Author. He was an American novelist of the 20th century. Born and raised in rural Robinson, Illinois, James Ramon Jones joined the United States Army soon after graduating from high school in 1939. He was stationed at Schofield Barracks on Oahu, where he witnessed the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. He served in the 25th Infantry Division, 27th Infantry Regiment until he was wounded in the ankle at the Battle of Guadalcanal and medically discharged in 1944, being physically and mentally war-worn. For his military services, Corporal Jones received a Purple Heart and, according to some sources, a Bronze Star. He became the first student at what would become Lowney Handy Writer's Colony and was financially involved with the business until 1957 when he and his wife left for France. During the Vietnam War, he was a journalist. He published the non-fiction books "Viet Journal" in 1974 and "WW II" in 1975. He is best-remembered for his trilogy of autobiographical war novels, "From Here to Eternity" in 1951, which was first adapted to a film in 1953; "The Thin Red Line" in 1962, which was adapted into a film in 1998; and "Whistle" in 1978. His trilogy has been called "our most significant fictional treatment of United States involvement in World War II." Jones died before the "Whistle" was finished, thus, the final three chapters were completed from his detailed notes by author Willie Morris. "From Here to Eternity" received the National Book Award for Fiction and the Modern Library Board later named it one of the 100 best novels of the 20th century. The 1953 film version of "From Here to Eternity," in which he was a consultant, received eight Academy Awards. His 1,200-plus-page novel, "Some Came Running," which was published in 1957, was adapted into a film with the same name and received five Academy Award nominations. Critics complained about his earliest novels having misspelled words, poor grammar, and much-needed punctuation. Besides his novels, he published two collections of short stories. In February of 1957, Jones married actress Gloria Mosolino and the couple had a daughter and adopted a son. He died from congested heart failure. Willie Morris wrote James' 1978 biography "James Jones: A Friendship."
Author. He was an American novelist of the 20th century. Born and raised in rural Robinson, Illinois, James Ramon Jones joined the United States Army soon after graduating from high school in 1939. He was stationed at Schofield Barracks on Oahu, where he witnessed the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. He served in the 25th Infantry Division, 27th Infantry Regiment until he was wounded in the ankle at the Battle of Guadalcanal and medically discharged in 1944, being physically and mentally war-worn. For his military services, Corporal Jones received a Purple Heart and, according to some sources, a Bronze Star. He became the first student at what would become Lowney Handy Writer's Colony and was financially involved with the business until 1957 when he and his wife left for France. During the Vietnam War, he was a journalist. He published the non-fiction books "Viet Journal" in 1974 and "WW II" in 1975. He is best-remembered for his trilogy of autobiographical war novels, "From Here to Eternity" in 1951, which was first adapted to a film in 1953; "The Thin Red Line" in 1962, which was adapted into a film in 1998; and "Whistle" in 1978. His trilogy has been called "our most significant fictional treatment of United States involvement in World War II." Jones died before the "Whistle" was finished, thus, the final three chapters were completed from his detailed notes by author Willie Morris. "From Here to Eternity" received the National Book Award for Fiction and the Modern Library Board later named it one of the 100 best novels of the 20th century. The 1953 film version of "From Here to Eternity," in which he was a consultant, received eight Academy Awards. His 1,200-plus-page novel, "Some Came Running," which was published in 1957, was adapted into a film with the same name and received five Academy Award nominations. Critics complained about his earliest novels having misspelled words, poor grammar, and much-needed punctuation. Besides his novels, he published two collections of short stories. In February of 1957, Jones married actress Gloria Mosolino and the couple had a daughter and adopted a son. He died from congested heart failure. Willie Morris wrote James' 1978 biography "James Jones: A Friendship."
Bio by: Linda Davis
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