Elvis's Army : Cold War GIs and the Atomic Battlefield / Brian McAllister Linn.
2017
UA25 .L633 2016eb
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Details
Title
Elvis's Army : Cold War GIs and the Atomic Battlefield / Brian McAllister Linn.
ISBN
9780674973732
Published
Cambridge, MA : Harvard University Press, [2017]
Copyright
©2016
Language
English
Language Note
In English.
Description
1 online resource (392 p.) : 20 halftones
Other Standard Identifiers
10.4159/9780674973732 doi
Call Number
UA25 .L633 2016eb
Dewey Decimal Classification
355.00973/09045
Summary
When the U.S. Army drafted Elvis Presley in 1958, it quickly set about transforming the King of Rock and Roll from a rebellious teen idol into a clean-cut GI. Trading in his gold-trimmed jacket for standard-issue fatigues, Elvis became a model soldier in an army facing the unprecedented challenge of building a fighting force for the Atomic Age. In an era that threatened Soviet-American thermonuclear annihilation, the army declared it could limit atomic warfare to the battlefield. It not only adopted a radically new way of fighting but also revamped its equipment, organization, concepts, and training practices. From massive garrisons in Germany and Korea to nuclear tests to portable atomic weapons, the army reinvented itself. Its revolution in warfare required an equal revolution in personnel: the new army needed young officers and soldiers who were highly motivated, well trained, and technologically adept. Drafting Elvis demonstrated that even this icon of youth culture was not too cool to wear the army's uniform. The army of the 1950s was America's most racially and economically egalitarian institution, providing millions with education, technical skills, athletics, and other opportunities. With the cooperation of both the army and the media, military service became a common theme in television, music, and movies, and part of this generation's identity. Brian Linn traces the origins, evolution, and ultimate failure of the army's attempt to transform itself for atomic warfare, revealing not only the army's vital role in creating Cold War America but also the experiences of its forgotten soldiers.
Access Note
Access limited to authorized users.
System Details Note
Mode of access: Internet via World Wide Web.
Digital File Characteristics
text file PDF
Source of Description
Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 24. Aug 2021)
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Table of Contents
Frontmatter
Contents
Prologue
1. The Army Was Coming Apart
2. The Catalyst of the Korean War
3. The Atomic Battlefield
4. The Tools of Modern War
5. Who's in the Army Now?
6. The Officer Corps's Generation Gap
7. Training for Nuclear War
8. Marketing the New, Improved Army
9. The Renovation of the American Soldier
10. Next Stop Is Vietnam?
Epilogue
Abbreviations
Notes
Acknowledgments
Index
Contents
Prologue
1. The Army Was Coming Apart
2. The Catalyst of the Korean War
3. The Atomic Battlefield
4. The Tools of Modern War
5. Who's in the Army Now?
6. The Officer Corps's Generation Gap
7. Training for Nuclear War
8. Marketing the New, Improved Army
9. The Renovation of the American Soldier
10. Next Stop Is Vietnam?
Epilogue
Abbreviations
Notes
Acknowledgments
Index