Tell Us: What Do You Think of World War II Kiss Coming to Royal Oak?

ROYAL OAK, MI – An iconic statue of a sailor embracing a nurse to celebrate Japan’s surrender and the end of World War II in 1945 was approved Monday by the Royal Oak City Commission for a one-year installation at 13 Mile Road and Woodward Avenue, on or near Memorial Park, where a permanent memorial is planned.

The 25-foot statue is inspired by the famous photograph of a returning sailor, taken in Times Square on V-J Day, Aug. 14, 1945, by Alfred Eisenstaedt, after it was announced that Japan had surrendered unconditionally to the Allied Forces.

Seward Johnson’s sculpture, “Unconditional Surrender,” also is known as “Embracing Peace” and, simply, “The Kiss.”

Although controversial, the towering piece has been “wildly popular”with veterans and the public, and is often a backdrop for photo re-enactments of the famous embrace and kiss.

All costs related to the temporary installation of the statue will be assumed by the Michigan WWII Legacy Memorial committee, not by the city. The committee may engage other local organizations — such as the Royal Oak Restaurant and Retail Associations, the Royal Oak Commission for the Arts, and the Royal Oak Downtown Development Authority — for assistance in promoting the project.

Tell Us

• Which side are you on? Do you love the statue? Do you hate it? Are you ambivalent?