On the Road Again
U-Haul International and Seward Johnson Atelier
team up to keep the Spirit of '45 alive in America
U-Haul International
U-Haul has a special relationship with the Spirit of '45: the company was founded in 1945 by WWII Navy Veteran, "Sam" Shoen - an example of how America's returning veterans have created new companies, and in U-Haul's case - entirely new industries.
U-Haul co-founders Lt. L.S. "Sam" Shoen and his wife Anna Mary Carty Shoen
U-Haul's Communications and Community Relations Department has been providing U-Haul trucks to transport Seward Johnson's sculptures depicting the image of the famous "Times Square Kiss" that has been taken on tours across the country.
U-Haul truck with Kiss visiting Spirit of '45 Day spokesmen legendary TV producer Norman Lear and Hollywood star Ernie Borgnine, and U-Haul executive.
Navajo Code Talkers with Times Square Kiss sculpture when it visited their Memorial in Window Rock, AZ
Spirit of '45 Day tour visited dozens of senior living centers across the country in 2012, thanks to the support of U-Haul International.
U-Haul trucks carry the "Kiss" in the nation's largest parades on Memorial Day and Veterans Day in Washington, DC and New York City, and in the National Pearl Harbor Day Parade in Honolulu.
U-Haul and "Times Square Kiss" in New York City "America's Parade" with active Navy personnel, American Legion National Commander Fang Wong, and crossing the red carpet with youth marchers.
U-Hual International float in National Memorial Day Parade in Washington, DC, featuring Seward Johnson's sculpture and re-enactors depicting the famous "Times Square Kiss" Left, young volunteer carrying WWII posthumous Medal of Honor recipient, one of more than 300 poster photos carried each year in the Spirit of '45 Memorial Day March of Heroes.
Seward Johnson
The "Kiss" sculptures are currently on view at the Battleship USS Missouri in Pearl Harbor and the Battleship USS Iowa in San Pedro, CA.
Seward Johnson sculpture on permanent display at the USS Missouri and the USS Iowa to help promote Spirit of '45 Day
A third sculpture frequently tours the country, and appears in the Memorial Day Parade in Washington, DC in May and New York City's "America's Parade" on Veterans Day in November.
The Sculpture Foundation brought the 24 ft monumental version of the sculpture into Times Square for the Spirit of '45 Day mass Kiss In in 2010 and 2015.
Artist Seward Johnson in Times Square. Tuskegee Airman kisses his wife at the inaugural Spirit of '45 Day event on August 14, 2010. Monumental version now a permanent feature of San Diego's "Greatest Generation Walk."
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