ACT II

1 Casey, Torpedo Junction, p. 361. As do many other sources, Casey makes it clear that a lot of people in Hawaii, particularly within the navy, knew in some fashion about the coming battle.

2 Dickinson, The Flying Guns, p. 137.

3 Casey, Torpedo Junction, p. 374.

4 Commanding Officer USS Enterprise, Battle of Midway Island, June 4-6, 1942--Report of, Commander in Chief, Pacific Fleet Report, Serial 01849 of 28 June 1942, World War II Action Reports, NARA.

5 Dickinson, The Flying Guns, p. 73.

6 In the Enterprise's report on the battle, "Air Battle of the Pacific, June 4-6, 1942, report of," by Admiral Spruance, the Japanese Fleet was said to be "maneuvering radically." Neither Micheel nor his division leader, Lt. Clarence Dickinson, recalled it that way.

7 Dickinson, The Flying Guns, p. 172.

8 Ibid. p. 153.

9 Commanding Officer Scouting Squadron Six, Report of Action, June 4-6, 1942, dated June 20, 1942, NARA.

10 Capt. N. J. "Dusty" Kleiss e-mail to Battle of Midway Roundtable, 5 January 2008, Issue No. 2008- 02.

11 Commanding Officer Scouting Squadron Six, Report of Action, June 4-6, 1942, dated June 20, 1942, NARA.

12 In the VS-6 Action Report, June 4-6, Gallaher stated that (a) the entire Third Division failed to return and (b) William Pittman flew in the Third Division. Pittman, however, landed aboard Enterprise . The same report listed his participation in later sorties.

13 Dickinson, The Flying Guns, p. 140.

14 Robert J. Cressman et al., A Glorious Page in Our History (Missoula, Montana: Pictorial Histories Publishing Co., Inc., 1990), p. 108.

15 Commanding Officer Scouting Squadron Six, Report of Action, June 4-6, 1942, dated June 20, 1942, NARA.

16 Cressman et al., A Glorious Page in Our History, p. 140.

17 "Jap Communique: 'We Beat the U.S. at Midway--Our Troops Are on the Aleutians,' " AP story, San Francisco Chronicle, June 11, 1942; Stafford, The Big E, p. 117.

18 Casey, Torpedo Junction, p. 396.

19 Ibid. pp. 393, 408.

20 Deck Log of USS Enterprise, June 1, 1942-Sept. 23, 1942, General Records, Logs of Ships and Stations, 1801-1946, RG 24 Records of Bureau of Naval Personnel, NARA.

21 Dickinson, The Flying Guns, p. 110.

22 "Jap Battleship, Plane Carrier Hit," San Francisco Chronicle, June 5, 1942 (based upon a June 4 AP story from Honolulu), p. 1.

23 "Huge Jap Invasion Fleet Smashed at Midway--Fleeing!" San Francisco Chronicle, June 6, 1942, p. 1.

24 "Jap Disaster," San Francisco Chronicle, June 7, 1942, p. 1; "Knew Jap Task Force Was Coming--and Were Ready," San Francisco Chronicle, June 7, 1942, p. 3.

25 Robert Turnbull, "Eyewitness of Victory: Col. Sweeney Tells How His Squadron Smashed Japan's Invasion Attempt" (dateline: With the United States Army Air Force in the Pacific, June 11), San Francisco Chronicle, June 12, 1942, p. 1.

26 Dickinson, The Flying Guns, p. vi.

27 Stafford, The Big E, p. 121.

28 Robert Leckie, Helmet for My Pillow (New York: Random House, 1957; ibooks, 2001), p. 52.

29 "MacArthur Day: Army Plans Big Show with P-38s in Spectacular Maneuvers," San Francisco Chronicle , June 10, 1942, p. 1; "MacArthur Day: Kezar Stadium Becomes a Battleground, a Warning to All of America's Enemies," San Francisco Chronicle, June 14, 1942, p. 1.

30 Stafford, The Big E, p. 119.

31 Much of the story of Shofner's life as a POW rests upon his daily diary and upon a report he wrote in Australia and submitted to MacArthur's Headquarters. The latter was dated December 3, 1943.

32 "Prisoners of Japan," Life, p. 29.

33 The Bataan Death March, documentary, Executive Producer Charlie Mayday, The History Channel.

34 "Prisoners of Japan," Life, p. 29.

35 Capt. A. C. Davis's Narrative Report of Operations in Support of Guadalcanal--Tulagi Landings, Action Report, USS Enterprise, 24 August 1942, NARA; Official Flight Log of Vernon Micheel.

36 Deck Logs of USS Enterprise, June-August 1942, RG 24, Box 3, NARA.

37 Col. Clifton Cates, "Now It Can Be Told," July 30, 1942; author's copy courtesy of Dr. Sidney Phillips.

38 "Plan of the Day," August 6, 1942, USS Enterprise, www.cv6.org.

39 Capt. A. C. Davis's Narrative Report of Operations in Support of Guadalcanal--Tulagi Landings, Action Report, USS Enterprise, 24 August 1942, NARA.

40 Stafford, The Big E, p. 125.

41 "Plan of the Day," August 6, 1942, USS Enterprise, www.cv6.org.

42 Ibid.

43 Capt. A. C. Davis's Narrative Report of Operations in Support of Guadalcanal--Tulagi Landings, Action Report, USS Enterprise, 24 August 1942, NARA.

44 Report of Action 7 and 8 August 1942, August 22, 1942, Enterprise Air Group, Enclosure A, by CO of VB-6, RG 38, Box 351, NARA.

45 Capt. A. C. Davis's Narrative Report of Operations in Support of Guadalcanal--Tulagi Landings, Action Report, USS Enterprise, 24 August 1942, NARA.

46 Report of Action 7 and 8 August 1942, August 22, 1942, Enterprise Air Group, Enclosure A, by CO of VB-6, RG 38, Box 351, NARA.

47 Commander, Enterprise Air Group, " The Tulagi-Guadalcanal Air Action and Landing Force Operation of 7-8 August, 1942--Narrative and Comments Concerning," 10 August 1942, NARA.

48 Ibid.

49 "Plan of the Day," August 11, 1942, USS Enterprise, www.cv6.org.

50 A. A. Vandegrift as told to Robert B. Asprey, Once a Marine: The Memoirs of General A. A. Vandegrift, USMC (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1964), p. 126.

51 Capt. A. C. Davis's Narrative Report of Operations in Support of Guadalcanal--Tulagi Landings, Action Report, USS Enterprise, 24 August 1942, NARA.

52 Report of Action 7 and 8 August 1942, August 22, 1942, Enterprise Air Group, Enclosure A, by CO of VB-6, RG 38, Box 351, NARA.

53 Lt. Ray Davis Recommendation for a DFC, Micheel Navy File, NRC.

54 Capt. A. C. Davis's Narrative Report of Operations in Support of Guadalcanal--Tulagi Landings, Action Report, USS Enterprise, 24 August 1942, NARA.

55 Ibid.

56 "Action Report, Anti-Submarine Action by Aircraft, Report of," CO VB-6, 12 August 1942.

57 "History of the First Marine Regiment" Phase II (H Hour 7 August-Evening 9 August) 1st Marines Guadalcanal After Action Report, RG 127, Box 42, NARA.

58 Ibid.

59 Leckie, Helmet for My Pillow, p. 77.

60 "History of the First Marine Regiment" Phase II (H Hour 7 August-Evening 9 August) 1st Marines Guadalcanal After Action Report, RG 127, Box 42, NARA. This document specifically states that the captured POWs reported coming from "Guam, Japan, and Truk."

61 Commander of the Enterprise Air Group, "Report of Action in the Solomon Islands Area Aug. 22-25, 1942, Narrative," September 2, 1942, RG 38, NARA.

62 Commanding Officer of Enterprise, "Action of August 24, 1942, Including Air Attack on USS Enterprise , Report of," September 5, 1942, RG 38, NARA.

63 "Report of Action August 24, 1942," Bombing Squadron Six, August 31, 1942, RG 38, NARA.

64 USS Enterprise War Diary, August 24, 1942, www.cv6.org.

65 "Report of Action August 24, 1942," Bombing Squadron Six, August 31, 1942, RG 38, NARA.

66 Deck Logs of USS Enterprise, June-August 1942, RG 24, Box 3, NARA.

67 Henry I. Shaw Jr. and Douglas T. Kane, History of the U.S. Marine Corps Operations in WWII: Isolation of Rabaul, Volume II (Washington, D.C.: USMC Historical Division, 1963), Appendix E; see also p. 34.

68 John Basilone USMC Service Record, NRC.

69 PBC Articles.

70 Ibid.

71 Richard Greer (D- 1-7) interviews with author.

72 Gilbert Lozier (C-1-7) interview with Gary W. Cozzens, Gary Cozzens Papers, USMC Archives, Special Collections, Quantico, Virginia. The author would like to express his appreciation to Gary Cozzens, who sent me his manuscript about C-1-7 entitled "Suicide Charlie," tracing the company's history up through Operation Desert Storm (copyright 1994). This manuscript alerted the author to the interviews of 1/7 men conducted by Mr. Cozzens as well as by the author Eric Hammel. The donations of this research by Messrs. Cozzens, himself a former CO of Charlie Company, and Hammel, a renowned author of WWII books, has allowed this author and future scholars to continue their work.

73 Hoffman, Chesty, p. 153.

74 Col. Charles Kelly correspondence with Eric Hammel, Eric Hammel Papers, USMC Archives, Special Collections, Quantico, Virginia. The author's thanks to Mr. Hammel are above in entry 72.

75 Gilbert Lozier interview with Gary W. Cozzens, USMC Archives.

76 "Platoon Sergeant John Basilone," undated MS, author unknown ( John Basilone is presumed to have dictated this MS), RPL; Basilone Personnel File, USMC, NRC; Summary of Operations of the 1st Battalion, 30 September 1942, RG 127, Box 44, NARA.

77 Thomas Boyle (D- 1-7) interview with author, March 10, 2004.

78 Summary of Operations of the 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, 18 September 1942, RG 127, Box 43, NARA; Summary of Operations of the 1st Battalion, 30 September 1942, RG 127, Box 43, NARA (hereafter Puller 1/7 Reports).

79 Albert Masco (D-1-7) interview with Bruce McKenna, Playtone Collection.

80 Puller 1/7 Reports.

81 Hoffman, Chesty, p. 157.

82 "Report on Period of Captivity," for the Commandant of the USMC, by Capt. M. H. McCoy USN, March 1946; Shofner USMC Personnel File, NRC.

83 Marshall Moore to Capt. Gary W. Cozzens, May 7, 1986, author's copy courtesy of Gary W. Cozzens.

84 "The Life and Death of Manila John," Time, March 19, 1945. There is reason to believe this letter made it past the censors, or was sent before an effective process of enforcing censorship was in place.

85 Richard Greer (D- 1-7) interview with author, March 30, 2004, file #2.

86 Puller 1/7 Reports.

87 Lester W. Clark, An Unlikely Arena (New York: Vantage Press, Inc., 1989), pp. 94-95.

88 Gilbert Lozier interview with Gary W. Cozzens, USMC Archives.

89 Muster Roll, D-1-7, October 31, 1942, NARA.

90 PBC Articles.

91 John Basilone Personnel File, NRC. The Muster Roll of Company D, 1st Battalion, 7th Marines recorded that John Basilone did not participate in the actions of October 7-9. The records in his personnel file, however, indicate he did.

92 Richard Greer (D- 1-7) interview with author, author's collection.

93 Capt. Marshall Moore correspondence with Eric Hammel, USMC Archives.

94 Charles Kelly correspondence with Eric Hammel, USMC Archives.

95 Hoffman, Chesty, p. 175.

96 Charles Kelly correspondence with Eric Hammel, USMC Archives.

97 Muster Rolls for C-1-7 and D-1-7, October; Charles Kelly correspondence with Eric Hammel, USMC Archives.

98 Puller 1/7 Reports.

99 Charles Kelly correspondence with Eric Hammel, USMC Archives.

100 PBC Articles.

101 Marshall Moore correspondence with Eric Hammel, USMC Archives; PBC Articles.

102 Lt. Col. Frank Hough et al., History of USMC Operations in WWII, Volume I (Washington, D.C.: USMC Historical Divison, 1989), p. 320.

103 Muster Roll of Officers and Enlisted Men of the U.S. Marine Corps., Company "D," 1 Battalion, Seventh Marines, First Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force, in the field, October 1-31, 1942, USMC, NARA.

104 Marshall Moore correspondence with Eric Hammel, USMC Archives.

105 Charles Kelly correspondence with Eric Hammel, USMC Archives.

106 Charles Kelly and Marshall Moore correspondence with Eric Hammel, USMC Archives.

107 Puller 1/7 Reports; Dog Company and Charlie Company 1/7 Muster Rolls, October 1-31, 1942, NARA.

108 Richard Greer interviews with author, author's collection. Jockstrap was also mentioned in a letter from Richard Greer to John Basilone dated 1943, Basilone Family Collection.

109 PBC Articles.

110 Ibid.

111 Dog Company 1/7 Muster Roll, October 1-31, 1942, NARA.

112 Thomas G. Miller Jr., The Cactus Air Force (New York: Bantam Books, 1987), p. 126.

113 MAG23 War Diaries, August 20-November 16, 1942, Cactus Air Force, Box 14, 1054, RG 127, NARA.

114 Ibid.

115 Clark, Unlikely Arena, p. 97.

116 Miller, The Cactus Air Force, p. 73.

117 Ibid. p. 129.

118 Arvil Jones and Lulu Jones, Forgotten Warriors: Challenge at Guadalcanal (Paducah, Kentucky: Turner Publishing Co., 1994), p. 46.

119 Miller, The Cactus Air Force, p. 132.

120 Ibid. p. 130.

121 Guido Colamarino, "Marine Earned Navy Cross Despite Faulty Machine Gun," Marine Corps Times, October 8, 2007, courtesy of Dorsorgna Family.

122 Ed Sullivan, "Little Old New York," undated column in unidentified newspaper, RPL.

123 Hoffman, Chesty, p. 181.

124 "Sergeant Basilone Tells Story of Exploit That Made Him a Hero, Gives Buddies Credit," Somerset Messenger-Gazette, September 9, 1943, p. 1, Basilone Family Collection (hereafter "Basilone Tells Story").

125 Dog Company 1/7 Muster Roll, October 1-31, 1942, USMC, NARA.

126 "Basilone Tells Story."

127 "Platoon Sergeant John Basilone," undated MS, RPL.

128 Puller 1/7 Reports; Marshall Moore letter to Gary W. Cozzens, USMC Archives.

129 Marshall Moore letter to Gary W. Cozzens, USMC Archives.

130 "Basilone Tells Story." See also "Recap of October 24-25 '42," unpublished MS by John Basilone, RPL (hereafter JB MS); this document seems authentic to the author based upon its content and its style.

131 Puller 1/7 Reports.

132 "The Hero on the Cover," Collier's, June 24, 1944 (hereafter Collier's "The Hero").

133 The account of this action is drawn from an assembly of all the interviews John Basilone gave to reporters, principally an interview with a USMC reporter on Guadalcanal, as quoted in The Old Breed: A History of the First Marine Division in World War II by George MacMillan (Washington, D.C.: Infantry Journal Press, 1949), p. 107; see also "Basilone Tells Story" and JB MS. Discrepancies between these accounts exist. Other sources will be cited as necessary.

134 Map of 1/7 Lines, October 23-25, by George McGillivray, author's collection.

135 The information given by Marshall Moore in a letter to Eric Hammel dated 1963 differs slightly on this point from his statements in his letter to Gary Cozzens dated 1986, USMC Archives.

136 MacMillan, The Old Breed, p. 107. MacMillan is quoting a USMC reporter who interviewed John Basilone soon after the battle.

137 PBC Articles.

138 JB MS; PBC Articles; "Marine Hero Visits Buddies at Manville," undated Johns- Manville Corporate Publication, Basilone Family Collection.

139 JB MS; "Basilone Tells Story."

140 JB MS.

141 Citation letter for John Basilone by Col. Lewis Puller.

142 "Appreciates a Hero," undated clipping from unidentified newspaper, RPL.

143 Navy Cross Citation for Pvt. Billie Joe Crumpton, SPOT AWARD, Serial 777, signed by the Secretary of the Navy on August 17, 1943.

144 Collier's " The Hero." This was written while Basilone was still in Camp Pendleton, California; it is therefore likely the reporter spoke to him.

145 Ibid.

146 TM 9-1005-212-25 (Machine Gun, Caliber .30: Browning, M1919A4), Department of the Army Technical Manual, by James Jones, June 1969.

147 Collier's "The Hero."

148 JB MS; "Hero Praises His Buddies," September 4, 1943, Somerset Messenger-Gazette, Basilone Family Collection.

149 "Basilone Tells Story."

150 Navy Cross Citation for Pvt. Billie Joe Crumpton; Muster Roll of D-1-7, 1 October to 31 October 1942, NARA.

151 Collier's "The Hero."

152 MacMillan, The Old Breed, p. 107.

153 Charles Kelly correspondence with Eric Hammel, USMC Archives.

154 Ed Sullivan, "Little Old New York," undated column in unidentified newspaper, RPL.

155 JB MS.

156 Lewis Puller letter of October 31, 1942, to the Commanding Officer, First Marine Division, Basilone Personnel File, author's collection.

157 "Basilone Tells Story."

158 Lewis Puller letter of October 31, 1942, to the Commanding Officer, First Marine Division, Basilone Personnel File, NRC.

159 Ed Sullivan, "Little Old New York," undated column in unidentified newspaper, RPL.

160 "Marine Hero to Appear Here" and "Welcoming Committee," undated clippings from unidentified newspapers, Basilone Family Collection.

161 Collier's "The Hero."

162 James Golden, Boot Staff Writer, "Platoon Sergeant Basilone Held His Ground," undated article [circa October 1943] in unidentified publication, USMC Historical Division File (hereafter Golden Article). It is known that Golden wrote for Parade magazine and conducted his interview with John for, in his own words, "a popular syndicate."

163 Golden Article.

164 Puller 1/7 Reports; Marshall Moore to Gary W. Cozzens, USMC Archives.

165 JB MS.

166 JB MS; "Basilone Tells Story." In his interviews, Basilone's numbers changed somewhat. Colonel Puller's report cites different figures; Basilone's recollection is used here.

167 Lewis Puller Medal of Honor letter, 31 October 1942; Puller 1/7 Reports; Muster Roll C-1-7, 1 October 1942 to 31 October 1942, NARA.

168 MacMillan, The Old Breed, p. 107.

169 Manuel Berkowitz interview, Playtone Collection.

170 Marshall Moore to Gary W. Cozzens, courtesy of Gary W. Cozzens.

171 Navy Commendation Citation Medal; Cozzens, "Suicide Charlie," unpublished MS, p. 4.

172 D-1-7 Muster Roll October 31, 1942, NARA.

173 Colamarino, "Marine Earned Navy Cross Despite Faulty Machine Gun," Marine Corps Times.

174 Micheel Navy Personnel File; Ray Davis Recommendation for Micheel Navy Cross, February 1943.

175 Miller, The Cactus Air Force, p. 179.

176 MAG23 War Diaries, August 20-November 16, 1942, Cactus Air Force, Box 14, 1054, RG 127, NARA.

177 Charles Kelly letter to Gary W. Cozzens, courtesy of Gary W. Cozzens.

178 Summary of Operations of the First Battalion, Seventh Marines, period 3-8 November, 1942, RG 127, Box 43, NARA (hereafter included in subsequent citations for Puller 1/7 Reports).

179 Marshall Moore letter to Gary W. Cozzens, courtesy of Gary W. Cozzens; Charles Kelly correspondence with Eric Hammel, USMC Archives.

180 "Basilone Tells Story."

181 Ibid.

182 Richard Greer letter to John Basilone, November 27, 1943, Basilone Family Collection.

183 "Basilone Tells Story"; Clarence Angevine interview, Playtone Collection.

184 Albert Masco interview, author's collection.

185 "Prisoners of Japan," Life, p. 99.

186 John Basilone USMC Personnel Record.

187 Unless otherwise noted, the descriptions of Eugene Sledge's life story are based upon the lengthy letters he wrote his parents every few days from 1942 to 1946; interviews of him (courtesy of Lou Reda Productions, Kenwood Productions, and the USMC Archives); interviews with the men with whom he served; and his USMC Personnel File, NRC. The letters of Eugene Sledge are a part of the Eugene B. Sledge Collection, Auburn University Special Collections and Archives (hereafter SCAU), and are used here by permission.

188 Cressman et al., A Glorious Page in Our History, p. 108.

189 Reinforced Regimental General Order Number 1-42 "Possession of Army Clothing," 28 December 1942, NARA.

190 "Prisoners of Japan," Life, p. 99.