Gunner's Glory: Untold Stories of Marine Machine Gunners

Johnnie Clark

dic 2007 · Distribuido por Presidio Press

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They were warriors, trained to fight,
dedicated to their country,
and determined to win.

At Guadalcanal, the Marine Corps’ machine gunners took everything the Japanese could throw at them in one of the bloodiest battles of World War II; their position was so hopeless that at one point they were given the go-ahead to surrender. Near the Chosin Reservoir in Korea, as the mercury dropped to twenty below, the 1st Marine Division found itself surrounded and cut off by the enemy. The outlook seemed so bleak that many in Washington had privately written off the men.

But surrender is not part of a Marine’s vocabulary. Gunner’s Glory contains true stories of these and other tough battles in the Pacific, in Korea, and in Vietnam, recounted by the machine gunners who fought them. Bloody, wounded, sometimes barely alive, they stayed with their guns, delivering a stream of firepower that often turned defeat into victory–and always made them the enemy’s first target.

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JOHNNIE M. CLARK joined the Marine Corps when he was seventeen and served as a machine gunner with the famed 5th Marine Regiment during the Tet Offensive in Vietnam. He was wounded three times: mortar round, grenade, and gunshot. He has received many awards and honors for bravery and gallantry, including the Silver Star, three Purple Hearts, the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry with Palm, the Civil Action Combat Medal, and the Marine Combat Ribbon. Mr. Clark began training in martial arts as part of his rehabilitation program. He is now a seventh Dan Black Belt Master of Tae Kwon Do and owns and operates a school in Saint Petersburg. His books Guns Up! and Semper Fidelis are recommended reading to all newly commissioned officers at the Basic School. Clark is a graduate and writer in residence at Saint Petersburg College.