J. Frank Durham
Greencastle, IN
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Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the U.S. Navy started a crash
program, gathering information and educating personnel to deal with enemy
bombs, land mines, and other explosive ordnance. Figuring "lawyers make the
best cannon fodder," recent law school graduate J. Frank Durham was among
early volunteers for this dangerous and highly-classified work. Graduating with a
perfect grade from the navy's new Bomb Disposal School, he was retained on staff
to help the operation expand, then dispatched to Guadalcanal, where Americans
were fighting the pivotal battle of World War Two. While learning how to handle
explosive devices, Durham endured bombing, shelling, and an unexpected
encounter with the enemy, but tales of suspense and danger are balanced by a
humorous perspective on everyday life as an enlisted man. He describes
"unofficial" enterprises, manufacturing souvenirs from brass shells in the captured
Japanese ammo dump, and making moonshine from anything available to sell to
the troops. Eleanor Roosevelt's visit to the field hospital inspired a pithy comment
about a painful loss from a wounded marine, and a classic riposte from the First
Lady. Excerpts from captured Japanese diaries provide rare insight into the other
side of the conflict. The book is illustrated by clever cartoons from contemporary
bomb disposal pamphlets and newsletters. Author Durham still maintains an
active law practice and family farm business in Greencastle, Indiana.
Selected titles
Durham, J. Frank
You Only Blow Yourself Up Once: Confessions of a World War Two Bomb Disposaleer
Greencastle, IN: J. Frank Durham, 2003 
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