Remembering Philip Caputo, who wrote an unflinching Vietnam War memoir
Fresh Air

Remembering Philip Caputo, who wrote an unflinching Vietnam War memoir

May 15, 2026 · 46 min

About this episode

Philip Caputo wrote the 1977 acclaimed and unflinching memoir ‘A Rumor of War,’ about leading a Marine platoon during the Vietnam War. It taught him a painful truth. “I had discovered that I had a capacity to be violent and dark in my actions in a way that totally shocked me,” he told Terry Gross in 2005. He went on to become a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist. Caputo died May 7 at 84. <br/><br/>Also, celebrated naturalist and nature documentarian Sir David Attenborough turned 100 this month. We listen back to his 1995 interview with Terry Gross about working in the field. <br/><br/>John Powers reviews the new film ‘The Wizard of the Kremlin.’<br/><br/>See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.<br/><br/><a href="https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy">NPR Privacy Policy</a>