Pfc. Merriell “Snafu” Shelton got his nickname from his overly confident attitude, and his scrappy fearlessness during battle.

Capt. Andrew Haldane, the son of Scottish immigrants, was captain of the Bowdoin College football team before joining the Marine Corps, where he earned the Silver Star. Known as “Ack-Ack” among his men, Haldane commanded 235 men in K company of the 3rd Battalion, Fifth Marines, where his spirited leadership was widely respected by the troops. In Haldane's honor, Bowdoin College has established an award and a scholorship for student leadership in public service.

Eugene B. Sledge was born in Mobile, Alabama on November 4, 1923. He was raised by his parents, Edward and Mary, and had an older brother, Edward, Jr., who eventually became a lieutenant in the Army. As a boy, Sledge spent his free time hunting, fishing, and collecting Civil War relics at Spanish Fort, a Civil War battlefield site located on the eastern shore of Mobile Bay. His ancestors served as officers in the Confederate Army during the Civil War, and he maintained a strong interest in military history and battles.

Robert Leckie was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on December 18, 1920. He was the youngest of eight children in an Irish Catholic family and was raised in Rutherford, New Jersey. Before the war, Leckie was a sportswriter for The Bergen Evening Record, a local New Jersey newspaper.

Sidney Phillips was born September 2, 1924. His father, a teacher who became principal of Murphy High School in Mobile during the War, had been a 2nd lieutenant in the 145th Infantry in World War One, and had been wounded in the Argonne Forest. Phillips' best friend growing up was Eugene B. Sledge.  Phillips graduated from high school in June of 1941 and went to work with the U.S. Engineers, carrying maps between departments while saving for college. On December 8, 1941, he was just seventeen when he and a friend enlisted in the Marines. After training, Phillips was assigned to H Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines Regiment, 1st Marine Division, and taught to operate the 81 mm mortar.  In the spring of 1942 he went overseas — first to New Zealand, and then, in August, to the Solomon Islands where he participated in the landings on Guadalcanal.

Romus Valton "R.V." Burgin was born on August 13, 1921 in Jewett, Texas.

A Marine in the 1st Marine Division, "Runner" Conley was best friends with Pfc. Robert Leckie, Pfc. Lew "Chuckler" Juergens, and Pfc. Bill "Hoosier" Smith. 

"J.P." Morgan was a participant in the Battle of Guadalcanal and a friend of John Basilone.

John Basilone was born in Buffalo, New York on November 4, 1916. He enlisted in the Army in 1934, served in the Philippines, and was honorably discharged in 1937. Three years later, he enlisted in the Marine Corps in Baltimore, Maryland, and was assigned as a machine gunner with the 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division before heading into combat in the Pacific.

"Gunny" Haney was an N.C.O. and one of the oldest in the 5th Marines. He was a commander of Eugene Sledge's unit.

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Cpl. Merriell "Snafu" Shelton

Played by Rami Malek

Pfc. Merriell “Snafu” Shelton got his nickname from his overly confident attitude, and his scrappy fearlessness during battle.

About the Series

The Pacific

Featured Characters

See All

Cpl. Merriell "Snafu" Shelton

Capt. Andrew Haldane

Pfc. Eugene Sledge

Pfc. Robert Leckie

Pfc. Sidney Phillips

R.V. Burgin

Pfc. Wilbur "Runner" Conley

Sgt. J.P. Morgan

Sgt. John Basilone

Sgt. Elmo "Gunny" Haney

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