Harry Cecil Butcher
Senior Allied commanders at Reims, France, on 7 May 1945, shortly after the Germans had signed the surrender document, including Harry C. Butcher standing behind General Dwight D. Eisenhower
Born(1901-11-01)November 1, 1901
Springville, Iowa, United States
DiedApril 20, 1985(1985-04-20) (aged 83)
Santa Barbara, California, United States
Allegiance United States
Service/branch United States Navy Reserve
Years of service1939–1945
RankCaptain
Battles/warsWorld War II
Other workBroadcaster
Radio & television consultant

Harry Cecil Butcher (November 1, 1901 – April 20, 1985) was an American radio broadcaster who served during World War II as the Naval Aide to General Dwight D. Eisenhower from 1942 to 1945.

Early life

Harry C. Butcher was born in Springville, Iowa on November 1, 1901. Following his graduation from Iowa State College, in 1929 Butcher began a career in radio broadcasting.[1] He opened the Washington, D.C. office of CBS and served as its director until 1932. Beginning in 1932, he was the manager, and later vice-president, of the CBS Radio Network's station in Washington, D.C. station WJSV. While there, Butcher coined a term for President Franklin Roosevelt's radio speeches to the American public, used by Robert Trout introducing the president's address on March 12, 1933, and again by Butcher written in a press release, referring to the May 7, 1933 address as a "fireside chat".[2][3]

Military career

Signature of surrender on 7 May 1945 at Reims, France, including Harry C. Butcher standing in the background

During his tenure at WJSV, Butcher was commissioned a Lieutenant Commander in the United States Navy Reserve (U.S.N.R.) on September 16, 1939. From 1942 to 1945, Butcher served as the Naval Aide to General Dwight D. Eisenhower.[4] On May 1, 1943, Butcher was promoted to the rank of commander in the U.S.N.R. On November 1, 1944 he was promoted to the temporary rank of captain. Following an order given to him by Eisenhower, Butcher kept a diary of his and Eisenhower's wartime activities. The diary would come to be published in 1946 under the title "My Three Years with Eisenhower." It also led to historian Max Hastings referring to him as "the embodiment of all gossip-ridden staff officers".[5]

It was Butcher who preserved the written statement that Eisenhower had prepared in the event that the D-Day invasions failed.[6]

Later life

Butcher returned to the broadcasting world following the end of WWII. From 1946 to the 1970s, Butcher owned the radio station KIST in Santa Barbara, California.[7] He also served as president of Santa Barbara's cable TV corporation and as a radio/television consultant.

On April 20, 1985, Butcher died in Santa Barbara, California, United States.

References

  1. ^ "Backstage with Butcher". Time Magazine. May 6, 1946. Archived from the original on February 19, 2011. Retrieved April 28, 2009.
  2. ^ Buhite, Russell D.; Levy, David W., eds. (1992). FDR's Fireside Chats. University of Oklahoma Press. p. xv.
  3. ^ "Fireside chats". Encyclopedia of Political Communication. SAGE. 2008. pp. 243–244.
  4. ^ Butcher, Harry C. (1946). My Three Years With Eisenhower. New York: Simon and Schuster. p. xiii.
  5. ^ Hastings, Max (1985). Overlord: D-Day and the Battle for Normandy 1944. London: Pan Books. p. 268. ISBN 9780330286916.
  6. ^ Butcher, Harry C. (1946). Three Years with Eisenhower. London: William Heinemann Ltd. p. 525.
  7. ^ "Butcher, Harry C.: Papers, 1910–1959" (PDF). Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library. p. 4. Retrieved 26 October 2023.

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