Islands of the Damned: A Marine at War in the Pacific

The true story of R.V. Burgin, the real-life World War II Marine Corps hero featured in HBO 's The Pacific.

Read his story and marvel at the man...and those like him. Tom Hanks

When R.V. Burgin joined the U.S. Marines on November 13th, 1942, he never imagined what was waiting for him and his fellow riflemen in the Pacific Islands during World War II. From New Britain through Peleliu to Okinawa, Burgin s platoon, Company K, Third Battalion, Fifth Marine Regiment, First Marine Division, encountered a ferocious, committed, and desperate enemy in the Japanese engaging them in some of the most harrowing and horrifying conflicts of the war.

In this harrowing memoir, R.V. Burgin reveals his experiences as a marine at war in the Pacific Theater. Schooled in Melbourne, Australia, by the veterans who had just returned from combat in Guadalcanal, Company K confronted snipers, ambushes along narrow jungle trails, abandoned corpses of hara-kiri victims, and howling banzai attacks as they island-hopped from one bloody battle to the next. During his two years of service, Burgin rose from a green private to a seasoned sergeant, and earned a Bronze Star for his valor at Okinawa.

With unforgettable drama and an understated elegance, Burgin s gripping narrative chronicles the waning days of World War II, bringing to life the hell that was the Pacific War.