Olin Pickens, who sat in his wheelchair, was stunned to witness a life-sized image of himself on a screen, asking it questions about being taken prisoner by German soldiers during World War II. After a pause, his video-recorded twin recollected being fed with “sauerkraut soup” by his captors before a gruelling march.

“That was a Tuesday morning, February 16th,” Pickens’ from the screen answered. “And so, we started marching. We’d walk four hours, then we’d rest 10 minutes.”

Pickens is one of the eighteen veterans who participated in the war, and its support effort was featured in an interactive exhibit that opened recently at the National WWII Museum. The exhibit leverages artificial intelligence’s power, which allows visitors to hold virtual conversations with images of veterans. 

Voices From the Front will also enable visitors to the New Orleans museum to ask questions of war-era home front heroes and supporters of the US war effort — including a military nurse who served in the Philippines, an aircraft factory worker, and Margaret Kerry, a dancer who performed at USO shows and, after the war, was a model for the Tinker Bell character in Disney productions.

The project has been in the making for the past four years. It includes video-recorded interviews of 18 veterans of the war or support effort. Every one of them sat for thousands of questions, predominantly on the war and their personal lives. Among the participants was Marine Corps veteran Hershel Woodrow “Woody” Williams, a Medal of Honor winner who fought at Iwo Jima, Japan. He died in June 2022 after recording his responses.

Visitors to the new exhibit will stand before a console and pick who they want to converse with. Then, a life-sized image of that person, sitting comfortably in a chair, will appear on a screen in front of them.

Source: AP

Image source: The National WII Museum New Orleans