A new documentary highlights one of the most surreal events of World War II: The “Atomic Bowl”
The "Atomic Bowl." Photo courtesy Greg Mitchell. https://thebulletin.org/2025/07/a-new-documentary-highlights-one-of-the-most-surreal-events-of-world-war-ii-the-atomic-bowl/ A new documentary highlights one of the most surreal events of World War II: The “Atomic Bowl” By Erik English | July 14, 2025 On January 1st, 1946, the Isahaya Tigers, led by professional fullback Bill Osmanski, defeated the Nagasaki Bears, led by Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Angelo Bertelli , in a little-remembered football game known as the “ Atomic Bowl .” At the time, all college football bowl games took place on the same day, January 1st, and this game was no different. But this game was different in another remarkable aspect; it took place in Japan, in the ruins of perhaps one of the most tragic events in human history: the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan . As one witness recalls, the field where the game took place was “only a hundred yards from the remains of a Middle School—the shell s...