Duane Decker wrote a beloved series about an imaginary major league baseball team called the Blue Sox from 1947 to his death in 1964. During World War II, he served in the Pacific with the Marine Corps. After participating in several island invasions, he became a combat correspondent on the Leatherneck, the official Marine Corps publication, where his tour of duty took him to Peleliu, Saipan, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. One of the highlights of his military career came when he witnessed the formal surrender of Japan aboard the U.S.S. Missouri in Tokyo Bay as a Staff Sergeant and editor of Leatherneck. After the war, he had a notable career writing for leading magazines, residing in New Hampshire. An enthusiastic baseball fan, his books have been enjoyed by thousands. He was a graduate of Colgate University.