Merrill B . Twining General Merrill Barber Twining ( November 28 , 1902 - May 11 , 1996 ) was a United States Marine Corps general who received a " tombstone promotion " to four - star general upon retirement . He was the brother of Air Force general Nathan F . Twining , and the nephew of Rear Admiral Nathan C . Twining . Biography . Twining was born on November 28 , 1902 , at Monroe , Wisconsin , and was commissioned a Marine second lieutenant upon graduation from the United States Naval Academy in 1923 . During the next two years , he completed the Marine Officers ' Basic School , served at Quantico , participated in Caribbean maneuvers with the 10th Marine Regiment , and was stationed at the Marine Barracks , Pensacola , Florida . Twining was ordered to the Marine Barracks at Pearl Harbor in November 1925 , and after six months in Hawaii , he sailed for China , via the Philippine Islands . In China he served with the 4th and 12th Marine Regiment s at Shanghai , Taku , Hsin Ho , Tientsin , and Peking . He returned to the United States in August 1928 . He was promoted to first lieutenant in December 1928 while serving as Commander of the Marine Barracks at the Pacific Coast Torpedo Station , Keyport , Washington . He then served briefly as editor and publisher of Leatherneck Magazine in Washington , D . C . In September 1929 , Lieutenant Twining was assigned to the Office of the Judge Advocate General of the Navy . While stationed there , he obtained his Bachelor of Laws degree from George Washington University in 1932 . He reported again to the Marine Barracks at Pearl Harbor in November 1932 , remaining there until January 1935 . In March 1935 , while attached to the Marine Barracks at the Naval Air Station , Sunnyvale , California , he earned the Distinguished Pistol Shot ' s Gold Badge in the Western Division Rifle and Pistol Matches at San Diego , California . He was promoted to captain in May 1935 . From July 1935 to August 1936 , Captain Twining was a student in the Army Infantry School , Fort Benning , Georgia . During the next year he served at Philadelphia as an instructor in the Marine Officers ' Basic School . Moving to Quantico in June 1937 , he served as a company commander with the 5th Marines , and two years later became an instructor in the Marine Corps Schools . He also participated in Caribbean maneuvers in 1938 and 1939 . He was promoted to major in July 1939 . In November 1941 , Major Twining joined the 1st Marine Division at Camp Lejeune , North Carolina . He was promoted to lieutenant colonel in January 1942 and moved with the division to the Pacific area in May 1942 . He earned his first Legion of Merit with Combat " V " for meritorious service from 25 June to 10 December 1942 as the Division ' s Assistant Operations Officer and later , Assistant Chief of Staff , G - 3 . In that capacity he helped prepare and execute plans for the Guadalcanal Campaign . During the planning phase , Lieutenant Colonel Twining and Major William B . McKean were flown over the then Japanese - held island on 17 July 1942 , for the first sighting of Guadalcanal by U . S . Marines in World War II . Following the Guadalcanal campaign , he served as Assistant Chief of Staff , G - 3 , of I Marine Amphibious Corps , then commanded by General Alexander A . Vandegrift . Returning to the United States in November 1943 , Lieutenant Colonel Twining remained until 1947 at the Marine Corps Schools , Quantico . While there , he served successively as Chief of Operations and Training , Executive Officer , and as a member of the Schools ' Administrative Staff . He was promoted to colonel in February 1945 . In August 1947 , Colonel Twining reported to Pearl Harbor as Chief of Staff , Fleet Marine Force , Pacific . The following June , he was named Fleet Marine Officer on the Staff of the Commander - in - Chief , Pacific Fleet . He served in that capacity until July 1949 , when he returned to the Marine Corps Schools as Senior Resident Member of the Marine Corps Board . In August 1950 , he reported to Camp Pendleton and the following month was promoted to brigadier general . He served there as Commanding General , Marine Corps Training and Replacement Command , until November 1951 , and later as Commander of Fleet Marine Force Troops and Commanding General , 3rd Marine Division . Upon leaving Camp Pendleton , Twining joined the 1st Marine Division in Korea in March 1952 . For outstanding service as Assistant Division Commander from March through May 1952 , he received a Gold Star in lieu of his second Legion of Merit with Combat " V . " He returned to the States that June , and subsequently served in the Office of the Commandant of the Marine Corps . He was promoted to major general in September 1952 . In January 1954 , he was named Deputy Chief of Staff at Headquarters Marine Corps . General Twining returned to Korea in January 1955 as Commander of the 1st Marine Division . In March of that year , he accompanied the division to Camp Pendleton , where he served until August 1956 . In September 1956 , he was promoted to lieutenant general and assumed duties as Commandant , Marine Corps Schools , Quantico , the twenty - fifth Marine officer to head the Schools . He served in that capacity until his retirement . He had retired from active duty with the Marine Corps on October 31 , 1959 and died May 11 , 1996 in Fallbrook , California . Awards and decorations . General Twining also received the Faciat Georgius commemorative medal for service on Guadalcanal .