Institute Overview

The Institute of World War II tells the personal stories of the World War II generation through documentary films and utilizing the latest in Virtual Reality and AI storytelling.

Our Founder and President, Tim Gray, has Directed, Produced, and Written over 40 documentaries about the war, which air worldwide via American Public Television.

The film’s narrators include Tom Brokaw, Jeff Daniels, Kevin Bacon, Dan Aykroyd, Gary Sinise, Tom Selleck, Keith Morrison, Jane Lynch, Matthew Broderick, Darius Rucker, Luke Bryan, Greg Kinnear, Jim Nantz, Bill Belichick, Damian Lewis, Jon Seda, Jason Beghe, David McCallum, Liev Schreiber, Kyle Chandler, Tim McCarver, and Dale Dye.

Tim’s films, shot on location in Europe and the Pacific, are among the top five national programs that PBS stations request.

Tim has received multiple Regional Emmy Awards, international film awards, and, prestigiously, American Public Television’s National Programming Excellence Award.

Meet the Filmmaker

Tim Gray

Founder, Filmmaker

Tim Gray has produced 40 documentary films on the personal stories of World War II. Tim has received six regional Emmy Awards for his work and dozens of International film awards. Tim’s films rank in the top five of most requested programs nationally by PBS affiliates. Tim has also been honored with American Public Television’s prestigious National Programming Excellence Award. Tim’s films are shot on location in Europe and the Pacific and narrated by celebrity voices, including Tom Brokaw, Gary Sinise, Paul Giamatti, Keith Morrison, Kevin Bacon, Darius Rucker, Josh Lucas, Dan Aykroyd, Jim Nantz, Luke Bryan, Liev Schreiber, Tom Selleck, and Bill Belichick.

In 2012, Tim also raised money for and dedicated the Richard D. Winters Leadership Monument in Normandy, France. Tim also dedicated a plaque in Honolulu, Hawaii, in 2021, honoring Elvis Presley’s role in helping to get the USS Arizona Memorial built at Pearl Harbor.

In 2021, Tim was inducted into the State of Rhode Island’s Hall of Fame.

Tim has often appeared on national television, discussing the personal stories of World War II. In addition to airing in the United States, Tim’s films also air internationally in Europe, Canada, and the Far East.

Read Full Bio

Tim Gray has produced 40 documentary films on the personal stories of World War II. Tim has received six regional Emmy Awards for his work and dozens of International film awards. Tim’s films rank in the top five of most requested programs nationally by PBS affiliates. Tim has also been honored with American Public Television’s prestigious National Programming Excellence Award. Tim’s films are shot on location in Europe and the Pacific and narrated by celebrity voices, including Tom Brokaw, Gary Sinise, Paul Giamatti, Keith Morrison, Kevin Bacon, Darius Rucker, Josh Lucas, Dan Aykroyd, Jim Nantz, Luke Bryan, Liev Schreiber, Tom Selleck, and Bill Belichick.

In 2012, Tim also raised money for and dedicated the Richard D. Winters Leadership Monument in Normandy, France. Tim also dedicated a plaque in Honolulu, Hawaii, in 2021, honoring Elvis Presley’s role in helping to get the USS Arizona Memorial built at Pearl Harbor.

In 2021, Tim was inducted into the State of Rhode Island’s Hall of Fame.

Tim has often appeared on national television, discussing the personal stories of World War II. In addition to airing in the United States, Tim’s films also air internationally in Europe, Canada, and the Far East.

Over 40 films and counting…

Watch our Films

All Films (Film Vault)

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Board of Directors

Ken Rendell

Jon D’Allessandro

In April of 1987, Jon founded D’Allessandro Corp. During his time as President, Jon has realized his thirty-year-old vision, experiencing great success along the way due to his continuous commitment to excellence, paired with his passion for finding sustainable, community-improving infrastructural solutions. Jon is a past president of the Utility Contractors of New England, also serving on the organization’s board. Jon has been a very active board member since 2011, donating much money and time to the foundation’s global efforts.

Brian Youse

Brian is Vice President of Multi-Man Publishing, a Maryland based strategic board game company founded in 1994. Mr. Youse is an avid World War II historian and attended the dedication of the Richard D. Winters monument in Normandy, France in June of 2012.

John C. McManus

John C. McManus is a Curators’ Distinguished Professor of U.S. military history at the Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T). The University of Missouri Board of Curators bestows this professorship on the most outstanding scholars in the University of Missouri system. McManus is the first Missouri S&T faculty member in the humanities to be named Curators’ Distinguished Professor. As one of the nation’s leading military historians and the author of fifteen well-received books, he is frequently demanded as a speaker and expert commentator.

In addition to dozens of local and national radio programs, he has appeared on CNN.com, Fox News, C-Span, the Military Channel, the Discovery Channel, the National Geographic Channel, Netflix, the Smithsonian Network, the History Channel, and PBS, among others. He also served as historical advisor for the bestselling book and documentary Salinger, the latter appearing nationwide in theaters and on PBS’s American Masters Series. During the 2018-2019 academic year, he was in residence at the U.S. Naval Academy as the Leo A. Shifrin Chair of Naval and Military History, a distinguished visiting professorship.

Ken Levy

Regional Emmy Awards| International Awards | Film Festivals | RIHOF | APT Award

News & Reviews

“Documentary filmmaker Tim Gray is America’s preeminent storyteller of those Tom Brokaw famously called “The Greatest Generation” — the American women and men of World War II who, at the cost of much blood and treasure, helped defeat fascism, the despicable movement responsible for an estimated 60 million or more deaths, including 6 million in the Holocaust.”

G. Wayne MillerThe Providence Journal

“Tim, you are the most persistent person I have ever met.”

Gov. Tom RidgeFirst Secretary of Homeland Security

“Tim, I saw the DVD last night and it was awesome. Great job!! You have done a lot of cool stuff, but this might be your best work yet. What an emotional story by the people you interviewed. Congratulations on a great production. All the best, Bill.”

Bill BelichickHead Coach, 6-time Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots

“Tim, I thought it was awesome. It gave a personal touch with the interviews with the soldiers. Thanks again for sending it.”

Bill BelichickHead Coach, 6-time Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots

“I Liked it. I have a soft spot for that generation. We’re losing more of them every day.”

Captain Dale DyeActor, Saving Private Ryan and Band of Brothers

“A Wonderful Film”

Dr. Robert Ballardfamed ocean explorer who discovered the HMS Titanic, USS Yorktown, PT 109, Lusitania and the Bismarck.

“The hour-long documentary is a moving, well-crafted piece that is, first of all, a tribute to the courage of the men who began the liberation of France on June 6, 1944. Beneath that, it is a meditation on age, memory, and sacrifice.”

Bob KerrProvidence Journal Columnist

“This is one of the all-time best documentaries I have ever seen”

Andy SmithProvidence Journal Television Writer

“Your film is a great tribute to the five veterans and all those who fought to liberate Europe. You really captured the impact and importance of the operation (D-Day), and your poignant focus on the five veterans brought a tear to my eye.”

Bill BaumanFormer President and General Manager, WESH TV, NBC, Orlando, FL

“I cannot express in a simple letter my admiration for the quality of this production” “Amazing. Incredible.”

Ken MahlerFilm Editor and documentary producer, Lisbon, CT.

“Excellent. It is a wonderful tribute to those who sacrificed so much to help liberate my country more than six decades ago. Quite moving.”

Richard FazzioOmaha Beach D-Day Veteran

“Spot on. It was a great personal history of what the Americans went through on June 6, 1944. It was also more than that, however, it was a unique look at six veterans in particular who all had different experiences on D-day. All of those memories remain with these men even to this day. That is what this film captures so accurately and with great emotion.”

Francois GauthierFormer Consul General of France, Boston

“I finally have had an opportunity to watch your video and I thought it was extremely well done. So many videos aren’t anywhere near as well put together and edited as yours.”

J.W. NicholsonBrig. General, U.S. Army (Ret) Secretary The American Battle Monuments Commission

“It’s a beautiful production. It amazes me that no matter how many such films I’ve seen, or how many veterans I’ve heard describe their experiences and their feelings today, the emotional impact of the stories is just as strong. Much of the credit for that goes to talented producers like you who know how to tell the stories so well.”

Ken RendellFounder of The Museum of World War II, the largest privately owned collection of WWII artifacts in the world.

“I just wanted to let you know that I watched D-Day the Price of Freedom on PBS this evening and really, thoroughly enjoyed it. It was so touching, and what I thought was so monumental was that very often nowadays, it seems fashionable to belittle democracy, and to forget about and bemoan our nation’s heroic past from WWII simply because of recent (arguable) failures of it. (i know this particularly well because I’m a 20-something living in NYC for 7 years) This documentary, however, really reminded us that all of those thousands of honorable men and women (especially the over 9,000 in the cemetery you featured in the doc) sacrificed their lives so we can all prosper here; not so that we can (ironically) have the freedom to denounce everything they did more than 60 years ago. It brought me closer to those 5 veterans–to the time when people were actually fighting. The idea of WWII is no longer far fetched, no longer symbolic, no longer a reflection, no longer a conversation topic to throw around; its life, it’s death, it’s the human sacrifice of the people of this country. So thank you–to you, everybody who made this documentary, and to all the 5 honorable veterans, for reminding me–and America–of this.”

Mike ConleyAmerican Battle Monuments Commission, Washington, D.C.

“I just wanted to say thank you for producing such an awe-inspiring contemplative video on D-Day (I watched it today on PBS during it’s Memorial Day programming). It has given me a new depth of meaning for this holiday and our nation’s sacrifice. Your talents and efforts on this magnificent collaboration are sincerely appreciated.”

Roxana MoussavianPBS viewer

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