{"id":147130,"date":"2026-06-05T20:10:15","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T20:10:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/147130\/"},"modified":"2026-06-05T20:10:15","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T20:10:15","slug":"gary-sinise-discusses-veterans-sacrifice-and-support-for-israel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/147130\/","title":{"rendered":"Gary Sinise discusses veterans, sacrifice, and support for Israel"},"content":{"rendered":"

A military jeep drives over a roadside bomb. The explosion takes arms and legs and scars hearts and minds. It\u2019s not a jeep that gets blown apart but lives. The shock wave ripples through families. It deprives children of their parents and robs parents of a piece of their future.<\/p>\n

How do the survivors cope? How do they pick up the pieces and move forward? What about war\u2019s other victims \u2013 the people left behind?<\/p>\n

In 2011, American actor and director Gary Sinise established the Gary Sinise Foundation to support US veterans and first responders, along with their families. Since its inception, the organization has raised more than $600 million for its programs and services.<\/p>\n

Sinise is best known for his role as Lt. Dan Taylor, a disabled Vietnam veteran, in the Academy Award-winning film Forrest Gump, for which he received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. His long list of credits includes Apollo 13, The Green Mile, the HBO biopic Truman, and CSI: NY. Over the course of his career, he has won a Primetime Emmy, a Golden Globe<\/a>, a Tony Award, and four Screen Actors Guild Awards, and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.<\/p>\n

He has also received numerous honors for his philanthropy and patriotism, including the Presidential Citizens Medal, Honorary Marine by the US Marine Corps, the Congressional Medal of Honor Society Patriot Award, and the Kennedy Center Award for the Human Spirit.<\/p>\n

\"InIn his breakout role as Vietnam War veteran Lt. Dan on the set of \u2018Forrest Gump,\u2019 shot in Beaufort, South Carolina, Fall 1993. (credit: Production still; Forrest Gump Paramount Pictures. All rights reserved)Military service a part of Israeli life<\/p>\n

Israelis know well the cost of war and terror. Military service is woven into national life, as are rehabilitation, trauma recovery, and caring for the wounded. Nearly every family is touched by service in some way.<\/p>\n

I wanted to understand how Gary Sinise came to make the foundation\u2019s work such a central mission in his life, so I started at the beginning.<\/p>\n

What were you like as a kid?<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s funny you ask,\u201d he says. \u201cMy mom is 94 years old now, and I sat with her yesterday having a conversation about my early childhood.\u201d He was born on the gritty South Side of Chicago, in Blue Island, Illinois, \u201cwithin 10 days of my dad getting out of the navy.\u201d<\/p>\n

His father was a photographer during the Korean War before becoming a film editor in Chicago\u2019s advertising industry. \u201cThese were the Mad Men days in Chicago,\u201d Sinise says, referring to the popular television series.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe agencies would keep him working all day and into the night, so he was not home a lot. My mom had her hands full taking care of my brother, sister, and me, and her mother and her sister, who had moved into our basement after her mother\u2019s divorce. So, my mom was taking care of everybody, and I was left to run a little wild.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd did you?\u201d I ask.<\/p>\n

\u201cI did,\u201d he laughs.<\/p>\n

\"RailroadRailroad Track in downtown Chicago: Growing up on the South Side, Sinise \u2018ran a little wild.\u2019 (credit: SHUTTERSTOCK)<\/p>\n

His memoir, Grateful American: A Journey From Self to Service, fills in a few details on his misbehaving: joyriding in a friend\u2019s father\u2019s borrowed car, skipping classes, failing classes, and experimenting with drugs. \u201cI didn\u2019t develop skills academically early on, so I struggled all the way through high school,\u201d he tells me.<\/p>\n

Yet he also believes those years forged a kind of independence. \u201cI developed do-it-yourself\/get an idea and go at it skills. I would always be the kid who organized the neighborhood baseball games, or was the captain of the football team, or the leader of the band. I had bands from the time I was in fourth grade. And always doing it myself.<\/p>\n

\u201cComing from the South Side of Chicago<\/a>, there were no Jewish folks in our neighborhood, so I didn\u2019t know any at all. And then I moved to Highland Park [on Chicago\u2019s North Shore], where there was and still is a large Jewish population. The guy across the street from me was the first Jewish kid I met, and we became fast friends.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the things I remember about it was that on Saturdays, none of my friends were around. They were going to temple. I didn\u2019t know anything about any of that. I didn\u2019t know anything about Judaism at all.<\/p>\n

\"WithWith Son Mac during a recording session. (credit: Courtesy Gary Sinise)<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd then, I remember back in the \u201960s, in the summertime, a lot of my friends would go to Israel, and they would work on a kibbutz. It wasn\u2019t that every friend I had was Jewish, but I had a lot of Jewish friends, and still do, from the Highland Park days. I\u2019ve stayed in touch with a bunch of folks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Several close friends eventually made aliyah after high school<\/a>. \u201cTwo of them stayed,\u201d he tells me. \u201cSo, I always think about them when things are rough over there, and things are difficult. It\u2019s very hard to imagine living with bomb shelters everywhere you go. The sirens go off, you pull your car over, you run into a bomb shelter, you wait, you get out, you go back to the grocery store. That\u2019s life in Israel.\u201d<\/p>\n

It wasn’t an easy transition to Highland Park High at first. His parents moved frequently as they worked their way up the socioeconomic ladder, so he was the new kid, struggling academically without many friends. He felt lost.<\/p>\n

\"ShakingShaking hands with then-US President Barack Obama at the dedication of the American Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial, in Washington, 2014. (credit: MIKE THEILER\/REUTERS)<\/p>\n

Sinise traces the turning point in his life back to the first play he ever did in high school, West Side Story. \u201cIt was so wonderful, and felt so good to be doing it.\u201d On the night of the final performance, he broke down backstage. \u201cI just burst into tears when the show was over,\u201d he recalls. \u201cI was this kid who was really having a hard time in school but then found this thing and just fell in love with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sinise was only in the chorus while his new friend Jeff Melvoin played one of the leads. During the curtain call, Melvoin reached back and pulled Sinise forward to bow alongside the principal cast.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was such a galvanizing moment,\u201d Sinise says. \u201cI\u2019ll never forget that Jeff did that.\u201d<\/p>\n

I know Melvoin, who went on to become a successful television writer and producer. On Northern Exposure, he wrote the popular episodes \u201cKaddish for Uncle Manny,\u201d in which the town helps a grieving Joel Fleischman assemble a minyan so he can recite the Jewish prayer for the dead, and \u201cShofar, So Good,\u201d centered on Joel observing Yom Kippur in Alaska.<\/p>\n

\"Sinise'sSinise’s mom took this photo of him in 1976 outside the Catholic school basement theater: \u2018I\u2019m 21 years old. This is the first Steppenwolf sign ever.\u2019 (credit: Gary Sinise personal collection)<\/p>\n

Looking back, Sinise sees the high school experience as the beginning of everything that followed. \u201cIt set me on a course to start a theater company, and then have a great career in the movies and TV.\u201d<\/p>\n

After high school, the future movie star had no interest in college. He wanted to continue performing in plays. So, at 18, he gathered a group of friends who shared \u201cthis passionate desire to create together.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember, we built an early theater in the basement of a closed-down Catholic school,\u201d Sinise says. \u201cWe all pitched in. We were all acting in the plays, painting the sets, painting the walls, painting the building. We were all doing everything in those days, and for no money.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"WithWith co-star John Malovich and Elaine Steinbeck (wife of John Steinbeck, author of the classic novella) on the set of 1992\u2019s \u2018Of Mice and Men.\u2019 (credit: METRO-GOLDWYN-MAYER STUDIOS)<\/p>\n

That spirit became Steppenwolf Theatre Company, one of the most influential ensembles in modern American theater. Known for emotionally raw performances and ensemble-driven realism, Steppenwolf helped reshape contemporary theater and launched the careers of many actors including John Malkovich, Laurie Metcalf, Joan Allen, Gary Cole, and Martha Plimpton.<\/p>\n

IN 2018, Sinise\u2019s life went into a tailspin.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy wife was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer,\u201d he said, \u201cand two months later, we found out [his son] Mac had chordoma [rare bone cancer].\u201d The experience of having \u201ctwo cancer patients fighting for their lives at the same time\u2026 [felt] like a gut punch.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"OnOn the set of 1995\u2019s \u2018Apollo 13,\u2019 playing navigator and astronaut Ken Mattingly. (credit: Courtesy Universal Studio Licensing LLC)<\/p>\n

His wife eventually went into remission. Mac\u2019s cancer spread.<\/p>\n

Before the illness, Mac had already established himself as a gifted musician. He began playing drums at age nine and later attended USC\u2019s prestigious pop music program. By the time he graduated in 2014, he had grown into an accomplished composer and songwriter.<\/p>\n

But cancer gradually stripped away his capacity to perform. By 2023, Mac was in a wheelchair, blind in one eye, and losing movement in his hand. \u201cBad things were happening to his body.\u201d Music disappeared behind treatments, medications, and daily survival.<\/p>\n

Then something shifted.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne day, he said, \u2018Dad, I\u2019ve been thinking about this piece of music I wrote in college. I never finished it, and I think I\u2019d like to try to finish it.\u2019\u201d Working with friends, Mac finished the piece and recorded \u201cArctic Circles\u201d with an orchestra. \u201cI was knocked out by it,\u201d Sinise told me, \u201cIt\u2019s beautiful. It\u2019s really beautiful.\u201d<\/p>\n

That recording session sparked the desire to complete an entire album. By the end of 2023, they had recorded 10 songs for a project titled Resurrection & Revival. \u201cThe album went to press the week that Mac died on January 5, 2024,\u201d Sinise says as he shows me the cover. \u201cHe heard all the music. He just never got to hold the record.\u201d Mac had designed the album cover himself using a restored World War I photograph of Sinise\u2019s grandfather, Daniel Sinise, at 17 years old in army training camp.<\/p>\n

The response from listeners surprised even Sinise. In May 2025, Forbes reported that Mac\u2019s albums had reached the top 10 most downloaded records on iTunes, alongside artists like Blake Shelton and Morgan Wallen. At one point, Sinise recalls, the first album landed between Lady Gaga and Britney Spears on the iTunes chart. \u201cMac would have never in a million years thought that,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

After his son\u2019s death, Sinise began sorting through Mac\u2019s files and discovered a vast archive of unfinished compositions. \u201cThere\u2019s so much music here,\u201d he remembers thinking. \u201cIt\u2019s crazy how much he was doing that I never knew about.\u201d That discovery led to two additional posthumous albums, Resurrection & Revival Parts Two and Three, with Part Three soon to be released.<\/p>\n

I had been listening to Resurrection & Revival Part One while driving around town. I was impressed at how cinematic the music felt, reminding me of the landscapes and atmosphere in writer\/producer Taylor Sheridan\u2019s Western dramas.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really neat that you say that,\u201d Sinise says, \u201cbecause Mac wanted to write music for film.\u201d<\/p>\n

I also felt something unexpected in those tracks; a lightness of being. It moved me that a young man enduring so much could create something so uplifting.<\/p>\n

Two other tracks especially resonated with me. One was Mac\u2019s harmonica rendition of \u201cThe Star-Spangled Banner,\u201d which conveyed an emotional vulnerability I had never heard in our national anthem before. The other was \u201cAmazing Grace,\u201d reimagined by Mac\u2019s harmonica in a bluesy, sensual arrangement. I kept hitting the back button and replaying it.<\/p>\n

This past US Memorial Day, the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) featured two of Mac\u2019s pieces \u2013 \u201cThe Rise,\u201d a tribute to World War II veterans, and \u201cTriumphant\u201d \u2013 as part of the 25th Anniversary Tribute to the victims and heroes of September 11. The pieces were performed by the National Symphony Orchestra on the National Mall in Washington<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Music has always occupied a central place in Sinise\u2019s life and public service. In 2003, he co-founded the Lt. Dan Band, performing concerts for troops on military bases around the world. It\u2019s a stand-up-at-your-seat-and-dance cover band, raising spirits and bringing joy. He\u2019s been to over 200 bases from the US to Iraq.<\/p>\n

Grateful patriot<\/p>\n

Our conversation eventually turned to the role of artists in divided times, including political boycotts targeting Israeli performers. Sinise says the idea saddens him.<\/p>\n

\u201cArt is supposed to bring us together. Music is supposed to be the universal language.\u201d<\/p>\n

He points to his friend John Ondrasik of Five for Fighting, who has publicly supported the families of Israeli hostages and collaborated musically with former hostage Alon Ohel.<\/p>\n

Before his illness, Mac worked for and loved the Gary Sinise Foundation. He told his dad that if the album ever sold, he wanted the proceeds to help the mission. The foundation serves US first responders and all branches of the military at US installations, both domestically and abroad.<\/p>\n

The foundation has built and gifted a hundred specially adapted smart homes for the severely wounded, supplied essential equipment to first responder departments, and organized retreats for families of the fallen.<\/p>\n

Sinise traces his commitment to veterans and military families back to the people closest to him. His grandfather drove an ambulance in World War I, his father served in the navy, his uncles were World War II veterans, and both sides of his extended family included army service members and Vietnam veterans.<\/p>\n

I could relate. My grandfather fought in World War I shortly after becoming an American citizen. My father and several uncles served during World War II. My husband served in the navy during the Vietnam War, and my eldest son served five years aboard a fast-attack submarine after college.<\/p>\n

Sinise began supporting Vietnam veteran groups in Chicago during the 1970s and 1980s. His commitment deepened after he played Lt. Dan in Forrest Gump and became aware of the connection veterans felt with that character. He spent decades volunteering, traveling overseas with the USO, and aiding organizations that support veterans and their families.<\/p>\n

But September 11 became the defining turning point.<\/p>\n

Sinise remembers being \u201cshaken to the core and fearful about what was going to happen next.\u201d As the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan unfolded, he worried that political divisions might once again leave service members caught in the middle, much as Vietnam veterans had been decades earlier.<\/p>\n

I think that having someone you love in the armed services impacts the way you understand a veteran\u2019s gift to us and, too often, his or her sacrifice. \u201cIn Israel, everybody has either served or knows somebody who has served,\u201d I say. \u201cAnd many people know someone who has paid a heavy price.\u201d<\/p>\n

He nods. \u201cGenerations upon generations.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think that\u2019s true in the US today, and I think that makes a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI have found that there is a fairly sizable disconnect between the average American citizen and the people that defend us,\u201d he responds. And he feels he can help bridge that divide by drawing attention to the experiences of troops and wounded veterans. \u201cI\u2019ve been to the war zones,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019ve been to the hospitals, and I\u2019ve seen a lot of things that the average American does not get to see.\u201d<\/p>\n

Underlying all of it is his patriotism and gratitude. \u201cI am a grateful American,\u201d he explains. \u201cI value my freedom, I know where it comes from; it has to be fought for, it has to be protected.\u201d<\/p>\n

As our interview comes to a close, I ask whether he would consider bringing the Lt. Dan Band to perform for the 6,000 American troops stationed in Israel.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I absolutely would,\u201d he says immediately. \u201cIsrael is someplace that I have very much wanted to go just in life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Military personnel as well?<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, I would,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Kol hakavod, Gary, on your journey so far. And may you go m\u2019chayil el chayil \u2013 from strength to strength. \u25a0<\/p>\n

The writer is an attorney and 20-year entertainment veteran, the CEO of Liberate Art, and the author of the award-winning book Artists Under Fire: The BDS War Against Celebrities, Jews, and Israel. Her column, Hollywood Stories, spotlights Jewish and non-Jewish entertainers who voice support for Israel and the Jewish community. @HollywoodStoriesByLanaMelman<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A military jeep drives over a roadside bomb. The explosion takes arms and legs and scars hearts and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":147131,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[33],"tags":[32907,671,2803,47661,9418,37,2421,13827,499,179,47660],"class_list":["post-147130","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-israel","tag-alaska","tag-america","tag-chicago","tag-golden-globes","tag-hollywood","tag-israel","tag-israelis","tag-jewish","tag-judaism","tag-military","tag-yom-kippur"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@iran\/116699320986671852","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/147130","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=147130"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/147130\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/147131"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=147130"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=147130"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=147130"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}