Richard Tregaskis Richard William Tregaskis ( November 28 , 1916 – August 15 , 1973 ) was an American journalist and author whose best - known work is " Guadalcanal Diary " ( 1943 ) , an account of just the first several weeks ( in August - September 1942 ) of the U . S . Marine Corps invasion of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands during World War II . This was actually a six - month - long campaign . Tregaskis served as a war correspondent during World War II , the Korean War , and the Vietnam War . Education and career . Born in Elizabeth , New Jersey , Tregaskis attended the Pingry School in Elizabeth and the Peddie School in Hightstown , New Jersey before going to college at Harvard University . Prior to World War II he worked as a journalist for the " Boston American Record " newspaper . His family name is of Cornish origin . Shortly after the U . S . entered World War II , Tregaskis volunteered as a combat correspondent representing the International News Service . ( In fact , Tregaskis was one of only two journalists on location at Guadalcanal . ) Assigned to cover the war in the Pacific , Tregaskis spent part of August and most of September , 1942 reporting on Marines on Guadalcanal , a pivotal campaign in the war against Japan . He subsequently covered the war in Europe against Germany and Italy . Tregaskis ' most renowned book , " Guadalcanal Diary " , recorded his experiences with the Marines on Guadalcanal . As the jacket of the book ' s first edition noted , " This is a new chapter in the story of the United States Marines . Because it was written by a crack newspaperman , who knew how to do his job . . . . Until the author ' s departure in a B - 17 bomber on September 26th , he ate , slept , and sweated with our front - line units . His story is the straight day - by - day account of what he himself saw or learned from eyewitnesses during those seven weeks . " As a testimony to the power of Tregaskis ' writing , " Guadalcanal Diary " is still considered essential reading by present - day U . S . military personnel . ( A modern edition is available with an introduction by Mark Bowden , author of " " . ) The diary was later made into a film of the same title in 1943 . Tregaskis later covered Cold War - era conflicts in China , Korea , and Vietnam . During the Vietnam War , Tregaskis reported on the growing conflict for a decade and accompanied U . S . Marines in command of local ARVN troops . Tregaskis ' second wife , Moana , followed him to Vietnam , where she put her skills to work as an anthropologist , photographing and documenting the impact of war on soldiers and civilians alike . In 1964 , the Overseas Press Club presented Tregaskis with the George Polk Award for first - person reporting under hazardous circumstances . A shrapnel - gouged helmet worn by Tregaskis during World War II is on display at the National Museum of the Marine Corps . Tregaskis was wearing the helmet in Italy in 1943 when a shell fragment pierced the helmet and his skull , nearly killing him . Tregaskis died at age 56 near his home in Hawaii as a result of drowning . The Richard Tregaskis papers are on file in the American Heritage Center at the University of Wyoming in Laramie . Bibliography . Tregaskis ' books include : In popular culture . The alternative band Guadalcanal Diary took its name from Tregaskis ' book .