Robert Lee Sherrod (February 8, 1909 – February 13, 1994) was an American journalist, editor and writer. He was a war correspondent for ''Time'' and ''Life'' magazines, covering combat from World War II to the Vietnam War. During World War II, embedded with the United States Marine Corps, he covered the battles at Attu (with the U.S. Army), Tarawa,

Saipan Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...

Iwo Jima Iwo Jima (, also ), known in Japan as , is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands and lies south of the Bonin Islands. Together with other islands, they form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The highest point of Iwo Jima is Mount Suribachi at high. ...

, and Okinawa. He also authored five books on World War II, including ''Tarawa: The Story of a Battle'' (1944) and the definitive ''History of Marine Corps Aviation in World War II'' (1952). He was an editor of ''Time'' during World War II and later editor of '' The Saturday Evening Post'', then vice-president of Curtis Publishing Company.

Early years and family

Robert Lee Sherrod was born on February 8, 1909, in Thomas County, Georgia. He graduated from The University of Georgia in 1929. He was married three times — to Elizabeth Hudson from 1936 until her death in 1958; to Margaret Carson, the prominent American publicist, from 1961 until 1972; and to Mary Gay Labrot Leonhardt from 1972 until her death in 1978. He had two sons, John and Robert L. Jr.

Journalism career

After Sherrod's college graduation, he worked for newspapers in the South until 1935, when he joined Time, Inc. In 1940, William Saroyan lists him among "contributing editors" at ''Time'' in the play, ''Love's Old Sweet Song''. During World War II, Sherrod covered the

Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the theater of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the vast ...

for ''TIME'' and ''LIFE'' magazines — accompanying the Marines into battle at Attu (with the U.S. Army), Tarawa, Saipan, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. After witnessing the carnage at Tarawa, Sherrod was instrumental in advising President Roosevelt to air the controversial documentary

With the Marines at Tarawa ''With the Marines at Tarawa'' is a 1944 short documentary film directed by Louis Hayward. It uses authentic footage taken at the Battle of Tarawa to tell the story of the American servicemen from the time they get the news that they are to partic ...

. Sherrod was one of only a few who were at Tarawa that the President knew personally and could trust to advise him on this matter from the point of view of the Marines on the ground. In 1943, the Tarawa atoll of the

Gilbert Islands The Gilbert Islands ( gil, Tungaru;Reilly Ridgell. ''Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia.'' 3rd. Ed. Honolulu: Bess Press, 1995. p. 95. formerly Kingsmill or King's-Mill IslandsVery often, this n ...

was occupied by the Japanese. Sherrod accompanied the U.S. Marines from their landing on the shores until the battle was over. His book on the battle, ''Tarawa: The Story of a Battle'', was published 1944, at which time he was an associate editor of ''TIME''. Sherrod was also with the Marines during the invasion of

. He wrote,"at the end of a fortnight's bloody fighting there is no longer any doubt that Iwo is the most difficult amphibious operation in U.S. history." He later wrote the book ''On to Westward: The Battles of Saipan and Iwo Jima'' about his experiences on Saipan and Iwo Jima. Unfortunately, Sherrod also admitted to being responsible for spreading the rumor that

Joe Rosenthal Joseph John Rosenthal (October 9, 1911 – August 20, 2006) was an American photographer who received the Pulitzer Prize for his iconic World War II photograph '' Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima'', taken during the 1945 Battle of Iwo Jima. H ...

's famous photograph of the Marines' second flag raising on Mount Suribachi was "staged"; he later confessed that he was wrong and apologize

He was later a war correspondent in Korean War, Korea and in Vietnam. Sherrod was the managing editor for the ''Saturday Evening Post'' from 1955 to 1962, then editor from 1962 to 1965. He was vice president of the ''Posts parent company, Curtis Publishing Company, from 1965 to 1966.

Death

Sherrod died in his home in Washington, D.C., from emphysema on February 13, 1994.

Works

In addition to his work as a war correspondent and editor, Sherrod authored five books on the military, including: * * * He also worked with NASA on a book about the Apollo missions: *

References

Notes Bibliography * * * * * *

External links