Actually that Admiral John McCain was the grandfather. He died four days after the surrender ceremony on the USS Missouri.
“I really hadn’t heard of Mitscher before reading about the Doolittle raid. His name doesn’t pop up much in the history books.”
Mitscher does get unfairly neglected. Most of the attention goes to Halsey or Spruance but it was Mitscher who figured out how to turn the fast carrier task force into a devastating weapon.
It was probably the Ian Toll trilogy on the War in the Pacific where I learned about Mitscher. The Toll history is a great resource for those of us who watched Victory At Sea and never had any idea of where all of those battles were taking place or in what sequence.
You’re right about the McCains. Not sure how I made that screwup.
Spruance and Halsey, especially Halsey, were the Men In Change. I’m pretty sure Halsey loved seeing his name in the newspapers. I’m pretty sure neither of them wanted the limelight to shine on a Jr officer.
Thanks for making me aware of the Toll books. I’ve added them to my reading list.