I have just submitted my fathers book "Some Must Die" on the Okinawa Invasion to a publisher. Now it is up to them. I am looking for a map or two that I could include. Also, I am seeking photos taken there at the time. My Dad was an acting photographer for the Corps at that time, but his pictures are lost (****). Any help would be so appreciated, even a simple steer in the right direction.

I enclose the Forward to his book:

FORWARD to Some Must Die

James S. (Jim) Nutter was 35 years old when he joined the Marines in 1945. In civilian life he had been a newspaper reporter and also wrote for the Associated Press, so he was uniquely suited to report on the invasion of Okinawa, the bloodiest campaign in the history of the United States Marine Corps.

Assigned to Headquarters Squadron of the Second Marine Air Wing, Marine Aircraft Group 43 (MAG 43), and issued a typewriter (as well as a rifle), PFC. Jim Nutter seized the opportunity to tell this story as it unfolded before him, beginning with the boarding of his troop ship in Pearl Harbor, crossing the troubled waters of the Pacific Ocean to the Ryukyu Islands, and the amphibious assault and conquest of Okinawa, the southern doorstep of the Japanese mainland. Going ashore on L+3 he was a first hand witness to the air and ground battles for Okinawa, sometimes tapping them out on his field typewriter, even as the battles raged.

This narrative is much more than a personal history, for it tells the stories of the men he served with, frequently in their own words, how they fought, and too often how they died. His account is unflinchingly grim at times, but always with an eye to the spirit and determination that animated these citizen warriors, that lifted them to the acts of sacrifice and heroism that fill these pages, the raw stuff of our victory over Japan.

Jim Nutter, my father, completed his manuscript in 1945. After 65 years it remains unchanged, a virtual time capsule of the valor, the sensibilities, and some of the innocence of his era. He died in Agnew State Hospital, California, in 1950, just forty years old.


Jerry S. Nutter
Ashland, Oregon September 2010

I also served in the Marine Corps, in the 1st Division, HQ Battalion, Com. Co., Radio Relay Platoon, Honorably Discharged Jan. 1962

This book honors the 6th Marines, following closely the 29th Regiment, 3rd Bat., I company. Cpl.Jim Brown stands out as the leader exemplary. Does anyone know his fate? MAG 43 was serving with the 6th Division, I just don't know if it was attached in a formal way.

The book covers a lot of ground, with astonishing accounts of the Marine Pilots in their Corsairs, the terrible back and forth (eleven different assaults?) on Sugar Loaf, The incredible Privateers in their single stabilizer B 24's, this is a comprehensive narrative, complete with casualty reports.

I would like to chat with anyone interested.....

Jerry Nutter
Ashland, Oregon687A

My cousin James V Sardo was with I/3/29. He fell during the battle for Sugar Loaf. Do you have any info on him? I too served in The Corps '64-'69 as an 0302. S/F,

Was your father's book published? I'd be very interested in reading it. I've been doing a lot of research on my own father's involvement during the battle of Okinawa and read anything about that battle I can get my hands on.
Sincerely,
Cynthia Lipsius