Richard Tregaskis

[2] Shortly after the U.S. entered World War II, Tregaskis volunteered as a combat correspondent representing the International News Service.

"[3] As a testimony to the power of Tregaskis' writing, Guadalcanal Diary is still considered essential reading by present-day U.S. military personnel.

He was seriously wounded by German mortar fire while serving with paratroops and US Rangers near Cassino where he was hospitalized for five months, temporarily lost his speech, and had two operations during which a plate was fixed in his skull.

Bernard Fall, a contemporary scholar on Vietnam, included it in his bibliography for the 1967 edition of Street Without Joy, cautioning that it was "overoptimistic and overdrawn.

"[5] Tregaskis' second wife, Moana, followed him to Vietnam, where she put her skills to work as an anthropologist, photographing and documenting the impact of war on soldiers and civilians alike.

A shrapnel-gouged helmet worn by Tregaskis during World War II is on display at the National Museum of the Marine Corps.