Joseph N. Fineberg, a WWII Ranger

Joseph N. Fineberg, 88, of Bala Cynwyd, a retired Army-Navy store owner whose World War II exploits were chronicled in print and film, died of heart failure June 26 at Lankenau Hospital in Wynnewood.

A native of North Philadelphia, Mr. Fineberg attended Simon Gratz High School. He joined the Army in 1941 and served as a paramedic in England.

In 1942, he volunteered for a new ranger unit headed by Col. William Darby. Darby's Rangers saw combat in North Africa, Sicily and Anzio, and were famous for daring night raids and hit-and-run tactics.

Mr. Fineberg was the unit's supply officer and used his personality and wiles to load his jeep, nicknamed "Matza Ball," with everything from Springfield rifles to wool socks, said his daughter, Deborah Pollock. "He was a Sgt. Bilko kind of a character," she said. His humorous exploits were reported in Yank, an Army magazine, and his more heroic exploits won him a promotion to captain and a Bronze Star.

Mr. Fineberg was featured in the book Rangers in World War II by Robert W. Black. In the 1958 film Darby's Ranger's, his character, named Saul Rosen, was portrayed by Jack Warden.

In May 1944, after more than two years of combat, Mr. Fineberg was sent home on leave and then was assigned to talk to military workers about the war. To encourage their efforts, he had photos taken of grandfathers in goggles and young women in welder helmets. They sent the photos to their relatives fighting overseas.

After his discharge, Mr. Fineberg operated Captain Joe's Surplus Store on North Broad Street for more than 30 years. In the 1960s, he set up a children's "keeping library" in the store and later gave books away to recreation centers, school libraries, seniors' groups and prisons. When a relative asked Mr. Fineberg why he handed out quarters to neighborhood children, he said: "It takes so little to make so many people happy." After Captain Joe's closed in 1983, he continued to supply other surplus stores for 10 years.

Since 1945, Mr. Fineberg had been married to Perle "P.J." Herman Fineberg. They had met a dance at the YMHA in Philadelphia. They raised two children in Wynnefield and Penn Valley, and had wintered in Palm Beach, Fla., since the 1970s. He supported local charities in Florida, his daughter said, and had an eclectic art collection.

In addition to his wife and daughter, Mr. Fineberg is survived by a son, Michael, and a granddaughter.

Services were private.