Day of Infamy by Walter Lord

Author:Walter Lord [Lord, Walter]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-4532-3842-4
Publisher: Open Road Media
Published: 2012-04-11T04:00:00+00:00

As people continued to phone, continued to ask questions, continued to be doubtful, Edwards grew more and more exasperated. Finally a call came from Allan Davis, a prominent businessman and member of the station’s Board of Directors. When he too asked if it wasn’t really a maneuver, Edwards burst out, “Hell, no, this is the real McCoy!”

Davis sounded really shocked … mumbled “Oh, oh,” and hung up.

The effect was so impressive that Edwards decided to use the same words on the air. That might be the way to get people to really believe the news. Starting about 9:00 A.M., he repeated again and again that the attack was the “real McCoy” — so often that most people who listened to the Honolulu radio that day remember little else.

As they sat by their sets, many of the listeners found themselves paying special attention to the tone in Edwards’ voice. They seemed to be searching for some extra clue that would tell them how serious the situation was. Mrs. Mayfield thought he sounded hoarse with suppressed excitement. Joan Stidham thought he was terse.

Edwards had at least one very disappointed listener. Sitting in the wardroom of the Japanese carrier Akagi, Commander Shin-Ichi Shimizu tuned in the radio to see how the Americans would react to the attack. Soon the announcer began breaking in with orders for different units to report to duty, but his voice was calm, and in between times the station continued to play music. It was a big anticlimax. The announcer wasn’t nearly as excited as Shimizu.

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