photographer Margaret Bourke-White of *Life* magazine.

## Robertino

**Robertino** is an orphan Ernie Lucavich rescues from a mined field in the episode “Robertino.” He is portrayed by Peter Soli.

Robertino immediately idolizes Lucavich and the other Able men and insists on tagging along as they move forward to his hometown, the village of San Angelo. Lucavich and others worry the eager child will get underfoot and try to dissuade him from joining them, but he comes along anyway. The Able guys eventually warm to Robertino and aid him in finding his sister, who lives in a nearby village. The two are reunited, and Lucavich gives Robertino his gold pocketwatch as a parting gift as Able Company departs.

## Pvt. Saunders

**Saunders** is a soldier assigned to Able Company. He is portrayed by Sandy McPeak.

Saunders is typically a background player, called up on to fill out patrols and serve guard duty. He appears in eleven episodes. The character’s first name is never given. He is seriously wounded in "Robertino," but recovers. In “Fury in a Quiet Village,” Saunders discovers the body of a missing GI.

His final appearance, for which McPeak was uncredited, was in “A Taste of Peace.”

## Capt. Meg Thorpe

**Meg Thorpe** is a member of the Allied Military Government in Naples. She is portrayed by Julie Adams.

In “A Taste of Peace,” Thorpe is a constitutional law expert assigned to the Allied Military Government (AMG) in Naples. Conley Wright sets her up with Capt. Benedict when the latter is recuperating from the stresses of the front. Capt. Thorpe is passionate about her work and believes the AMG will help win the war and secure peace. Upon meeting, she and Benedict get off on the wrong foot, but Thorpe convinces the captain to join AMG himself.

Though initially turned off by Benedict's churlish behavior and skeptical views about AMG, Thorpe develops affection for him and they begin an uneven romantic relationship. Benedict later changes his mind about AMG and breaks off his relationship with Thorpe to return to Able Company. She is hurt, but accepts his actions stoically. She is never seen or mentioned in the series again.

## Pvt. Wziecewski

**Wziecewski** is a soldier assigned to Able Company. The actor who plays him was never credited. (The spelling used here is that given verbally by Wziecewski in the pilot.)

He makes appearances in at least nine episodes (“The Gallant Men (Pilot),” "Some Tears Fall Dry," "Robertino," “Advance and Be Recognized,” “The Dogs of War,” “Signals for an End Run,” "Boast Not of Tomorrow," “One Puka Puka” and “Ol’ Buddy”). He is friends with Pete D’Angelo.

Most of his appearances are brief. In the pilot, Wziecewski is Conley Wright’s jeep driver. In “Advance and Be Recognized,” he teases D’Angelo about being punished with guard duty while he and others enjoy a pass into the nearest town. In "Signals for an End Run," he acts as Benedict's radioman in Gibson's absence. He again serves as radioman in "Boast Not of Tomorrow." He is mentioned and briefly glimpsed returning from patrol in “Ol’ Buddy.”

In “The Dogs of War,” Wziecewski is on guard duty with D’Angelo. Ernie Lucavich uses Pig Latin in an attempt to warn D’Angelo that he’s been kidnapped by Germans posing as Americans. The message goes over D’Angelo’s head, but Wziecewski recognizes the Pig Latin and realizes the danger. He phones for reinforcements as D’Angelo opens fire on the Germans. D’Angelo later says Lucavich and Hanson would have been “a coupl’a dead ducks” if it hadn’t been for him and Wziecewski.

## References

1. ↑ Library of Congress, [Come to the Front: Accredited Women Correspondents During World War II], accessed December 9, 2020.