Edward 'Babe' Heffron
Actor · 1923 – 2013 · Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Edward James “Babe” Heffron (May 16, 1923 – December 1, 2013) was an American Army soldier and World War II veteran. He served as a Private First Class with Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, joining the company as a replacement in July 1944. Born in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Heffron left high school during the Great Depression and worked as a ship sandblaster at New York Shipbuilding before enlisting in the U.S. Army in November 1942. He volunteered for the airborne forces and completed his training before being sent to Europe. Heffron joined Easy Company after the Normandy campaign and served as a machine gunner during Operation Market Garden and the Battle of the Bulge. During the fighting in Bastogne, he earned a Bronze Star for his actions as a machine gunner. He was also involved in the company's advance through Germany and the capture of the Eagle's Nest near Berchtesgaden. Heffron was particularly affected by the death of his close friend John T. “Johnny” Julian during the Battle of the Bulge. The two had made a pact during airborne training to look after each other's families should either of them be killed. Years after the war, Heffron contacted Julian's mother to fulfill that promise. After returning to Philadelphia, Heffron worked for Publicker Industries at a whiskey distillery before spending many years working on the Philadelphia waterfront. He remained close friends with fellow Easy Company veteran William “Wild Bill” Guarnere, and the two co-authored the 2007 memoir Brothers in Battle, Best of Friends with journalist Robyn Post. Heffron was prominently featured in Stephen E. Ambrose's book Band of Brothers and appeared in the HBO documentary We Stand Alone Together: The Men of Easy Company. He was portrayed by Robin Laing in the 2001 HBO miniseries Band of Brothers and also made a brief cameo appearance in the series. Heffron died on December 1, 2013, at the age of 90, in Stratford, New Jersey.
Movies2
Movie9.1DocumentaryWarThis tribute to the groundbreaking series that helped preserve the story of Easy Company and deepened public appreciation for the sacrifices of the Greatest Generation features new interviews with cast members Damian Lewis, Ron Livingston, Michael Cudlitz, Capt. Dale Dye, USMC (Ret.), David Schwimmer, and more. Through personal reflections and behind-the-scenes stories, participants revisit the experience of making the series and explore its lasting cultural resonance, and also includes never-before-seen archival footage and photographs of Easy Company and World War II.
Band of Brothers: Legacy
2026 · 13 votes
Movie7.4DocumentaryWarOver a period of two years, Mark Cowen and his crew travelled to thirty U.S. states and ten European cities, to interview the veterans of Easy Company. The stories told by the veterans themselves, create a history of the Second World War from the point of view of this heroic company of men, made famous in the mini-series Band of Brothers.
We Stand Alone Together: The Men of Easy Company
2001 · 41 votes
Series1
TV8.6DramaWar & PoliticsDrawn from interviews with survivors of Easy Company, as well as their journals and letters, Band of Brothers chronicles the experiences of these men from paratrooper training in Georgia through the end of the war. As an elite rifle company parachuting into Normandy early on D-Day morning, participants in the Battle of the Bulge, and witness to the horrors of war, the men of Easy knew extraordinary bravery and extraordinary fear - and became the stuff of legend. Based on Stephen E. Ambrose's acclaimed book of the same name.
Band of Brothers
2001 · 4.4K votes