Sergeant Edward J O’Leary of 9 Maple Street is to have his first book published in March by G P Putnam’s and Sons of New York Entitled SEMI PRIVATE, the book is illustrated by Corporal Leonard Sansone of 83 Cedar Street.
A humorous book with some 315 gags, Sergeant O’Leary wrote it in 1941 while taking his basic engineer training at Fort Belvoir in Virginia After finishing his training he was detailed for duty on The DECKBOARD, the Engineer Replacement Training Center publication that was adjudged the finest in the Army. While there he ran SEMI-PRIVATE serially, and after its receiving immediate favorable response he decided to edit it and enlarge it into a book.
Searching for a suitable illustrator, he discovered Corporal Sansone while walking across the drill field. At this time. Corporal Sansone was finishing his training Following completion of It he was ^Iso sent for duty to The DUCKBOARD where he was cartoonist and Art Director
Until Sergeant O’Leary met Corporal Sansone he had not seen him since seven years before when he sat behind him in English class at Norwood Senior High School. The two decided to collaborate on the book and worked closely together on it. Corporal Sansone completing eighteen full-page illustrations that are incorporated in the text.
Corporal Sansone is now a member of the staff of YANK magazine, the official Army newspaper, where he is on duty with The Camp Newspaper Service, a subsidiary that supplies editors of camp publications with material and ideas.
Sergeant O’Leary wrote SEMIPRIVATE with the Idea of incorporating it in a series of radio programs at some future date. However, working with Corporal Sansone, he felt it had a better chance for success as a book, and it was accepted by Putnam’s in December of last year A tentative release date in March has been set The book, containing some 15,000 words, will sell for a dollar a copy and will be sold locally as well as in Boston.
“Written in a racy style, it tells the story of a 200-pound civilian inducted into the Army in peace time, knowing, as he was accepted, that the Army had made a mistake and could never, except by divine intervention, make a soldier out of a “mess of morsels ’’.
The soldier goes through his physical examination where the doctor examined the men with a stethoscope on their chests. When he came to me he stabbed too hard and it took him ten minutes to unscrew his arm.”
From there, the soldier goes to a Fort where he is given his first Army meal — “hash, and Army hash is like nothing else in the world At home I always suspected my mother cleaned up the kitchen to make it, but in the Army I believe they just sweep up the parade ground ”.
Sent south to be trained as an engineer, he is given his first G. I. haircut. “It’s a simple thing. The barber just puts the clippers close to your ears and cuts straight up until he hits fresh air “
Later, he is given modulations and had so many holes from needles stuck in him that “next morning I tried to lace my arm. I thought it was a legging ”
He goes through his basic training until the eventful day of December 7th when he is on guard duty several miles from the Fort There he receives the news from his lieutenant that “Pearl Harbor has been bombed.” Disbelieving it, he goes back to the shack where he and the two others on duty with him sleep in the cold and they speculate on the Japs “It’s easy to tell one from a Chinaman Just wait until he steps from behind you, and if there’s a knife in your back, he isn’t Chinese “
The book closes with the fat soldier some forty pounds lighter, in far better physical condition than previously, and surprised to find himself willing to do whatever he must to be a better soldier than he ever suspected he could be.
(All quotes by courtesy of G. P/ Putnam’s and Sons, 2 West 45th Street, New York City )
