Charles Chiodi can't forget the night when he stared into the face of a soldier with a machine gun pointed at him.

It was 1956 when the Hungarian-born Chiodi, now a Marion resident, set out to escape his war-torn country with his wife and their two children. They were just shy of the Austrian border when a Hungarian guard stopped them.

Fearing that he would be sent to a labor camp and separated from his family for trying to escape Hungary, Chiodi panicked until his daughter’s cries softened the soldier.

“Something broke the heart of that soldier and he let us go,” Chiodi said. “We ran and we ran like we never ran before, and we kissed the ground when we got there.”

Chiodi's story is similar to those of the tens of thousands of Hungarian refugees who fled the country following the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, in which the people revolted against the Communist government. Before the revolt, the country was allied with the Axis Powers in World War II and was occupied by the Nazis.

Today, Chiodi is the father of five children, a grandfather, an author of books on boating and the retired publisher of Multihulls magazine, a bimonthly publication about sailing.

His latest book, “There is Always Sunshine Behind the Clouds,” details his escape from Hungary to Austria and expatriation to America.

The book got its name from a saying Chiodi’s mother would tell him when things were grim during World War II as bombs threatened to destroy his country.

“'No matter how bad life is there’s always sunshine behind the clouds',” Chiodi said.

After arriving in America on December 26, 1956, Chiodi and his family settled in New Jersey. Soon after, he received financial help from an elderly couple and the Old Parish Church in Hingham. The family then made Rockland their home.

Learning the language, Chiodi said was the hardest part of moving to America.

“Coming from a country as small as Hungary, you’re stuck with your Hungarian language,” he said. “We really had to learn the language quite fast.”

It took him and his family some time to do so, but Chiodi said they eventually caught on. They even started dropping their “R’s” like real Bostonians.

In Hungary, Chiodi was an actor before he turned to journalism. In America, he used his past experience working for a Hungarian Army newspaper to start his own advertising agency and magazine, which he published in 104 countries for 35 years.

When money became tight at Multihulls, Chiodi said he ceased operations.

With his book, Chiodi reflects on his life. From surviving revolutions in the Middle East to sailing around New England waters and beyond, Chiodi said has no regrets.

“I had my fun,” he said. “I am pleased with my life. I wouldn’t trade it for anything. It was a life experience.”