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The Ghost Army of World War II: How One Top-Secret Unit Deceived the Enemy with Inflatable Tanks, Sound Effects, and Other Audacious Fakery
“A riveting tale told through personal accounts and sketches along the way—ultimately, a story of success against great odds. I enjoyed it enormously.” —Tom Brokaw
The first book to tell the full story of how a traveling road show of artists wielding imagination, paint, and bravado saved thousands of American lives—now updated with new material.
In the summer of 1944, a handpicked group of young GIs—artists, designers, architects, and sound engineers, including such future luminaries as Bill Blass, Ellsworth Kelly, Arthur Singer, Victor Dowd, Art Kane, and Jack Masey—landed in France to conduct a secret mission. From Normandy to the Rhine, the 1,100 men of the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops, known as the Ghost Army, conjured up phony convoys, phantom divisions, and make-believe headquarters to fool the enemy about the strength and location of American units. Every move they made was top secret, and their story was hushed up for decades after the war's end.
Hundreds of color and black-and-white photographs, along with maps, official memos, and letters, accompany Rick Beyer and Elizabeth Sayles’s meticulous research and interviews with many of the soldiers, weaving a compelling narrative of how an unlikely team carried out amazing battlefield deceptions that saved thousands of American lives and helped open the way for the final drive to Germany. The stunning art created between missions also offers a glimpse of life behind the lines during World War II.
This updated edition
History and WWII enthusiasts will find The Ghost Army of World War II an essential addition to their library.
The first book to tell the full story of how a traveling road show of artists wielding imagination, paint, and bravado saved thousands of American lives—now updated with new material.
In the summer of 1944, a handpicked group of young GIs—artists, designers, architects, and sound engineers, including such future luminaries as Bill Blass, Ellsworth Kelly, Arthur Singer, Victor Dowd, Art Kane, and Jack Masey—landed in France to conduct a secret mission. From Normandy to the Rhine, the 1,100 men of the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops, known as the Ghost Army, conjured up phony convoys, phantom divisions, and make-believe headquarters to fool the enemy about the strength and location of American units. Every move they made was top secret, and their story was hushed up for decades after the war's end.
Hundreds of color and black-and-white photographs, along with maps, official memos, and letters, accompany Rick Beyer and Elizabeth Sayles’s meticulous research and interviews with many of the soldiers, weaving a compelling narrative of how an unlikely team carried out amazing battlefield deceptions that saved thousands of American lives and helped open the way for the final drive to Germany. The stunning art created between missions also offers a glimpse of life behind the lines during World War II.
This updated edition
History and WWII enthusiasts will find The Ghost Army of World War II an essential addition to their library.
269 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 7, 2015
566 people are currently reading
1665 people want to read
About the author
Rick Beyer
11 books43 followersRick Beyer is a best-selling author, an award-winning filmmaker and long-time history enthusiast. His newest book, Rivals Unto Death traces the thirty-year rivalry of Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr.
Beyer has also produced documentary films for The History Channel, A&E, National Geographic, the Smithsonian and others. He is the author of The Greatest Stories Never Told series of history books published by Harper Collins, and described by the Chicago Tribune as “an old fashioned sweetshop full of tasty morsels.”
Beyer has shared his unique take on history in interviews on CBS, MSNBC, CNN, The Discovery Channel, The History Channel, NPR, Fox News, and audiences around the country. He has also worked as a radio reporter, a TV news producer, an ad agency creative director, and a janitor (not in that order). And here's a few other things he's done.
•Camp for ten days in the mosquito-infested Siberian Wilderness
•Flee New Orleans the day before Katrina
•Interview Jimmy Carter in the White House
•Climb Mt. Washington 5 times
•Get called stupid by David Brinkley
•Be consoled by Mary Tyler Moore
•Marry a beautiful woman during a lightning storm
A graduate of Dartmouth College, Beyer lives in Lexington, Massachusetts, with his wife, Marilyn Rea Beyer (see above about the lightning storm!)
"In this fascinating dual biography, Beyer brings these two towering figures to vivid life on the page." --New York Times bestselling author Hampton Sides.Beyer is the co-author (with Elizabeth Sayles Sayles) of the New York Times bestseller The Ghost Army of World War II How One Top-Secret Unit Deceived the Enemy with Inflatable Tanks Sound Effects and Other Audacious Fakery. Beyer has spent nearly a decade researching this story. His award-winning documentary film about the unit, The Ghost Army premiered on PBS in 2013. The San Francisco Chronicle called the film “mesmerizing,” while TV Guide referred to it as “entrancing.”
Beyer has also produced documentary films for The History Channel, A&E, National Geographic, the Smithsonian and others. He is the author of The Greatest Stories Never Told series of history books published by Harper Collins, and described by the Chicago Tribune as “an old fashioned sweetshop full of tasty morsels.”
Beyer has shared his unique take on history in interviews on CBS, MSNBC, CNN, The Discovery Channel, The History Channel, NPR, Fox News, and audiences around the country. He has also worked as a radio reporter, a TV news producer, an ad agency creative director, and a janitor (not in that order). And here's a few other things he's done.
•Camp for ten days in the mosquito-infested Siberian Wilderness
•Flee New Orleans the day before Katrina
•Interview Jimmy Carter in the White House
•Climb Mt. Washington 5 times
•Get called stupid by David Brinkley
•Be consoled by Mary Tyler Moore
•Marry a beautiful woman during a lightning storm
A graduate of Dartmouth College, Beyer lives in Lexington, Massachusetts, with his wife, Marilyn Rea Beyer (see above about the lightning storm!)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 164 reviews
July 3, 2016
This is a different type of World War II history book. I understand this book was made into a documentary film.
The 23rd headquarters special troop consisted of 1,100 men who were artists, designers, sound experts and actors. They landed in France in the summer of 1944. They set about impersonating entire Army Divisions. They had 90 pound inflatable tanks, recorded sounds of trucks, tanks and other vehicles. They played there recordings over loudspeakers as it they were going through the countryside. They also played radio “messages” with misinformation about troop movements. They also used officer impersonations to create misinformation. At times the unit protected Patton’s flank. They had all the various Divisions’ patches and were frequently having to repaint the vehicles with Division and company markings to help fool German observers.
Deception has long been a tool of war; think of the Trojan horse but this is more like Hollywood goes to war. The 23rd was the first U.S. Army unit dedicated only to deception. The British have a long tradition of dedicated units. In WWII the British Unit had some very famous men such as Ian Fleming and David Nevin.
The book is well written and meticulously researched. The authors had access to diaries, artist sketchbooks, on scene photographs and other first person accounts, memos, maps and other documents. I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible. Tom Stechschulte did a good job narrating the book. Stechschulte is a film and television actor that has a successful career narrating audiobooks. I purchased the book while listening to the audiobook because the book had lots of maps, photographs and sketches.
The 23rd headquarters special troop consisted of 1,100 men who were artists, designers, sound experts and actors. They landed in France in the summer of 1944. They set about impersonating entire Army Divisions. They had 90 pound inflatable tanks, recorded sounds of trucks, tanks and other vehicles. They played there recordings over loudspeakers as it they were going through the countryside. They also played radio “messages” with misinformation about troop movements. They also used officer impersonations to create misinformation. At times the unit protected Patton’s flank. They had all the various Divisions’ patches and were frequently having to repaint the vehicles with Division and company markings to help fool German observers.
Deception has long been a tool of war; think of the Trojan horse but this is more like Hollywood goes to war. The 23rd was the first U.S. Army unit dedicated only to deception. The British have a long tradition of dedicated units. In WWII the British Unit had some very famous men such as Ian Fleming and David Nevin.
The book is well written and meticulously researched. The authors had access to diaries, artist sketchbooks, on scene photographs and other first person accounts, memos, maps and other documents. I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible. Tom Stechschulte did a good job narrating the book. Stechschulte is a film and television actor that has a successful career narrating audiobooks. I purchased the book while listening to the audiobook because the book had lots of maps, photographs and sketches.
January 12, 2021
“Rarely, if ever, has there been a group of such a few men which had so great an influence on the outcome of a major campaign.”
Most students of World War II are aware of Operation Fortitude, the massive deception to mislead the Germans about the true target of the D-Day landings. Most have never heard of the brigade-sized unit who employed props, radio signals, sound and theatrics to convince the enemy that American units were where they weren’t and vice versa during the campaign after D-Day. Unfortunately, it occasionally also confused American units.
“You have to see into the mind of your adversary. You have to create for him a misleading picture of the operation to come. And you have to sell it to him with confidence.” General Wesley Clark
Drawn from personal diaries and reminisces as well as the official history of 23rd Headquarters Special troops. Excellent maps and photographs. Padded with works of artists among the troop.
“On every block you can see at least one soldier surrounded by girls, leafing frantically through French-English dictionaries.”
Most students of World War II are aware of Operation Fortitude, the massive deception to mislead the Germans about the true target of the D-Day landings. Most have never heard of the brigade-sized unit who employed props, radio signals, sound and theatrics to convince the enemy that American units were where they weren’t and vice versa during the campaign after D-Day. Unfortunately, it occasionally also confused American units.
“You have to see into the mind of your adversary. You have to create for him a misleading picture of the operation to come. And you have to sell it to him with confidence.” General Wesley Clark
Drawn from personal diaries and reminisces as well as the official history of 23rd Headquarters Special troops. Excellent maps and photographs. Padded with works of artists among the troop.
“On every block you can see at least one soldier surrounded by girls, leafing frantically through French-English dictionaries.”
January 29, 2020
This was a very interesting story about a part of the war I've never heard about. I knew something about certain camouflage and deception operations (for example, Operation Fortitude), but a unit that actually deployed to Europe and created fake army operations in actual battle zones? Wow!
I thought the author did a great job of laying things out clearly and helping me to follow along without losing me, as some nonfiction books have a way of doing. ;) And all the illustrations from the talented artists that made up the camouflage part of the army were a fun bonus!
The only thing I didn't enjoy about this book was the profanity that laced a number of the quotations (rather thickly at times) and some of the references to soldiers enjoying themselves in brothels, etc. I know it happened, but that still doesn't make me want to be reminded of it. :P
I thought the author did a great job of laying things out clearly and helping me to follow along without losing me, as some nonfiction books have a way of doing. ;) And all the illustrations from the talented artists that made up the camouflage part of the army were a fun bonus!
The only thing I didn't enjoy about this book was the profanity that laced a number of the quotations (rather thickly at times) and some of the references to soldiers enjoying themselves in brothels, etc. I know it happened, but that still doesn't make me want to be reminded of it. :P
August 23, 2016
A decent topic. Not enough time is spent on the campaigns or the technology. Instead, there are long lists of dry biographical detail. But the characters aren't developed enough to call this a character drama, so I don't really care about the biographic sketches.
The author sensationalizes things too much for my tastes. Each chapter describes "perhaps the most important battle" -- it feels like watching a drama/documentary on TV. With regard to the actual effect of the military technique, the book glosses over the opinions of actual historians and skips to quoting at length people who were clearly biased. There are a few different sources used for the material, but not enough to give me the impression that this is deeply-researched or synthesizes many different viewpoints.
A better fiction book would have been a historical fiction of a single person in the unit, telling the war through his eyes. A better nonfiction book would have researched the German opinion of these matters -- surely there must be some surviving records that show whether the Germans bought the deception?
The author sensationalizes things too much for my tastes. Each chapter describes "perhaps the most important battle" -- it feels like watching a drama/documentary on TV. With regard to the actual effect of the military technique, the book glosses over the opinions of actual historians and skips to quoting at length people who were clearly biased. There are a few different sources used for the material, but not enough to give me the impression that this is deeply-researched or synthesizes many different viewpoints.
A better fiction book would have been a historical fiction of a single person in the unit, telling the war through his eyes. A better nonfiction book would have researched the German opinion of these matters -- surely there must be some surviving records that show whether the Germans bought the deception?
August 4, 2016
I thought this was a very interesting audio book. The narration was well done. I could not believe that they could really pull off the things they did, but from the account, it seems that it was very successful and an important part of defeating the Germans in WWII. It was really an astonishing feat, repeated over and over.
I liked the stories about the men and the people that they met, and what happened to them later in life. I recommend it to anyone with an interest in WWII stories.
I liked the stories about the men and the people that they met, and what happened to them later in life. I recommend it to anyone with an interest in WWII stories.
September 18, 2017
I don't know.
There are things I want to say but can't.
So...
This is a story from WW2. I'm glad the story has been recorded ... I just don't think it warrants the amount of attention it gets. The story of the breaking of the German codes at Bletchley Park, that's a big story. The story of Japanese American GIs who fought in Europe, huge. The female pilots and mechanics who worked on airplanes, that's a story.
This...
Not so much. They made a contribution but the most noteworthy thing I can say about this unit is what they did was unusual.
There are things I want to say but can't.
So...
This is a story from WW2. I'm glad the story has been recorded ... I just don't think it warrants the amount of attention it gets. The story of the breaking of the German codes at Bletchley Park, that's a big story. The story of Japanese American GIs who fought in Europe, huge. The female pilots and mechanics who worked on airplanes, that's a story.
This...
Not so much. They made a contribution but the most noteworthy thing I can say about this unit is what they did was unusual.
April 1, 2016
A coffee table book that you will want to read.
Another of my rare 5 star reviews! This is an art book about World War II, or a military history book about art.
The Ghost Army was a special unit tasked with deceiving the enemy, in this case the Nazis. They went into action just before D-Day and then worked in liberated France, Luxembourg and eventually the German countryside. The unit had four parts: radio men who imitated other operators to give false signals they knew the Germans would intercept; audio men who recorded and then remixed and broadcast the sounds of tanks, trucks, pontoon bridges and even men cursing to fool local audiences; visual artists who created inflatable tanks, trucks and planes, drove bulldozers around to leave tracks all to fool aerial reconaissance; and a unit of armed men to protect them, because after all, these guys were on or near the front line trying to intimidate the Nazis with tanks made out of rubber.
It was all top secret and funny and exciting and it's only more amazing because it's true. Some of the artists involved included future fashion designer Bill Blass, modernist painter Ellsworth Kelly and Arthur Singer who painted the Birds of the States series of postage stamps.
The book is beautifully designed and full of archival photographs and documents, and especially wonderful, the sketches in pencil, ink and watercolor that the men made at the time (these guys were artists and couldn't help themselves). Chapters are relatively short and the prose is crystal clear.
Wonderful, beautiful book.
Another of my rare 5 star reviews! This is an art book about World War II, or a military history book about art.
The Ghost Army was a special unit tasked with deceiving the enemy, in this case the Nazis. They went into action just before D-Day and then worked in liberated France, Luxembourg and eventually the German countryside. The unit had four parts: radio men who imitated other operators to give false signals they knew the Germans would intercept; audio men who recorded and then remixed and broadcast the sounds of tanks, trucks, pontoon bridges and even men cursing to fool local audiences; visual artists who created inflatable tanks, trucks and planes, drove bulldozers around to leave tracks all to fool aerial reconaissance; and a unit of armed men to protect them, because after all, these guys were on or near the front line trying to intimidate the Nazis with tanks made out of rubber.
It was all top secret and funny and exciting and it's only more amazing because it's true. Some of the artists involved included future fashion designer Bill Blass, modernist painter Ellsworth Kelly and Arthur Singer who painted the Birds of the States series of postage stamps.
The book is beautifully designed and full of archival photographs and documents, and especially wonderful, the sketches in pencil, ink and watercolor that the men made at the time (these guys were artists and couldn't help themselves). Chapters are relatively short and the prose is crystal clear.
Wonderful, beautiful book.
March 13, 2016
The story of the "Ghost Army" is fascinating and inspiring. I frequently stopped and went looking for someone to whom I could read the latest anecdote.
The writing is straightforward, adequate to the task. It's the subject matter that makes the book.
Since so many of the members of these units were visual artists, the book includes many paintings and drawings these men made at the time. There are also letters and other documents -- which would probably be easier to read in the paperback than in my Kindle edition.
The writing is straightforward, adequate to the task. It's the subject matter that makes the book.
Since so many of the members of these units were visual artists, the book includes many paintings and drawings these men made at the time. There are also letters and other documents -- which would probably be easier to read in the paperback than in my Kindle edition.
August 2, 2016
I always knew that there was a ghost army built around Patton as a ruse for the Normandy invasion. However, I never realized that this went on throughout the France and Germany push. Interesting so many talented and later famous men participated in the secret unit.
It's always enlightening to learn some thing totally new on WWII.
A quick and enjoyable read.
It's always enlightening to learn some thing totally new on WWII.
A quick and enjoyable read.
March 29, 2016
Artists can fight in wars, too.
September 23, 2023
Fun read, partly as there is a loose family connection to the book. Read it on a Kindle, probably would have been better in print as there were a lot of visuals.
August 30, 2020
The Ghost Army is a breezy, mostly oral and visual history, of one of the strangest units of World War II. The 23rd Headquarters Special Troops' mission was one of comprehensive deception, using a few hundred men to simulate armored divisions and other heavy units. Using a combination of inflatable 'tanks', giant loudspeakers playing tape of real armored formations, radio units capable of mimicking other formations, and a bottom-up initiative called 'atmosphere', where men would essentially LARP as officers from the units they were mimicking, with classic loose lips.
The 23rd pulled off dozens of roadshows with theatrical flare. It's tricky to evaluate their direct military impact, but there were operations that they were a part of, notably the breakout from Normandy and crossing the Rhine, where Nazi defenses were held in front of the deception for vital hours at the beginning of an attack.
Where this book excels is in the literal picture of the men involved. The heart of the 23rd was a lowkey mafia of New York artists and art students, and where other soldiers with downtime would gamble, the 23rd sketched and painted. The art is exceptional, and there's lots of excerpts from sketchbooks. Some of the men of the 23rd went on to great careers in art and design, and their talent shows through.
The authors do a solid job putting together the story, though real history buffs should probably just go right to the primary source with the 23rd's Official History, which is arguably the most entertaining official history in the Army's archives and only recently declassified. With this book and the PBS documentary, Beyer and Sayles have done an admirable job preserving the legacy of one of the oddest and most interesting military units.
The 23rd pulled off dozens of roadshows with theatrical flare. It's tricky to evaluate their direct military impact, but there were operations that they were a part of, notably the breakout from Normandy and crossing the Rhine, where Nazi defenses were held in front of the deception for vital hours at the beginning of an attack.
Where this book excels is in the literal picture of the men involved. The heart of the 23rd was a lowkey mafia of New York artists and art students, and where other soldiers with downtime would gamble, the 23rd sketched and painted. The art is exceptional, and there's lots of excerpts from sketchbooks. Some of the men of the 23rd went on to great careers in art and design, and their talent shows through.
The authors do a solid job putting together the story, though real history buffs should probably just go right to the primary source with the 23rd's Official History, which is arguably the most entertaining official history in the Army's archives and only recently declassified. With this book and the PBS documentary, Beyer and Sayles have done an admirable job preserving the legacy of one of the oddest and most interesting military units.
May 26, 2019
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I learned about an aspect of the war of which I was not familiar. What really made the book come alive is the numerous reproductions of pencil artwork and paintings done by the GI's as they made their way across Europe. I'm not at all an art person, but in this case the renderings of their first hand experiences were fascinating. I hope somebody a vast majority of this artwork ends up in a museum. It certainly represents some historical aspect of WWII.
October 4, 2017
This is one amazing book. The authors cover the formation, deployment and actions of the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops - a group of artists, engineers, radio operators, sound men and combat troops. The 23rd "impersonated" other units (including complete divisions) through misleading radio communications, using loudspeakers to broadcast "heavy vehicle traffic" and even blow-up rubber tanks. By deceiving the Germans, the real units could launch surprise attacks.
As a bonus, the book is full of drawings and prints by the "artist-soldiers".
Because their exploits were classified - and kept that way through much of the Cold War - this chapter of WWII has been largely hidden from view.
As a bonus, the book is full of drawings and prints by the "artist-soldiers".
Because their exploits were classified - and kept that way through much of the Cold War - this chapter of WWII has been largely hidden from view.
May 16, 2024
I'm giving this book a 5 star even though I didn't read it cover to cover. For me it was more refence/research. These men did an extraordinary job during an horrific period in history. After the war many of them went on be successful artists, designers, technicians but never revealed what they did during war. A small group of men helped change the direction of WWII.
December 17, 2018
Very interesting topic, dry writing style
May 9, 2023
Super interesting!
February 17, 2025
I stumbled upon this book on my local libraries "read list" and decided to give it a read.
It is a kind of "Band of Brothers" take on a real life top-secret squadron set up by the American Army during WWII. The 23rd Division was created to create decoys that would fool the German Army and that would mask the real movements and positions of the real fighting divisions. The 23rd was top secret, to other divisions they did not exist, thus the name "Ghost Army".
The unit was made up of a collection of young and very talented artists and engineers who worked in various ways to confuse the German Army that they were attacking.
They were only lightly armed, and their job was not to engage the enemy, but rather to distract them.
This involved much more than lugging around inflatable , dummy tanks (which they did). They had to broadcast radio transmissions that sounded exactly like the units that they were replacing in the field.
This book covers their journey across Europe, from just after the D-Day landing, through Bastogne and the Battle of the Bulge, which they narrowly escaped being overrun.
It is said that the 23rd received very little credit for their clever and brave work, but they were essential in helping the Allied troops in crossing the Rhine River during the final days of the war.
I love how the book finishes with short postwar biographies over the many key members of the 23rd.
You get to see how they succeeded in life, after the war. Many of them living into their 80's or 90's and having had very significant and creative careers. One of them was the fashion designer Bill Blass.
It is a kind of "Band of Brothers" take on a real life top-secret squadron set up by the American Army during WWII. The 23rd Division was created to create decoys that would fool the German Army and that would mask the real movements and positions of the real fighting divisions. The 23rd was top secret, to other divisions they did not exist, thus the name "Ghost Army".
The unit was made up of a collection of young and very talented artists and engineers who worked in various ways to confuse the German Army that they were attacking.
They were only lightly armed, and their job was not to engage the enemy, but rather to distract them.
This involved much more than lugging around inflatable , dummy tanks (which they did). They had to broadcast radio transmissions that sounded exactly like the units that they were replacing in the field.
This book covers their journey across Europe, from just after the D-Day landing, through Bastogne and the Battle of the Bulge, which they narrowly escaped being overrun.
It is said that the 23rd received very little credit for their clever and brave work, but they were essential in helping the Allied troops in crossing the Rhine River during the final days of the war.
I love how the book finishes with short postwar biographies over the many key members of the 23rd.
You get to see how they succeeded in life, after the war. Many of them living into their 80's or 90's and having had very significant and creative careers. One of them was the fashion designer Bill Blass.
December 14, 2020
The Ghost Army of World War II sheds light on one of the lesser known divisions - and episodes - of World War II. The 23rd Headquarters Special Troops, or "Ghost Army" used every form of deception against the German army as Patton and company fought their way from the hedgerows of Normandy and on across the Rhine. The Ghost Army - at 1,100 strong - was often charged with convincing the enemy that anywhere north of 30,000 men were amassing to launch one or another audacious attacks. They did this through the use of multimedia deceptions, using visual, sonic, and radio illusions, the most amusing of which I found to be the inflatable tanks.
Their work was so secret that other American troops were not privy to it - as evidenced by the quote from one private: "All of a sudden I see four guys, one on each end of a General Sherman tank, picking the thing up. And I practically collapsed, because I thought, 'Gee, I could never pick up a tank.' " (A couple of unsuspecting Frenchmen were equally perplexed. A farmer had to be restrained from sharing what he witnessed when looking to round up his herd and instead saw his cows pushing an American tank around. Another time, a breach of the security perimeter led to two cyclists being told "The Americans are very strong.")
Generally, The Ghost Army of World War II is a snappy little book, the writing light, the anecdotes frequent, the humor outweighing the grimness of war. The story about measuring signs was my favorite; I'll not spoil it other than to say: the more things change, the more they stay the same. Authors Rick Beyer and Elizabeth Sayles also do a remarkable job of incorporating art and photography into the story they tell. This emphasis is fitting, as many of the men in the 23rd were artists - their numbers included the likes of Bill Blass, Arthur Singer, Art Kane, and Jack Masey - and by incorporating their photographs and their artwork, works made during the war itself....well, a picture is worth a thousand words.
While plenty has been written about espionage in war, from Operation Columba to Operation Mincemeat, The Irregulars to Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy, this is the first work I've encountered devoted entirely to the art of wartime deception. (Perhaps that's not surprising: you can spend a day at the International Spy Museum, and while the museum may boast the occasional exhibit that falls under deception, it's all much more James Bond than David Copperfield.) More disappointing, the National World War II museum lacks a permanent exhibit on the Ghost Army; when I checked their website to see how I had possibly missed it, I was instead met with an announcement that, in fact, there's a special, temporary exhibit on the Ghost Army from March 2020 to January 2021. Thanks to covid, I'll have to give it a pass.
The Ghost Army isn't a must read in any traditional sense. It's not the story of major battles, overall strategy, soaring rhetoric, or historical antecedents. That is, it's easily overlooked for those who are interested in the war in the broadest sense. Like Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors, though, it's one of those books focusing on a smaller episode that collectively lends richness to the our understanding of World War II. That it does so with humor, rather than a body count, is the cherry on top.
Their work was so secret that other American troops were not privy to it - as evidenced by the quote from one private: "All of a sudden I see four guys, one on each end of a General Sherman tank, picking the thing up. And I practically collapsed, because I thought, 'Gee, I could never pick up a tank.' " (A couple of unsuspecting Frenchmen were equally perplexed. A farmer had to be restrained from sharing what he witnessed when looking to round up his herd and instead saw his cows pushing an American tank around. Another time, a breach of the security perimeter led to two cyclists being told "The Americans are very strong.")
Generally, The Ghost Army of World War II is a snappy little book, the writing light, the anecdotes frequent, the humor outweighing the grimness of war. The story about measuring signs was my favorite; I'll not spoil it other than to say: the more things change, the more they stay the same. Authors Rick Beyer and Elizabeth Sayles also do a remarkable job of incorporating art and photography into the story they tell. This emphasis is fitting, as many of the men in the 23rd were artists - their numbers included the likes of Bill Blass, Arthur Singer, Art Kane, and Jack Masey - and by incorporating their photographs and their artwork, works made during the war itself....well, a picture is worth a thousand words.
While plenty has been written about espionage in war, from Operation Columba to Operation Mincemeat, The Irregulars to Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy, this is the first work I've encountered devoted entirely to the art of wartime deception. (Perhaps that's not surprising: you can spend a day at the International Spy Museum, and while the museum may boast the occasional exhibit that falls under deception, it's all much more James Bond than David Copperfield.) More disappointing, the National World War II museum lacks a permanent exhibit on the Ghost Army; when I checked their website to see how I had possibly missed it, I was instead met with an announcement that, in fact, there's a special, temporary exhibit on the Ghost Army from March 2020 to January 2021. Thanks to covid, I'll have to give it a pass.
The Ghost Army isn't a must read in any traditional sense. It's not the story of major battles, overall strategy, soaring rhetoric, or historical antecedents. That is, it's easily overlooked for those who are interested in the war in the broadest sense. Like Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors, though, it's one of those books focusing on a smaller episode that collectively lends richness to the our understanding of World War II. That it does so with humor, rather than a body count, is the cherry on top.
November 3, 2021
The headline in a New York Times obituary recently caught my eye. “Gilbert Seltzer, Soldier in Secret Unit That Duped Germans, Is Dead at 106,” it read. In scanning the amazing story of Lieutenant Seltzer’s World War II experience, I came across a reference to a book about the top-secret unit in which he had served. That led me to The Ghost Army of World War II by Rick Beyer and Elizabeth Sayles. Their story, which is profusely illustrated, is one of the most astonishing tales of deception to come out of the Second World War. It’s also immensely entertaining.
A BEAUTIFULLY ILLUSTRATED STORY
This book is the outcome of Rick Beyer’s award-winning 2013 PBS documentary, The Ghost Army. Like the television production, the book version is a strongly visual presentation. Interspersed among the text and in “galleries” spaced between some chapters are images of hundreds of photos, sketches, and paintings. The graphics represent the work of some of the many artists of the Twenty-Third Headquarters Special Troops, the 1,100-man unit known as the Ghost Army. And I surmise that Beyer’s coauthor, artist Liz Sayles, is responsible for selecting the illustrations.
A BATTALION-SIZE UNIT MASQUERADING AS TWO DIVISIONS
The Ghost Army was “capable of impersonating one or two infantry or armored divisions—the equivalent of twenty to forty times their number.” The unit represented one of the Allies’ most audacious efforts to use deception in the war against Nazi Germany. It was, the authors write, “the first unit in the history of warfare that was dedicated solely to deception.” The detachment operated for nine months in France, Luxembourg, and Germany, from the Normandy Invasion in June 1944 until V-E Day in May 1945. “Their mission was to put on a show, with the German Army as the audience. . . They pulled off twenty-one different deceptions and are credited with saving thousands of lives through stagecraft and sleight of hand.”
ARTISTS, RADIO ENGINEERS, TELEGRAPH OPERATORS, AND COMBAT ENGINEERS
The Ghost Army’s 1,100 men were divided into four companies of somewhat unequal size.
** The Signal Company Special created torrents of false radio traffic to create the impression that one or two combat divisions had moved onto the line. The real divisions were deployed elsewhere and managed to surprise, or at least confuse, the Germans.
** The 3132 Signal Service Company Special played sound-effect records “from powerful speakers mounted on half-tracks . . . to simulate the sounds of units moving and operating at night.”
** The largest unit in the Ghost Army was the 603rd Engineer Camouflage Battalion Special. It was composed of artists and designers, including a number (such as Bill Blass and Ellsworth Kelly) who became famous in their fields following the war. They led “battalions of rubber dummies” of tanks, half-tracks, and airplanes to fool the Germans’ air reconnaissance. From time to time, officers in the company impersonated generals and swaggered through nearby towns in Jeeps bearing false insignia to ensure that collaborationists would get the word to the Nazis. (They did.)
** The 406th Engineer Combat Company Special consisted of 168 men “trained as fighting soldiers. They provided perimeter security for the rest of the Ghost Army . . . [and] frequently used their bulldozers to simulate tank tracks as part of the visual deception.”
Ironically, the old-hat Army colonel who commanded the unit didn’t believe in its mission. He tried to have the unit disbanded, so he could be reassigned to command a fighting regiment. But other officers, including his deputy, were supportive, and they worked around the old man’s resistance to novelty.
A TALE TOLD THROUGH THE LIVES OF THE SOLDIERS
Beyer and Sayles spin out their story in the words and images of the men of the Ghost Army. Dozens are cited by name in the book, some as the creators of the sketches, paintings, and photographs littered through the book, others in their reminiscences. Much of the authors’ account rests on the experience of the artists in the Camouflage Battalion—most likely, I imagine, because coauthor Liz Sayles had special access to them. Her grandfather was one of the artists in the unit, and she herself is an artist with many connections within her craft.
DECEPTION IN WORLD WAR II
Both the Nazis and the Allies made frequent use of deception in the course of the war. The Germans famously formed a large unit of English-speaking soldiers dressed in American uniforms and deployed during the Battle of the Bulge. But we know much more about British and American use of deception. The best known operations included those involved in the run-up to the invasions of Europe.
OPERATION MINCEMEAT
Operation Mincemeat, which the British mounted in 1943 to disguise the Allied invasion of Sicily. They floated a dead body in the Mediterranean carrying misleading papers about the Allies’ intention to invade Greece and Sardinia, with Sicily as merely the target of a feint, One of the intelligence officers who planned and carried out Mincemeat, Ewen Montagu, wrote a history in 1953. Montagu’s work formed the basis for the 1956 British film of the same title, The Man Who Never Was. The plan was later dramatized in a more accurate version in Ben MacIntyre’s excellent 2010 book, Operation Mincemeat: How a Dead Man and a Bizarre Plan Fooled the Nazis and Assured Allied Victory.
OPERATION BODYGUARD
Operation Bodyguard was the name of the Allies’ grand plan to mislead the Germans about the location of the invasion of France in June 1944. It involved a host of efforts, including disinformation planted by some of the many Nazi agents captured and “turned” in Britain as well as Operation Fortitude. (The Abwehr flooded the island with spies. So far as is known, not a single one of them succeeded in sending intelligence back to Germany.)
OPERATION FORTITUDE
Fortitude involved the creation of phantom armies in England whose location and size were intended to mislead the Germans into thinking the Allies intended to invade Norway and the Pas de Calais instead of Normandy. The most famous aspect of this operation was the creation of the fictional 1st U.S. Army Group (FUSAG) under the command of General George S. Patton. Rank upon rank of rubber tanks, trucks, and aircraft were deployed on open fields in southeast England to create the impression of an enormous army mobilizing to cross the Channel at its narrowest point.
No commander in war ignores the possibility of misleading the enemy through deception. The stratagem was used in World War II in numerous other operations as well.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Rick Beyer‘s bio on his website reads in part, “Rick Beyer is a New York Times best-selling author, an award-winning documentary producer, and a long-time history enthusiast. His independent documentary, The Ghost Army, premiered on PBS in 2013 and won a CINE Golden Eagle Award.”
Elizabeth Sayles has illustrated more than 25 books for children and won awards for her work. She is the co-author of The Ghost Army of WWII. The book was optioned by Bradley Cooper and Andrew Lazar (American Sniper) as a major motion picture. Her father was in the unit during WWII.
A BEAUTIFULLY ILLUSTRATED STORY
This book is the outcome of Rick Beyer’s award-winning 2013 PBS documentary, The Ghost Army. Like the television production, the book version is a strongly visual presentation. Interspersed among the text and in “galleries” spaced between some chapters are images of hundreds of photos, sketches, and paintings. The graphics represent the work of some of the many artists of the Twenty-Third Headquarters Special Troops, the 1,100-man unit known as the Ghost Army. And I surmise that Beyer’s coauthor, artist Liz Sayles, is responsible for selecting the illustrations.
A BATTALION-SIZE UNIT MASQUERADING AS TWO DIVISIONS
The Ghost Army was “capable of impersonating one or two infantry or armored divisions—the equivalent of twenty to forty times their number.” The unit represented one of the Allies’ most audacious efforts to use deception in the war against Nazi Germany. It was, the authors write, “the first unit in the history of warfare that was dedicated solely to deception.” The detachment operated for nine months in France, Luxembourg, and Germany, from the Normandy Invasion in June 1944 until V-E Day in May 1945. “Their mission was to put on a show, with the German Army as the audience. . . They pulled off twenty-one different deceptions and are credited with saving thousands of lives through stagecraft and sleight of hand.”
ARTISTS, RADIO ENGINEERS, TELEGRAPH OPERATORS, AND COMBAT ENGINEERS
The Ghost Army’s 1,100 men were divided into four companies of somewhat unequal size.
** The Signal Company Special created torrents of false radio traffic to create the impression that one or two combat divisions had moved onto the line. The real divisions were deployed elsewhere and managed to surprise, or at least confuse, the Germans.
** The 3132 Signal Service Company Special played sound-effect records “from powerful speakers mounted on half-tracks . . . to simulate the sounds of units moving and operating at night.”
** The largest unit in the Ghost Army was the 603rd Engineer Camouflage Battalion Special. It was composed of artists and designers, including a number (such as Bill Blass and Ellsworth Kelly) who became famous in their fields following the war. They led “battalions of rubber dummies” of tanks, half-tracks, and airplanes to fool the Germans’ air reconnaissance. From time to time, officers in the company impersonated generals and swaggered through nearby towns in Jeeps bearing false insignia to ensure that collaborationists would get the word to the Nazis. (They did.)
** The 406th Engineer Combat Company Special consisted of 168 men “trained as fighting soldiers. They provided perimeter security for the rest of the Ghost Army . . . [and] frequently used their bulldozers to simulate tank tracks as part of the visual deception.”
Ironically, the old-hat Army colonel who commanded the unit didn’t believe in its mission. He tried to have the unit disbanded, so he could be reassigned to command a fighting regiment. But other officers, including his deputy, were supportive, and they worked around the old man’s resistance to novelty.
A TALE TOLD THROUGH THE LIVES OF THE SOLDIERS
Beyer and Sayles spin out their story in the words and images of the men of the Ghost Army. Dozens are cited by name in the book, some as the creators of the sketches, paintings, and photographs littered through the book, others in their reminiscences. Much of the authors’ account rests on the experience of the artists in the Camouflage Battalion—most likely, I imagine, because coauthor Liz Sayles had special access to them. Her grandfather was one of the artists in the unit, and she herself is an artist with many connections within her craft.
DECEPTION IN WORLD WAR II
Both the Nazis and the Allies made frequent use of deception in the course of the war. The Germans famously formed a large unit of English-speaking soldiers dressed in American uniforms and deployed during the Battle of the Bulge. But we know much more about British and American use of deception. The best known operations included those involved in the run-up to the invasions of Europe.
OPERATION MINCEMEAT
Operation Mincemeat, which the British mounted in 1943 to disguise the Allied invasion of Sicily. They floated a dead body in the Mediterranean carrying misleading papers about the Allies’ intention to invade Greece and Sardinia, with Sicily as merely the target of a feint, One of the intelligence officers who planned and carried out Mincemeat, Ewen Montagu, wrote a history in 1953. Montagu’s work formed the basis for the 1956 British film of the same title, The Man Who Never Was. The plan was later dramatized in a more accurate version in Ben MacIntyre’s excellent 2010 book, Operation Mincemeat: How a Dead Man and a Bizarre Plan Fooled the Nazis and Assured Allied Victory.
OPERATION BODYGUARD
Operation Bodyguard was the name of the Allies’ grand plan to mislead the Germans about the location of the invasion of France in June 1944. It involved a host of efforts, including disinformation planted by some of the many Nazi agents captured and “turned” in Britain as well as Operation Fortitude. (The Abwehr flooded the island with spies. So far as is known, not a single one of them succeeded in sending intelligence back to Germany.)
OPERATION FORTITUDE
Fortitude involved the creation of phantom armies in England whose location and size were intended to mislead the Germans into thinking the Allies intended to invade Norway and the Pas de Calais instead of Normandy. The most famous aspect of this operation was the creation of the fictional 1st U.S. Army Group (FUSAG) under the command of General George S. Patton. Rank upon rank of rubber tanks, trucks, and aircraft were deployed on open fields in southeast England to create the impression of an enormous army mobilizing to cross the Channel at its narrowest point.
No commander in war ignores the possibility of misleading the enemy through deception. The stratagem was used in World War II in numerous other operations as well.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Rick Beyer‘s bio on his website reads in part, “Rick Beyer is a New York Times best-selling author, an award-winning documentary producer, and a long-time history enthusiast. His independent documentary, The Ghost Army, premiered on PBS in 2013 and won a CINE Golden Eagle Award.”
Elizabeth Sayles has illustrated more than 25 books for children and won awards for her work. She is the co-author of The Ghost Army of WWII. The book was optioned by Bradley Cooper and Andrew Lazar (American Sniper) as a major motion picture. Her father was in the unit during WWII.
May 5, 2018
I’ve read a lot of books about World War II, so I was surprised that I had never heard of the “Ghost Army” before. As soon as I saw the title, I decided to read it and find out more. The first thing I learned was the reason that I hadn’t heard much about this unusual group. Because of the top-secret nature of the 23rd Division, all mention of the unit was classified for decades after the war ended.
As the title of the book indicates, the three areas employed to trick the enemy were visual, sonic, and radio. The unit was made up of artists, film set designers, and sound engineers. They created inflatable guns, tanks, and even people! Recordings were made of the movements of a real army and then played when deceiving the Germans into thinking an army was near. However, it did put the actual soldiers at risk because they had no real equipment to use if attacked. There was a small unit of armed soldiers and weaponry assigned to the 23rd, but when attacked, they were in real trouble. Luckily, it didn’t happen often.
I enjoyed the stories about how the 23rd impersonated other US army units. They would “hide” their inflatable tanks and trucks in plain sight so that enemy aircraft would see then and presume the army was real. The 23rd even had arm patches from every US army so that when they went into towns, they could pretend to be members of each unit and intentionally let things slip when talking to townspeople who could be possible enemy spies. Another plus was reading what members of the Ghost Army did after the war. Who knew that the famous fashion designer Bill Blass was a part of the 23rd!
Why the three-star rating? Well, although the story about the Ghost Army was interesting, I was expecting more. There was a lot of material about the artists, but the information about the action they saw lacked depth. I would have appreciated more details about the operations themselves. I think it was because of this that I was not as engaged in this book as much as I’d been in others.
If you have Amazon Prime, have a look at the 2013 PBS documentary “The Ghost Army.” It’s interesting.
As the title of the book indicates, the three areas employed to trick the enemy were visual, sonic, and radio. The unit was made up of artists, film set designers, and sound engineers. They created inflatable guns, tanks, and even people! Recordings were made of the movements of a real army and then played when deceiving the Germans into thinking an army was near. However, it did put the actual soldiers at risk because they had no real equipment to use if attacked. There was a small unit of armed soldiers and weaponry assigned to the 23rd, but when attacked, they were in real trouble. Luckily, it didn’t happen often.
I enjoyed the stories about how the 23rd impersonated other US army units. They would “hide” their inflatable tanks and trucks in plain sight so that enemy aircraft would see then and presume the army was real. The 23rd even had arm patches from every US army so that when they went into towns, they could pretend to be members of each unit and intentionally let things slip when talking to townspeople who could be possible enemy spies. Another plus was reading what members of the Ghost Army did after the war. Who knew that the famous fashion designer Bill Blass was a part of the 23rd!
Why the three-star rating? Well, although the story about the Ghost Army was interesting, I was expecting more. There was a lot of material about the artists, but the information about the action they saw lacked depth. I would have appreciated more details about the operations themselves. I think it was because of this that I was not as engaged in this book as much as I’d been in others.
If you have Amazon Prime, have a look at the 2013 PBS documentary “The Ghost Army.” It’s interesting.
August 21, 2023
Hmmm. The pictures were excellent, and it did a great job of describing the day to day lives of some of the soldiers in the unit. What it lacked, however, was a real sense of what deception involved. Most of the time it simply listed places they operated, but didn't really make me feel that I understood what exactly they were doing or why it mattered. The author kept quoting from the official history, which was extremely tongue in cheek and seems like it would have been a much more enjoyable read.
June 7, 2015
Fascinating story (and one that would probably make for a great movie).
December 27, 2016
Great WWII true story!
December 26, 2021
The Ghost Army of World War II I found to be exceptional in numerous ways. Firstly, I am not an aficionado of military history (although it is admittedly difficult to study human history without encountering quite a few wars), but this look at a historical event is fascinating from cover to cover. Secondly, I have found most books written by multiple authors to be of inferior quality in one way or another, but the two authors of Ghost Army have produced an extraordinarily fine read. The text, while factual, informative and instructive, is exceedingly well written and leads the reader onward without pause. Yet the text itself is but part of the book's attraction; liberally interspersed with the text are drawings and watercolors produced by the men who created the visual and auditory deceptions for which their unit was created. These drawings communicate the environment which these men found in both France and Germany in 1944 and 1945 more effectively than even the most adroit narrative description could do. Quite a few photographs also augment the text although most are too small to do justice to their subjects and do not come up to the quality of the sketches and water colors.
There is not quite as much material in the book as its 254 pages suggest, for the page margins are quite generous and white space abounds. Still, I found the formatting rather pleasing, and it sets off the illustrations to good effect.
A documentary film on the “ghost army” preceded this book, reversing the usual practice of a book's inspiring a subsequent film. Having never seen the filmed documentary, I cannot compare it with this book; however, the book does remind me of another World War II film, The Monuments Men. While the objectives of the two groups were quite different, both units were similar in that they were comprised of men who were professionals in the art world and were in no way typical combat units, nor did they have traditional military missions. Neither was well understood nor fully supported by other military commanders, the “ghost army,” in fact, being kept secret from allied as well as from opposing forces. The novel and largely unprecedented composition and mission of the “ghost army” (and of the “monuments men”) make their stories of interest even to readers who may usually avoid military-related topics.
I was struck by the concluding section of The Ghost Army of World War II because the authors do not end the history with the end of the war in 1945. While they could not detail post-war information on all 1,100 members of the “ghost army,” they do provide brief biographies of about sixty of those members so that the reader is not left to wonder what these men did after their experience in the war. Why did this section particularly impress me? It parallels my own efforts in documenting the lives of the men who served with my father in the 645th Aero Squadron in France in World War I and which is currently published via the World Wide Web.
Perhaps the fact that the “ghost army” fought against Hitler's troops by creating rather than destroying and by deceiving rather than shooting makes the book a pleasurable read. The Ghost Army of World War II gives the reader an intriguing look into the conceptualization, creation, and operation of a unit comprised largely of men skilled in artistic (both visual and auditory) creation and given a mission that may well have been unique in the conduct of modern warfare. It is a story of inspiration and imagination put to use to help win a war, and it is a story well told and meaningfully illustrated.
There is not quite as much material in the book as its 254 pages suggest, for the page margins are quite generous and white space abounds. Still, I found the formatting rather pleasing, and it sets off the illustrations to good effect.
A documentary film on the “ghost army” preceded this book, reversing the usual practice of a book's inspiring a subsequent film. Having never seen the filmed documentary, I cannot compare it with this book; however, the book does remind me of another World War II film, The Monuments Men. While the objectives of the two groups were quite different, both units were similar in that they were comprised of men who were professionals in the art world and were in no way typical combat units, nor did they have traditional military missions. Neither was well understood nor fully supported by other military commanders, the “ghost army,” in fact, being kept secret from allied as well as from opposing forces. The novel and largely unprecedented composition and mission of the “ghost army” (and of the “monuments men”) make their stories of interest even to readers who may usually avoid military-related topics.
I was struck by the concluding section of The Ghost Army of World War II because the authors do not end the history with the end of the war in 1945. While they could not detail post-war information on all 1,100 members of the “ghost army,” they do provide brief biographies of about sixty of those members so that the reader is not left to wonder what these men did after their experience in the war. Why did this section particularly impress me? It parallels my own efforts in documenting the lives of the men who served with my father in the 645th Aero Squadron in France in World War I and which is currently published via the World Wide Web.
Perhaps the fact that the “ghost army” fought against Hitler's troops by creating rather than destroying and by deceiving rather than shooting makes the book a pleasurable read. The Ghost Army of World War II gives the reader an intriguing look into the conceptualization, creation, and operation of a unit comprised largely of men skilled in artistic (both visual and auditory) creation and given a mission that may well have been unique in the conduct of modern warfare. It is a story of inspiration and imagination put to use to help win a war, and it is a story well told and meaningfully illustrated.
May 18, 2022
Anyone familiar with the “Golden Age” of comic books knows how during the 1940’s the comics “went to war” and how Superman, Batman, the Justice Society of America, Captain America, Captain Midnight, Blackhawk and many other heroes battled the Nazis and the Japanese in their own eponymous books, Action Comics, and numerous others which are so valued and sought after today. The artists who drew them, along with filmmakers, entertainers (such as Bob Hope and the USO shows), broadcasters, and actors including James Stewart, James Doohan, Neville Brand, Charles Durning, Leslie Howard, and many, many others who enlisted in the military and went to war—were all part of a tremendous effort, encompassing all media, to popularize the Allied cause, keep up the morale of the public, and, of course, encourage the purchase of war bonds and stamps to help the government finance the war.
As this fascinating book shows, those of an artistic bent had opportunities to serve their country in other ways that were not as well known (because by their very nature and purpose—deceiving the enemy into believing that personnel and equipment that were in one place were really in another, that attacks were about to take place but were not, that movements in one direction had someplace entirely different as their destination—they had to be kept secret) but just as important to the war effort. To the degree that their lives were put at risk since their goal was to divert the enemy’s attention away from actual combat units onto themselves, they exhibited bravery, courage and resolution equal to that of any soldier more directly on the front lines (and there were some who did not return home). And in doing so, they saved thousands of lives.
Part of the story of D-Day was Operation Fortitude, where the Germans were fooled through the use of inflatable dummy tanks, artillery pieces, trucks, landing boats, etc. into believing that the invasion was headed for the Pas de Calais rather than Normandy. But the Ghost Army, as the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops came to be known, bamboozled the Germans from Brittany (Brest) all the way to the Rhine, and from shortly after D-Day almost to the end of the war; besides the inflatables, they used sound effects (motors running, artillery pieces and mortars firing), radio broadcasts (where false information was “accidentally let slip” over the air) and fake uniform patches and insignia where play-acting was called for (as in going into a tavern and “talking loosely” for the benefit of any spies or collaborators who might have been present).
Their creativity, talent and ingenuity was used to the fullest degree possible. While doing their job of deception, and often as part of it, they created scores of paintings, drawings, etchings, photographs, maps and other documents, with which this book is profusely illustrated. The authors have relied on this documentation as well as interviews with many of those surviving today, and the families of those who are gone, to create this account. He has not neglected to include mini-biographies outlining the careers of many of the men after the war (for instance, Bill Blass became a well-known fashion designer). All in all this book will give readers a greater appreciation of a little known but vitally important contribution to the war effort.
**** review by Chuck Graham ****
As this fascinating book shows, those of an artistic bent had opportunities to serve their country in other ways that were not as well known (because by their very nature and purpose—deceiving the enemy into believing that personnel and equipment that were in one place were really in another, that attacks were about to take place but were not, that movements in one direction had someplace entirely different as their destination—they had to be kept secret) but just as important to the war effort. To the degree that their lives were put at risk since their goal was to divert the enemy’s attention away from actual combat units onto themselves, they exhibited bravery, courage and resolution equal to that of any soldier more directly on the front lines (and there were some who did not return home). And in doing so, they saved thousands of lives.
Part of the story of D-Day was Operation Fortitude, where the Germans were fooled through the use of inflatable dummy tanks, artillery pieces, trucks, landing boats, etc. into believing that the invasion was headed for the Pas de Calais rather than Normandy. But the Ghost Army, as the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops came to be known, bamboozled the Germans from Brittany (Brest) all the way to the Rhine, and from shortly after D-Day almost to the end of the war; besides the inflatables, they used sound effects (motors running, artillery pieces and mortars firing), radio broadcasts (where false information was “accidentally let slip” over the air) and fake uniform patches and insignia where play-acting was called for (as in going into a tavern and “talking loosely” for the benefit of any spies or collaborators who might have been present).
Their creativity, talent and ingenuity was used to the fullest degree possible. While doing their job of deception, and often as part of it, they created scores of paintings, drawings, etchings, photographs, maps and other documents, with which this book is profusely illustrated. The authors have relied on this documentation as well as interviews with many of those surviving today, and the families of those who are gone, to create this account. He has not neglected to include mini-biographies outlining the careers of many of the men after the war (for instance, Bill Blass became a well-known fashion designer). All in all this book will give readers a greater appreciation of a little known but vitally important contribution to the war effort.
**** review by Chuck Graham ****
June 23, 2019
I first read about them in the context of Operation Fortitude as part of the overall Overlord campaign - creating a fictitious US Army Group in East Anglia to fool the Germans into thinking the main thrust was coming at the Pas de Calais. Little did I know the story was much richer.
Next, I ran across a documentary on Amazon Prime on the "Ghost Army". I learned that the official US Army unit designation was the 23rd Special Headquarters Troop. This was classic bureaucratic smoke screen to hide what the unit was really up to. The documentary was probably based on the book because it mentioned their tactics, such as creating a fake division using sound; the unit would roll up to the assembly lines and then play on a loop sounds of an American unit moving into position to attack.
However, when the book was on sale, I decided to read more. There is only so much you can fit into a 48 minute documentary. I was very impressed with the author capturing the unit. I learned that these were truly the artsy type and how they answered the call to serve their country. In the 21st century, my biases towards such types are those who would never be found within a mile of an Armed Forces Recruiting station. But back then, these men chose to serve. They took pictures, they drew cartoons, and even painted in their spare time.
The authors truly captured the essence of the men of the 23rd Special Headquarters Troop. Rather than just drink and chase women, they drew pictures of them. They captured Army life - the mundane and the hair raising. The authors also showed just much danger they could have been in; they could be attacked just like all the other units. Perhaps sometimes they were too good because they had to fool their own side in the name of OPSEC. Not even fellow American soldiers knew what they were up to.
I would recommend this book for anyone interesting in reading more about World War 2.
Next, I ran across a documentary on Amazon Prime on the "Ghost Army". I learned that the official US Army unit designation was the 23rd Special Headquarters Troop. This was classic bureaucratic smoke screen to hide what the unit was really up to. The documentary was probably based on the book because it mentioned their tactics, such as creating a fake division using sound; the unit would roll up to the assembly lines and then play on a loop sounds of an American unit moving into position to attack.
However, when the book was on sale, I decided to read more. There is only so much you can fit into a 48 minute documentary. I was very impressed with the author capturing the unit. I learned that these were truly the artsy type and how they answered the call to serve their country. In the 21st century, my biases towards such types are those who would never be found within a mile of an Armed Forces Recruiting station. But back then, these men chose to serve. They took pictures, they drew cartoons, and even painted in their spare time.
The authors truly captured the essence of the men of the 23rd Special Headquarters Troop. Rather than just drink and chase women, they drew pictures of them. They captured Army life - the mundane and the hair raising. The authors also showed just much danger they could have been in; they could be attacked just like all the other units. Perhaps sometimes they were too good because they had to fool their own side in the name of OPSEC. Not even fellow American soldiers knew what they were up to.
I would recommend this book for anyone interesting in reading more about World War 2.
December 30, 2019
I received this gift from my daughter and son-in-law on Christmas. I didn't even know this unit existed, as it was top secret during the war, and only gradually declassified in the decades after. The Ghost Army was the name given to the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops, whose purpose it was to trick the enemy into thinking that a real platoon, division, or army, was in one place, while they were actually moving to another.
Their techniques included the use of dummy soldiers, dummy tanks, and dummy airplanes, fake radio broadcasts, and recordings blasting through loudspeakers that sounded like troops on the move. The stories of their deceptions (or as some preferred to call them, manipulations) range from comical to tragic, as they usually were able to pull out of the area in time to evade a German attack, but not always.
The men of the Ghost Army included artists, designers, and special effects engineers in visuals and sound. They included many who went on to become professional artists and designers in their own right: Bill Blass (fashion designer), Victor Dowd (comic book and ad illustrator), Art Kane (fashion and music photographer), Ellsworth Kelley (artist and sculptor), Arthur Singer (bird illustrator), and more.
The book is full of drawings by these artists, sketches and watercolors of the towns they were in, and sketches of each other. Most touching for me were the sketches of the DP (displaced persons) that the Ghost Army personnel had to guard after the fighting ended, poor people of all nationalities, many forced into slave labor for the Reich. There are also many photographs, and a few maps.
It's a fascinating look into a not-often-discussed aspect of war. As Wesley Clark said, "Every army practices deception. If they don't, they can't win, and they know it."
Their techniques included the use of dummy soldiers, dummy tanks, and dummy airplanes, fake radio broadcasts, and recordings blasting through loudspeakers that sounded like troops on the move. The stories of their deceptions (or as some preferred to call them, manipulations) range from comical to tragic, as they usually were able to pull out of the area in time to evade a German attack, but not always.
The men of the Ghost Army included artists, designers, and special effects engineers in visuals and sound. They included many who went on to become professional artists and designers in their own right: Bill Blass (fashion designer), Victor Dowd (comic book and ad illustrator), Art Kane (fashion and music photographer), Ellsworth Kelley (artist and sculptor), Arthur Singer (bird illustrator), and more.
The book is full of drawings by these artists, sketches and watercolors of the towns they were in, and sketches of each other. Most touching for me were the sketches of the DP (displaced persons) that the Ghost Army personnel had to guard after the fighting ended, poor people of all nationalities, many forced into slave labor for the Reich. There are also many photographs, and a few maps.
It's a fascinating look into a not-often-discussed aspect of war. As Wesley Clark said, "Every army practices deception. If they don't, they can't win, and they know it."
June 18, 2022
This almost felt like a juvenile history, but it’s not listed as such. It’s a book derived from a 2013 PBS documentary so, maybe that’s why it felt rather lightweight and skimpy on details.
It’s the story of a group of men dispatched to Europe days prior to D-Day. The group consisted of artists, radio telegraphers who could imitate the style of well-known radio telegraphers already in the field, and audio sound effects guys who crafted wire recordings that could sound like tank movements and bridge construction when played through large powerful speakers.
I’ve known for years about the rubber inflatable tanks and trucks they used as part of the deception. But I would have loved more details about the audio systems they employed and the way they crafted those wire recordings. That, sadly, is not in this book. There’s a good bit of focus on art and those who became famous after the war. Fashion designer Bill Blass is arguably the most famous of the deceivers.
You get the impression that there isn’t much available in terms of original sources for this book, but these authors utilized those sources that are available well. The defense department classified the ghost army until the 1990s despite some leaks over the years. This was a fun, quick read. I blew through most of it during my morning walk around a jogging path near where I live. If your annoying guide dog stops every third foot to sniff and every fourth foot to pee, you might even finish the entire book during your daily constitutional, assuming you take one.
It’s the story of a group of men dispatched to Europe days prior to D-Day. The group consisted of artists, radio telegraphers who could imitate the style of well-known radio telegraphers already in the field, and audio sound effects guys who crafted wire recordings that could sound like tank movements and bridge construction when played through large powerful speakers.
I’ve known for years about the rubber inflatable tanks and trucks they used as part of the deception. But I would have loved more details about the audio systems they employed and the way they crafted those wire recordings. That, sadly, is not in this book. There’s a good bit of focus on art and those who became famous after the war. Fashion designer Bill Blass is arguably the most famous of the deceivers.
You get the impression that there isn’t much available in terms of original sources for this book, but these authors utilized those sources that are available well. The defense department classified the ghost army until the 1990s despite some leaks over the years. This was a fun, quick read. I blew through most of it during my morning walk around a jogging path near where I live. If your annoying guide dog stops every third foot to sniff and every fourth foot to pee, you might even finish the entire book during your daily constitutional, assuming you take one.
December 21, 2019
THE GHOST ARMY OF WWII BY RICK BEYER.
I love history, any and all history. So when Goodreads and the author RICK BEYER gave me the chance to read this book I was truly grateful! GHOST ARMY OF WWII(SHORTENED), give us the chance to finally learn about the deception,the props and most of all the people behind,what was once one of the biggest secrets of WWII.
95 lb tanks? Inflatable soldiers? and yes camouflage made of chicken feathers, was what a group of artists,hollywood types and people with a definitely weird sense of the odd made up one of the most important military units in the invasion of Normandy that history knew very little about until now. These men were on the front lines with FAKE tanks/halftracks/artillery guns and "people" Their job during the invasion of D-day: confuse the heck out of the enemy , and that's what they did! With the help of audio specialists they did their job at a great risk to themselves and others. Unsung heros? Definitely! Not anymore thanks to RICK BEYER!
As I said before, I am huge history nut if you will, and THE GHOST ARMY OF WWII BY RICK BEYER is a great chunk of history,and a great book to introduce us to the men who risked their lives by creating and implementing this ruse that helped bring D-Day and beyond to its conclusion. This book does answer quite a few questions that I had on how the deception was planned and carried out.
I received this book free from goodreads in exchange for an honest review.
I love history, any and all history. So when Goodreads and the author RICK BEYER gave me the chance to read this book I was truly grateful! GHOST ARMY OF WWII(SHORTENED), give us the chance to finally learn about the deception,the props and most of all the people behind,what was once one of the biggest secrets of WWII.
95 lb tanks? Inflatable soldiers? and yes camouflage made of chicken feathers, was what a group of artists,hollywood types and people with a definitely weird sense of the odd made up one of the most important military units in the invasion of Normandy that history knew very little about until now. These men were on the front lines with FAKE tanks/halftracks/artillery guns and "people" Their job during the invasion of D-day: confuse the heck out of the enemy , and that's what they did! With the help of audio specialists they did their job at a great risk to themselves and others. Unsung heros? Definitely! Not anymore thanks to RICK BEYER!
As I said before, I am huge history nut if you will, and THE GHOST ARMY OF WWII BY RICK BEYER is a great chunk of history,and a great book to introduce us to the men who risked their lives by creating and implementing this ruse that helped bring D-Day and beyond to its conclusion. This book does answer quite a few questions that I had on how the deception was planned and carried out.
I received this book free from goodreads in exchange for an honest review.
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