Lee Mandel's Blog

I'm pleased to announce the release of my latest book, 'A Pacifist at Iwo Jima: Rabbi Roland Gittelsohn from Pulpit to the U.S. Marine Corps' Bloodiest Battle'. A significant revision of my previous book 'Unlikely Warrior', it is the biography of Roland Gittelsohn, an outspoken pacifist in the 1930s who felt compelled to join the U.S. Navy after Pearl Harbor and he became the first rabbi ever assigned as a chaplain to the United States Marine Corps. As fate would have it, he ended up on Iwo Jima where he and his fellow chaplains performed heroically. At the dedication of the 5th Marine Division cemetery he delivered the most famous speech of the war, one that is often referred to as "the Gettysburg Address of World War II". In his distinguished post-war career, among other taskings, he went on to serve on President Truman's Committee on Civil Rights.

I'm pleased to announce the release of my newest book, "Sterling Hayden's Wars" this week. Published by the University Press of Mississippi, it is an authorized biography of the late film star (The Godfather, The Asphalt Jungle, Dr. Strangelove, etc.), author, and war hero, Sterling Hayden. Written with input from his family, several surviving acquaintances, as well as documents from the National Archives covering his WWII missions with the OSS and the transcripts from the House on Un-American Activities hearings (where Hayden 'named names'), the life of this tormented Renaissance man makes for a fascinating read.

Last week I was flying to Jacksonville for a book presentation and I had to change planes in Charlotte. When my flight was ready, they did the usual boarding routine: Initially they called for First Class to board, along with various American Airlines club members, etc. They also invited active duty military in uniform to board at that time. Two years ago that would have been me; now I am among the retired and I, in my Brooks Brothers blazer, of course just sat there to await the call for Zone 3 boarding. Then they immediately announced, "Now boarding all veterans!"
The date was November 11.
Thank you American Airlines- your courtesy was greatly appreciated by this old Sailor on Veteran's Day.

After a slight delay, I'm pleased to announce the release of my newest book "Unlikely Warrior: A Pacifist Rabbi's Journey From the Pulpit to Iwo Jima." Published by Pelican Publishing, it is the biography of the early years of Rabbi Roland Gittelsohn. Gittelsohn was an outspoken pacifist in the years leading up to World War II, had a crisis of conscience when the US entered the war, voluntarily joined the US Navy, became the first Jewish chaplain ever assigned to the United States Marine Corps, and ended up in combat on Iwo Jima. His speech at the dedication of the Fifth Marine Division Cemetery at the end of the battle is considered the 'Gettysburg Address of World War II.' Drawing on his personal papers and many other sources, the book tells the story of one of the many people who truly was representative of The Greatest Generation.

On June, 7, my wife and I visited the National D-Day Memorial in Bedford, Virginia. We spent most of the day there and it really was a moving experience. In case you are not familiar, Bedford was the city that lost the most citizens per capita on June 6, 1944, than any other American city. It's hard to believe that the memorial is completely supported by private funding.
This month I was invited to go to New York City on behalf of the History Channel once again. I was interviewed for a segment to be hosted by Brad Meltzer on "history's missing artifacts." I discussed JFK's missing brain- it disappeared immediately after his controversial autopsy and has never been found.
Lastly, the editing on my new book "Unlikely Warrior" is going very well and we're on track for a September 30 release.

In my last posting, I mentioned that I had finished the first draft of my newest book, a biography of the early years of the first Jewish chaplain ever assigned to the United State Marine Corps, Rabbi Roland Gittelsohn. My research on the former pacifist who ended up in combat on Iwo Jima, was largely drawn from his personal papers as well as interviews with his son and daughter. Tentatively titled "Unlikely Warrior" and subtitled "A Pacifist Rabbi's Journey from the Pulpit to the Sands of Iwo Jima," the book has been accepted for publication by Pelican Publishers and I signed the contracts last week. It will likely be out by this coming fall. To say I am delighted is truly an understatement!

Well, as of midnight on June 1st, I have been offically transferred to the retired list of the United States Navy. I will miss the Navy tremendously, but it is time to let the younger generation, such as our son Jeff (a naval aviator) take over the job. In the past several weeks, I've had two fantastic experiences. My retirement ceremony in April was a great event that I'll never forget. On May 18th, our daughter Jenny graduated Tulane Law School and we celebrated in New Orleans for several days. If you've ever partied in the Big Easy, you know what fun we had!
I'll be working part-time for the Virginia Medical Examiner's office and continuing my research and writing. I've just finished the first draft of my next book- a biography. It's about the early years of the first Jewish chaplain ever assigned to the United States Marine Corps. He was a staunch, outspoken pacifist in the 1930s, voluntarily joined the United States Navy after Pearl Harbor, was assigned to the USMC and ended up in combat on Iwo Jima (as the expression goes, 'You can't make this stuff up!') His sermon at the dedication of the Fifth Marine Division cemetary on Iwo Jima has been called the Gettysburg Adress of World War II. Now that I am retired, I'll have more time to dedicate to my writing and to kick back just a little. Not bad for an old man!

I'm happy to announce that my novel 'Moryak' was released by Glagoslav Publications on February 20. I am indebted to the fine people of Glagoslav for believing in my work and supporting it.
On a personal level, in a couple of weeks I'll go on terminal leave from the Navy (when I will use up all of my untaken leave until my actual retirement date). I will have a formal retirement ceremony on April 19. If you've never been to one, they are quite memorable. At the very end of the ceremony, I will read aloud my orders, transferring me to the retired list. At that point, I will face my Commanding Officer, render a salute, and state, "Request permission to go ashore." He will return my salute and announce, "Permission granted." At that point, I will line up at the red carpet where sideboys will be posted. Four bells will be rung and the Master of Ceremonies will announce, "Captain Lee Mandel, Medical Corps, United States Navy,retired- departing." The Boatswain's whistle will sound and I will return the sideboy's salutes as I depart past them. I only hope I can hold it together at that point.
My actual retirement date, the date I actually 'go ashore', is June 1, 2013.

In my October 6 post, I told how I had republished my debut novel 'Moryak: A Novel of the Russian Revolution" with a different self-publishing company. With professional editing and a new cover, I was very pleased with the new edition. About a month after the new edition was released, I was contacted by Glagoslav Publications, a British-Dutch publishing company specializing in Russian literature and books about Russia. They had read 'Moryak' and were interested in acquiring the publishing rights. I am pleased to announce that we have joined forces and Glagoslav will be publishing 'Moryak' for distribution and sales thoughout the United States. I am both amazed and delighted with this development and most grateful to the executives at Glagoslav for believing in my book.

Tonight at 1030PM EST, the History Channel's affiliate H2 will be re-broadcasting "Ten Things You Didn't Know About John F. Kennedy." As a researcher and historian, I had obtained permission to review JFK's White House medical records which are at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Boston. In 2009 I published my findings in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Last year I was pleasantly surprised to be contacted by a producer from the History Channel, asking me to be a part of the show. We filmed my segment (I'm in two scenes) in Washington DC last December and the show was originally broadcast last March. Overall, it turned out very well and I'm quite honored to have been a part of it!