Sidney Phillips

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For other people with the same name, see Sid Phillips.

Sidney Clarke Phillips, Jr.
1st Marine Division
Battles/warsWorld War II
Other workPhysician, writer

Sidney Clarke Phillips, Jr. (September 2, 1924 – September 26, 2015) was a

The War and the HBO miniseries The Pacific. His recollections revolve around his time as a young man fighting in the Pacific War.[1][2]

Biography

Early life

Phillips was born in Mobile, Alabama, the second child after his sister Katharine (1923-2019). A younger brother, John, followed. Their father, Sidney (1893-1950), was a

Battle of Argonne Forest who became a teacher, then the principal of Murphy High School, where Phillips graduated in 1941. He was childhood friends with Eugene Sledge
.

Military service

After graduating from

high school, Phillips enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps at age 17, on December 8, 1941; the day after the Attack on Pearl Harbor
. He was inducted later that month after obtaining parental permission.

He served with How Company,

Guadalcanal Campaign and the Battle of Cape Gloucester.[1][2][3] He reported that his mortar crew observed effective fire control discipline; one example was a firefight on Cape Gloucester where they were able to provide light high explosive rounds through the jungle canopy only 15 yards in front of their own lines.[4]

Post-war

After his overseas duty he enrolled in

U.S. Navy
officers. However, his four-year US Marine Corps enlistment expired on December 31, 1945, freeing him to return to Mobile.

He had decided while at Cape Gloucester to become a physician, so he enrolled in Spring Hill College, then went to medical school to become a family physician. He enlisted in the USMC Reserves while at Spring Hill, then was finally discharged in April 1948.[5]

Phillips reported that Eugene Sledge's widow and sons introduced him to Ken Burns' writing team, then later the HBO writers, so that he was able to provide needed information about the lives of Marines in combat for the making of The Pacific.[6]

In April 1946, he married Mary Houston and his best man was Eugene Sledge.[5] He and Mary had three children together and they remained married until her death in 2000.

Death

Phillips died on September 26, 2015.[7] He is buried at Pine Crest Cemetery in Mobile.

In media

Phillips wrote the

Pacific Theater of Operations. His character was played by actor Ashton Holmes in the HBO miniseries The Pacific.[8][9]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b The War (PBS)
  2. ^ a b Ambrose, Hugh (March 14, 2010). "A Fight to the Death". Parade Magazine. parade.com. Retrieved March 20, 2010.
  3. ^
    ISBN 978-0-615-33683-1
    .
  4. ^ Phillips, pages 157–158
  5. ^ a b Phillips, pages 170, 185–195
  6. ^ Phillips page 198.
  7. ^ "Remembering a local legend: son speaks about Dr. Sidney Phillips - FOX10 News | WALA". Archived from the original on September 28, 2015.
  8. ^ Chen, Sandie A (March 19, 2010). "WWII Veteran Dr. Sidney Phillips Reacts to HBO's 'The Pacific'". AOL TV. Celebrity Interviews. Archived from the original on March 24, 2010. Retrieved March 20, 2010.
  9. ^ Mobile man in HBO WWII miniseries (Fox10tv.com) Archived July 16, 2011, at the Wayback Machine

External links

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