[RSwank]

Manni, I have also contacted the son of the woman that Samar married late in life. The son said he knew that Samar had been shot down but nothing else. Samar didn't talk about it. The son did look at the photo and thinks Samar is the 5th man in the row, next to Koker but he can't be "absolutely" sure. I have looked at several of these Lake Charles photos and the crew is always standing in the order, left to right as:
Pilot, Co-Pilot, Bombardier/Navigator, Fight Engineer/Top Turret Gunner, RO/Gunner, Armorer/Tail Gunner. Thus the enlisted men are not in the order they sit in the plane (front to back) but more likely in order of rank as the flight engineers are typically Technical Sergeants.

I don't think Lidicker is in the picture as I believe he joined the crew in Europe. I am not sure about Wolberg. I believe Hopkins is on the left.

I may talk with Koker's brother this weekend.

I found some medical records for Samar on Ancestry of all places. I will get them posted to a Samar folder on the Drive today or tomorrow. Samar had a broken leg along with broken bones in his face and hands.