Islands of the DamnedBy: R. V. Burgin, Bill Marvel A remarkable eyewitness account of the most brutal combat of the Pacific War, from Peleliu to Okinawa, this is the true story of R. V. Burgin, the real life World War II Marine Corps hero featured in HBO's The Pacific. Read his story and marvel at the man and those like him.Tom Hanks When a young Texan named R. V. Burgin joined the Marines 1942, he never imagined what was waiting for him a world away in the Pacific.