Editorial Reviews
Book Description
"An Unplanned Life" is the scintillating memoir of George Elsey, a small-town kid from western Pennsylvania who, at age twenty-four, was assigned to Franklin Roosevelt's top-secret intelligence and communications center in the White House. As an officer in the U.S. Naval Reserve, Elsey helped brief the president and his senior associates on war events. He and his map room colleagues acted as the secretariat for Roosevelt's cabled exchanges with Winston Churchill, Joseph Stalin, and Chiang Kai-shek; filed records of "summit conferences"; and stored in safes plans for future operations. Elsey's duties continued with Harry Truman's succession to the presidency. In 1947, he shed his Naval Reserve uniform and joined the White House's civilian staff as assistant to the special counsel to the president. In 1949, he became administrative assistant to the president, and, in 1952, he became a member of the Mutual Security Agency staff.
From the Publisher
“This is surely the last personal memoir to be written by a public servant who worked closely in the White House with FDR and Truman. An Unplanned Life is a fascinatingâ€"and probably finalâ€"piece of eyewitness testimony. George Elsey makes vital contributions to the history of World War Two and to the history of the Cold War from Korea to Vietnam, interspersed with lively sketches of his presidents in their relaxed moments. It is an honest book, candid and readable.”â€"Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.
An Unplanned Life: A Memoir
An Unplanned Life: A Memoir,George Mckee Elsey,University of Missouri Press,0826216226,1884-1972,Biography,Biography & Autobiography,Biography / Autobiography,Biography/Autobiography,Historical - U.S.,Political,Political consultants,Presidents,Staff,Truman, Harry S.,,United States,United States - 20th Century,United States - 20th Century/WWII
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