Newsmen in Khaki: Tales of a World War II Soldier-Correspondent [Hardcover]

Herbert Mitigang (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 19, 2004

Newsmen in Khaki is a personal memoir about the revered, longstanding armed forces newspaper Stars and Stripes, as told by an Army correspondent and managing editor of editions in North Africa and Sicily during World War II. Whether accompanying bombing missions or parachutists, entertaining a Contessa or visiting a refugee camp, Mitgang offers an innovative and poignant account of his experiences. In addition to his own pieces, Mitgang includes articles by other famous authors in uniform-Irwin Shaw, Klaus Mann, and Bill Brinkley-as well as the voices of many American GIs. Newsmen in Khaki also details the author's post-war career, most notably his long-running stint at the New York Times, where he served as an editor, columnist, book critic, editorial writer, and founder of the Op-Ed page.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Enlisting at age 22, Mitgang was assigned to the Air Corps (then a branch of the U.S. Army), leaving for North Africa on a troopship in 1942. Stationed with the 5th Bomb Wing on the edge of the Sahara, he edited a mimeographed newsletter, Bombfighter Bulletin, which led to an editorial post with the armed forces newspaper Stars and Stripes. This is Mitgang’s memoir of his tenure as managing editor of the paper’s Sicily edition, and he shares recollections of covering the war with sharp clarity. He tells of listening to a captain and his men discuss bringing down the German-occupied Leaning Tower of Pisa: "I listened in fascination. What a story! To be present not at the creation but at the destruction of the world-famous landmark that had stood for some 800 years." He later moved on to man typewriters in Naples and Rome. Back in New York in 1945, a recommendation by cartoonist Bill Mauldin resulted in work on the screen treatment of Mauldin’s Up Front. Reprints of Stars and Stripes pieces by Mitgang, novelist Klaus Mann (Mephisto), paperback illustrator Stanley Meltzoff and others punctuate the pages. Mitgang has a razor-sharp memory and writes in such a fluid, lucid manner that some may wish he’d continued on, documenting his postwar career at the New York Times.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

Mitgang has a razor-sharp memory and writes in such a fluid, lucid manner that some may wish he'd continue on, documenting his postwar career at the New York Times. (Publishers Weekly )

Mitgang has a razor-sharp memory and writes in such a fluid, lucid manner that some may wish he'd continue on, documenting his postwar career at the New York Times. (Publishers Weekly )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Taylor Trade Publishing (August 19, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1589790944
• ISBN-13: 978-1589790940
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,443,950 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars War From a Reporter's Persective, December 26, 2004

By 

Neal Bellet (Wayne, New Jersey United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Newsmen in Khaki: Tales of a World War II Soldier-Correspondent (Hardcover)

Newsmen In Khaki is the story of Herbert Mitgang, the author, and his experiences as a reporter for Stars and Stripes during WWII. It is fast moving and light hearted in spots and, although many of the original Stars and Stripes articles are reprinted, the book doesn't really deal too much with the blood and gore of war. My only criticism is that I found two typographical errors toward the end. Otherwise, I recommend this book for anyone who is interested in WWII.