SGT. Maxim Gurney
U.S. Army – Intelligence Officer
842nd Signal Intelligence Service
Algeria, Tunisia, Sicily, Monte Cassino, Florence, Po River Valley
1942-1945 (Four campaigns)
U.S. Army – Intelligence Officer
842nd Signal Intelligence Service
Algeria, Tunisia, Sicily, Monte Cassino, Florence, Po River Valley
1942-1945 (Four campaigns)
Maxim (Max) Gurney was born on June 10,1921 in Frankfurt, Germany. His father was American, and his mother was Russian. His father was a lawyer and a diplomat and worked with the United States mission involved in negotiating the Versailles Treaty between the Central Powers and the Allied Powers that ended World War I. The treaty is generally viewed as onerous and one-sided and imposed significant hardship on the Germans by making them accept the guilt of starting the war and required them to make very significant reparation payments to the Allies. It is also thought to have sown the seeds for WWII. The treaty was signed June 28, 1919. Max’s father later worked at the U.S. State Department throughout Word War II.
Max spent very little time with his parents as a child. He went to school in Switzerland where he learned to speak Italian and French. For a short time he lived in London. Max returned to New York City at the age of eight years old. He lived on 150 East 52nd Street in Manhattan where he attended Washington Irving High School. “I was very happy”. On Sunday, December 7th, 1941 Max and his friends went to a movies. When they came out of the theater around noon time “we heard about the Japanese attack in the Pacific”.
Max and his friends were eager to join the military and help the United States in the war effort. Although Max had not graduated from high school, he headed to his draft board and enlisted. “We were all a lively bunch. It was a good reason to start a new life”. The boys were told to wait until they were called up. A short while later the Army called and Max and three friends headed to Fort Dix in New Jersey where “we were vaccinated, we got our weapons and a few other things”. The boys spent the night, and Max recalled the lights went out at 9pm. “We were feeling very dedicated to go to fight but on the other hand a little bit of apprehension”.
Max headed to Fort Bragg in North Carolina for basic training and then on to Fort Sill in Oklahoma to attend Artillery School. While he was in Artillery School the Army learned that Max spoke four languages besides English. He spoke French and Italian which he learned during his time in Switzerland. He had learned Greek and Latin as his father had insisted. Max was transferred into the 842nd Signal Intelligence Service unit which was responsible for intercepting and deciphering enemy messages.
In 1943 Max crossed the Atlantic in a Canadian Navy landing ship during a memorable trip to Algiers, zig zagging to avoid Nazi submarines. “We lost a couple of ships”. Algiers is where Max received his on-the-job training. There were 17 men in the unit and “they all graduated with some talents”. Not everyone was fluent in languages but “were extremely able in deciphering”. “Our job was to get as many German signals as possible”. Any intercepted messages they could not crack were sent to London or Washington, DC. Max remembered his Signal Corp unit operated out of a van. There were four men listening for enemy communications and they worked together as a group to construct the messages they intercepted.
Were Max and his buddies worried as they headed to North Africa? “Well, we had rum in the morning . . . but in the afternoon probably. I personally was worried but not excessively”. Max thought the fear was present but not overwhelming. Being surrounded by so many men of the same age and the tight knit nature of his unit went a long way in keeping any fear in check.
Max arrived just after General Patton and General Bradley had assumed command of the U.S. Seventh Army troops in Africa. Patton and Bradley changed a series of Allied losses into successes and pushed the Nazis from North Africa. “The Germans themselves were more worried about Patton than the United States”.
Eventually Max found his way to Tunisia in anticipation of the Allied invasion of Sicily. When the invasion began, Max followed the initial waves and his outfit arrived in Messina, Italy for the Sicilian campaign. After Sicily, the Allied troops rolled onto the Italian mainland and Max and his unit followed the action to the battle for the monastery at Monte Cassino. The Battle of Monte Cassio was long and deadly. It lasted from November 1943 through May 1944. Max recalled being in a listening position at the base of Monte Cassino. “We got hit several times. The German Air Force was mediocre but still effective”.
Max and his unit arrived in Rome on June 5th, 1944, one day before D-Day in Normandy. From there, the Fifth Army under General Mark Clark moved north to Florence in August of 1944. “From Rome to Florence was very swift” and “there we were stuck for the whole winter”. We had very nice USO shows. Remember Marlene Dietrich with her legs? Of course, Bob Hope”.
Max also recalled the time he slept in Mussolini’s bed. Max’ intelligence unit had moved north to Lake Garda near Milan where they “occupied a very nice villa taken over by our captain.” Max learned that the villa had previously been Mussolini’s residence. Max was in Milan when the Nazis in Italy surrendered on May 5th, 1945, the day before they surrendered in Germany. Max described the end of the war in Europe as a great feeling of satisfaction.
After a month and a half of rest and relaxation, his unit was told they were essential to the war effort with Japan, and they would not be headed home. Instead, they departed from Naples headed to New York City to further deploy to Iwo Jima as the war in the Pacific raged on.
When they arrived in New York City in August, they were prepared to head to Iwo Jima for the invasion of Japan, but the U.S. dropped the second atomic bomb, Fatman, on August 9th and the Japanese surrendered. Max recalled there was “general elation” when the country learned of the surrender. Max was discharged at Fort Dix in New Jersey on September 19th and returned to his family in New York City. “We went into the Poconos and had a little vacation with the family”.
After his vacation he returned to New York City. His cousin told him that Pan American World Airways, the preeminent airline at the time, was hiring. Pan Am hired a group of WWII veterans into a newly formed group to address the baggage handling system. “Pan Am was losing a lot of luggage and we were called in to a new mission to recover all the luggage and make sure everything was going to be normal with it. Unfortunately, after six months, the lady in charge said, ‘we are sorry, but we are losing more luggage now than before. So, we must transfer you.’”
Later in 1946 Max was trained as a ticket counter agent at the Marine Terminal at La Guardia Airport, located in Flushing, New York. Because of his ability to speak four languages, he was quickly promoted to Sales Manager in Dakar, Senegal with jurisdiction over five countries in West Africa.
In 1949, Max opened the Pan Am office in Milan, Italy where he developed a friendship with the world-renowned conductor, Arturo Toscanini. Max recalled seeing him conduct at Teatro alla Scala. Within eight months he was transferred to Beirut on loan to Middle East Airlines (MEA), as part of a management contract with Pan Am. He was responsible for airline operations and marketing in Cyprus, Kuwait and six Middle East countries. He then headed to Saudia Arabia. Max recalled “Saudia Arabia was a very important client at the time”. Pan Am handled a significant amount of cargo for Saudia Arabia.
“Pan Am demonstrated that they really were ahead of everyone else at the time”.
A man as warm and engaging as Max Gurney was destined to be married. “It all happened in Milan. I met a very wonderful girl from Scotland, Helena Keir, who lived in London and was on a short trip to Milan. We had a very brief encounter, but it was meaningful. It took a year and a half…and we got married in Portofino, Italy” in 1950. “I spoiled her, but she spoiled me as well”. They were married for almost 55 years, and had a son, Nicholas. Today Max enjoys a granddaughter and a grandson.
Through his almost 50-year career, Max held numerous positions with Pan Am in a number of international locations including Rome, Oslo, the Bahamas and France. While he was in Nice in southern France, he formed a very close personal friendship with Monaco’s Prince Rainier III and his wife, Princess Grace, the former American actress Grace Kelly. Their friendship grew so close that when their son, Prince Albert, was born, the Prince and Princess asked Max to be the child’s godfather. Later Prince Albert appointed him Honorary Consul of Monaco. Max worked with Pan Am until the airline ended operations in 1991. He assisted with the transition to Pan Am’s successor in the European market, Delta Airlines, and then retired.
When Max turned 100 years old, Prince Albert flew Max and a few of his friends to Monaco to celebrate his 100th birthday.
Max lives in La Jolla, California and meets each Sunday with two good friends, retired Pan Am Captain Tommy Carroll and retired U.S. Navy Commodore Tim McCully. Max is a Grand Knight of the wine tasting Knights of Burgundy that meet each June in a chateau in Dijon France. In October, 2024, he recently attended the Pan Am Annual Gala at the Cradle of Aviation in Garden City, NY.
Max turned 103 years old in 2024, celebrating his birthday in Monaco with Prince Albert. He attributes his longevity to a positive mindset. “I choose to remember the good things”. Max is hoping to continue his run to at least 110 years young. “So far, so good!”
Max looked back on World War II and commented, “Humans are great guys but can be awfully violent. I hope we can stay out of the next mess.”
Max, thank you for deciphering Nazi messages and helping to save the world from true evil. Perhaps you were unable to find the missing baggage, but your skills helped Pan Am expand around the globe.
Max spent very little time with his parents as a child. He went to school in Switzerland where he learned to speak Italian and French. For a short time he lived in London. Max returned to New York City at the age of eight years old. He lived on 150 East 52nd Street in Manhattan where he attended Washington Irving High School. “I was very happy”. On Sunday, December 7th, 1941 Max and his friends went to a movies. When they came out of the theater around noon time “we heard about the Japanese attack in the Pacific”.
Max and his friends were eager to join the military and help the United States in the war effort. Although Max had not graduated from high school, he headed to his draft board and enlisted. “We were all a lively bunch. It was a good reason to start a new life”. The boys were told to wait until they were called up. A short while later the Army called and Max and three friends headed to Fort Dix in New Jersey where “we were vaccinated, we got our weapons and a few other things”. The boys spent the night, and Max recalled the lights went out at 9pm. “We were feeling very dedicated to go to fight but on the other hand a little bit of apprehension”.
Max headed to Fort Bragg in North Carolina for basic training and then on to Fort Sill in Oklahoma to attend Artillery School. While he was in Artillery School the Army learned that Max spoke four languages besides English. He spoke French and Italian which he learned during his time in Switzerland. He had learned Greek and Latin as his father had insisted. Max was transferred into the 842nd Signal Intelligence Service unit which was responsible for intercepting and deciphering enemy messages.
In 1943 Max crossed the Atlantic in a Canadian Navy landing ship during a memorable trip to Algiers, zig zagging to avoid Nazi submarines. “We lost a couple of ships”. Algiers is where Max received his on-the-job training. There were 17 men in the unit and “they all graduated with some talents”. Not everyone was fluent in languages but “were extremely able in deciphering”. “Our job was to get as many German signals as possible”. Any intercepted messages they could not crack were sent to London or Washington, DC. Max remembered his Signal Corp unit operated out of a van. There were four men listening for enemy communications and they worked together as a group to construct the messages they intercepted.
Were Max and his buddies worried as they headed to North Africa? “Well, we had rum in the morning . . . but in the afternoon probably. I personally was worried but not excessively”. Max thought the fear was present but not overwhelming. Being surrounded by so many men of the same age and the tight knit nature of his unit went a long way in keeping any fear in check.
Max arrived just after General Patton and General Bradley had assumed command of the U.S. Seventh Army troops in Africa. Patton and Bradley changed a series of Allied losses into successes and pushed the Nazis from North Africa. “The Germans themselves were more worried about Patton than the United States”.
Eventually Max found his way to Tunisia in anticipation of the Allied invasion of Sicily. When the invasion began, Max followed the initial waves and his outfit arrived in Messina, Italy for the Sicilian campaign. After Sicily, the Allied troops rolled onto the Italian mainland and Max and his unit followed the action to the battle for the monastery at Monte Cassino. The Battle of Monte Cassio was long and deadly. It lasted from November 1943 through May 1944. Max recalled being in a listening position at the base of Monte Cassino. “We got hit several times. The German Air Force was mediocre but still effective”.
Max and his unit arrived in Rome on June 5th, 1944, one day before D-Day in Normandy. From there, the Fifth Army under General Mark Clark moved north to Florence in August of 1944. “From Rome to Florence was very swift” and “there we were stuck for the whole winter”. We had very nice USO shows. Remember Marlene Dietrich with her legs? Of course, Bob Hope”.
Max also recalled the time he slept in Mussolini’s bed. Max’ intelligence unit had moved north to Lake Garda near Milan where they “occupied a very nice villa taken over by our captain.” Max learned that the villa had previously been Mussolini’s residence. Max was in Milan when the Nazis in Italy surrendered on May 5th, 1945, the day before they surrendered in Germany. Max described the end of the war in Europe as a great feeling of satisfaction.
After a month and a half of rest and relaxation, his unit was told they were essential to the war effort with Japan, and they would not be headed home. Instead, they departed from Naples headed to New York City to further deploy to Iwo Jima as the war in the Pacific raged on.
When they arrived in New York City in August, they were prepared to head to Iwo Jima for the invasion of Japan, but the U.S. dropped the second atomic bomb, Fatman, on August 9th and the Japanese surrendered. Max recalled there was “general elation” when the country learned of the surrender. Max was discharged at Fort Dix in New Jersey on September 19th and returned to his family in New York City. “We went into the Poconos and had a little vacation with the family”.
After his vacation he returned to New York City. His cousin told him that Pan American World Airways, the preeminent airline at the time, was hiring. Pan Am hired a group of WWII veterans into a newly formed group to address the baggage handling system. “Pan Am was losing a lot of luggage and we were called in to a new mission to recover all the luggage and make sure everything was going to be normal with it. Unfortunately, after six months, the lady in charge said, ‘we are sorry, but we are losing more luggage now than before. So, we must transfer you.’”
Later in 1946 Max was trained as a ticket counter agent at the Marine Terminal at La Guardia Airport, located in Flushing, New York. Because of his ability to speak four languages, he was quickly promoted to Sales Manager in Dakar, Senegal with jurisdiction over five countries in West Africa.
In 1949, Max opened the Pan Am office in Milan, Italy where he developed a friendship with the world-renowned conductor, Arturo Toscanini. Max recalled seeing him conduct at Teatro alla Scala. Within eight months he was transferred to Beirut on loan to Middle East Airlines (MEA), as part of a management contract with Pan Am. He was responsible for airline operations and marketing in Cyprus, Kuwait and six Middle East countries. He then headed to Saudia Arabia. Max recalled “Saudia Arabia was a very important client at the time”. Pan Am handled a significant amount of cargo for Saudia Arabia.
“Pan Am demonstrated that they really were ahead of everyone else at the time”.
A man as warm and engaging as Max Gurney was destined to be married. “It all happened in Milan. I met a very wonderful girl from Scotland, Helena Keir, who lived in London and was on a short trip to Milan. We had a very brief encounter, but it was meaningful. It took a year and a half…and we got married in Portofino, Italy” in 1950. “I spoiled her, but she spoiled me as well”. They were married for almost 55 years, and had a son, Nicholas. Today Max enjoys a granddaughter and a grandson.
Through his almost 50-year career, Max held numerous positions with Pan Am in a number of international locations including Rome, Oslo, the Bahamas and France. While he was in Nice in southern France, he formed a very close personal friendship with Monaco’s Prince Rainier III and his wife, Princess Grace, the former American actress Grace Kelly. Their friendship grew so close that when their son, Prince Albert, was born, the Prince and Princess asked Max to be the child’s godfather. Later Prince Albert appointed him Honorary Consul of Monaco. Max worked with Pan Am until the airline ended operations in 1991. He assisted with the transition to Pan Am’s successor in the European market, Delta Airlines, and then retired.
When Max turned 100 years old, Prince Albert flew Max and a few of his friends to Monaco to celebrate his 100th birthday.
Max lives in La Jolla, California and meets each Sunday with two good friends, retired Pan Am Captain Tommy Carroll and retired U.S. Navy Commodore Tim McCully. Max is a Grand Knight of the wine tasting Knights of Burgundy that meet each June in a chateau in Dijon France. In October, 2024, he recently attended the Pan Am Annual Gala at the Cradle of Aviation in Garden City, NY.
Max turned 103 years old in 2024, celebrating his birthday in Monaco with Prince Albert. He attributes his longevity to a positive mindset. “I choose to remember the good things”. Max is hoping to continue his run to at least 110 years young. “So far, so good!”
Max looked back on World War II and commented, “Humans are great guys but can be awfully violent. I hope we can stay out of the next mess.”
Max, thank you for deciphering Nazi messages and helping to save the world from true evil. Perhaps you were unable to find the missing baggage, but your skills helped Pan Am expand around the globe.