Iliff David Richardson

Iliff David Richardson
Nickname	Rich
Born	(1918-04-09)April 9, 1918 Denver, Colorado
Died	October 10, 2001(2001-10-10) (aged 83) Houston Texas
Allegiance	United States
Service/branch	United States Navy
Rank	Ensign
Unit	PT 34, Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three

Iliff David "Rich" Richardson (April 9, 1918, Denver, Colorado - October 10, 2001, Houston Texas) was simultaneously a US Navy Ensign and a US Army Major whilst fighting with the Philippine resistance during World War II. He recounted his exploits to author Ira Wolfert, who published them in the book American Guerrilla in the Philippines in 1945. A character based on Richardson was played by Tyrone Power in the 1950 film of the same name.

Biography

Early life

Richardson was the only surviving child of Methodist Minister Royal Richardson, who died when Iliff was three years old. His mother Velma Weston Richardson taught Latin and music^[1] and raised Iliff in a variety of Colorado towns and her father's Nebraska ranch. After his death, the Richardsons went to live in Los Angeles.

Iliff studied at Compton Junior College, then travelled through Europe, the Near and Middle East, returning to the US after the fall of France in World War II.

Wartime career

In 1940 he was commissioned an Ensign in the US Navy and was posted to the USS Bittern, a minesweeper in the Philippines. He later transferred to Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three, commanded by John D. Bulkeley. Richardson was the executive officer of PT 34.^[2] After it was sunk by the Japanese, Richardson served with the US Army, setting off demolition charges in Cebu City.^[3]

Richardson and a dozen Americans attempted to sail a native outrigger to Australia, but the boat was sunk in a storm. Richardson swam for 24 hours to the island of Mindanao, where he was chased by the Japanese. The men eventually joined the Philippine guerrilla forces. Richardson, a former ham radio operator, set up a radio network to keep the various bands in touch with each other and Allied forces in Australia. For his work, Richardson was made a US Army Intelligence major by General Douglas MacArthur, holding commissions in the army and navy simultaneously. He is the only person to receive consecutive medals in both the Army and the Navy.^[1]

Memoirs

After the liberation of the Philippines, Richardson transcribed his memoirs to Pulitzer Prize-winning war correspondent and author Ira Wolfert of the North American Newspaper Alliance. Wolfert turned it into a book, An American Guerrilla in the Philippines, which became both a Book-of-the-Month Club selection and a condensed book in the March 1945 Readers Digest. Darryl F. Zanuck of 20th Century Fox bought the film rights and had Lamar Trotti write a screenplay by August 1945. The end of the war led Zanuck to shelve all films with a World War II theme. It was eventually made five years after the end of the war. The name of the central character was changed to "Chuck Palmer" and he was given a fictional love-interest for dramatic purposes.

Post-war career

Following the war, Richardson married Coma Noel and lived in Houston, Texas, where he worked as a business executive, life insurance salesman and a consultant, as well as acting as technical advisor for several Hollywood films.^[1]

Richardson also attempted to manufacture and sell a single shot slamfire "Philippine Guerrilla Gun" shotgun through his Richardson Industries in New Haven, Connecticut, that he set up in 1946. With a wide variety of shotguns brought back from Europe and American manufactured weapons, it did not sell very well. Thomas F. Swearingen noted in his book World's Fighting Shotguns, "The American market would not tolerate such a primitive firearm, even as a curio."

Many years later, Richardson told a meeting of Eagle Scouts that he learned how to live as a guerrilla through his days in Los Angeles Boy Scout Troop 92.^[1]

References