Who was Ernie Pyle? Everything You Need to Know

Quick Facts

Also Known As: Ernest Taylor Pyle

Died At Age: 44

Family:

Spouse/Ex-: Geraldien Siebolds (m. 1925)

father: William Clyde Pyle

mother: Maria Taylor

Born Country: United States

Journalists American Men

Died on: April 18, 1945

place of death: Iejima, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan

Cause of Death: Gunshot Wound

U.S. State: Indiana

More Facts

education: Indiana University, Indiana University Bloomington

awards: Pulitzer Prize for Correspondence

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Childhood & Early Life

Ernest ‘Ernie’ Taylor Pyle was born on 3rd August 1900, on the Sam Elder farm near Dana, in rural Vermillion County, Indiana. His parents were William Clyde Pyle and Maria Taylor. He was an only child.

From an early age, he used to like adventure and disliked farming. He graduated from a local high school in Bono, Lawrence County, Indiana.

He enlisted in the US Naval Reserve during the First World War. However, before he was about to be transferred to Great Lakes Naval Training Station for further training, the war ended.

In 1919, he enrolled at Indiana University with the aspiration to become a journalist. However, at that time the university didn’t offer degrees in journalism, so Pyle majored in economics and took other journalism courses.

At the university, he began working with the ‘Indiana Daily Student,’ which was a newspaper written by students. He eventually became the newspaper’s city editor as well as the news editor. He went on to develop a storytelling writing style.

He took a trip across the Pacific. After his return, he was named the editor-in-chief of the ‘Indiana Summer Student,’ the summer edition of the campus newspaper. He also joined the Sigma Delta Chi, the journalism fraternity of the university. He was active in other campus clubs as well and was also a senior manager of the football team.

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Career

After completing his studies, Ernie Pyle moved to Washington, D.C. in 1923, to join the ‘Washington Daily News,’ a new Scripps-Howard tabloid newspaper, as a reporter. He soon became its copy editor.

By 1926, he and his wife had quit their jobs, and they travelled across the United States. He also worked briefly in New York City for the ‘Evening World’ and the ‘New York Post.’

He returned to ‘Daily News’ eventually. He began working on one of the country’s first and best-known aviation columns. He continued writing for four years.

In 1932, Ernie Pyle became the managing editor at the ‘Daily News,’ and he served in the position for three years. In 1935, he left his position at the ‘Daily News,’ to write stories of human interest for the Scripps-Howard newspaper syndicate. Over the next six years, he and his wife traveled across US, Canada, Mexico, and Central and South America.

Though his writings earned him much popularity, Pyle lacked confidence and was not satisfied with his work. Eventually, he started writing about the American soldiers who were serving in the World War II.

Over the next few years, he wrote columns regarding the lives of ordinary soldiers during the war, and the struggles and problems they had to encounter. He traveled with the American soldiers to North Africa, Italy, and France.

His columns became so popular that over 400 different newspapers published them during the war. He received the Pulitzer Prize in 1944.

Death

Ernie Pyle had premonitions about his own death on several occasions. He often wrote letters to his friends, predicting that he might not survive the war. He was eventually assigned to cover the Pacific theatre, which he reluctantly accepted.

He died on 18th April 1945, when he was hit by enemy fire on the island of le Shima. His loss was heavily mourned by both soldiers and civilians.

Family & Personal Life

Ernie Pyle married Geraldine Elizabeth Siebolds in 1925. Though his wife accompanied him on his journeys, their relationship was a troubled one. Pyle was known for his alcoholism, and his wife suffered from mental illnesses. She also attempted suicide several times.

The couple divorced in 1942, but remarried a year later. They had no children. Geraldine passed away due to influenza after about seven months following her husband’s death, on 23rd November 1945.

Ernie Pyle Biography