Smokey Joe and the General is a combination of my autobiography and a biography of my first boss John Elliott Wood. Wood was considered the best trainer in the Army. Wood gave me ever increasing responsibilities which resulted in me being promoted ahead of my contemporaries. Wood's examples of professionalism and character had a profound influence over my entire career. Rich with historical facts and fascinating photos, highlights of this exciting story include: Pre-World War Two Why attending the 1936 Olympics changed the course of my life World War Two My first assignment in the 41st Singing Engineers My experiences in Italy commanding Buffalo Soldiers of the 92nd Division Korea How I became General Douglas MacArthur's spokesman An account of how the Marine Corps was saved from extinction An inside look at the planning of the Inchon Invasion How dropping an air bridge rescued our troops at the Chosin Reservoir How 100,000 North Koreans were saved during the evacuation of Hungnam Vietnam The tale of resistance against equipping helicopters with weapons in Vietnam Detente My actions as military representative of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for the SALT II Treaty How Col. Wood's example of moral courage convinced me to retire in protest after the signing of the unequal and unverifiable SALT II Treaty Reagan Era Earning the Presidential Citizens Medal in which President Reagan cited me as one of the chief architects of "peace through strength." What People Have To Say About Smokey Joe & The General: "The remarkable General Edward Rowny has written the story his superior career entails. This is a wonderful account of service, intrigue, and military accomplishments of the highest degree. Page by page it takes the reader through a series of events that are in many senses spellbinding. A terrific read. Highly recommended. Television personality Larry King "General Ed Rowny knows about many things; especially selfless service, integrity, and leadership. Thus his rich, nuanced and modest memoir is at the same time a valuable treatise on principled leadership as learned from General John E. Wood, Rowny's long-time mentor. It is a great story, begun in days of the Old Army but with much to teach those serving today and tomorrow. "Lewis Sorley, author of Pulitzer Prize nominated "A Better War" "Smokey Joe and the General is no ordinary military memoir. It covers the story of an astonishingly varied career that includes service in the combat engineers, commander of an infantry division, pioneering in the new techniques of armed helicopters, and finally Military Representative to the SALT Treaty with the Russians. Throughout this odyssey the General never forgets his first boss and mentor, Colonel "Smokey Joe" Wood. Written informally with plenty of humor and wisdom, Ed Rowny's book is both fascinating and informative". John Eisenhower, son of President Dwight D. Eisenhower, Brigadier General U.S. Army (ret.) & former Ambassador to Belgium. "A captivating book by a superb combat leader."- Hal Moore, . General, USA (Ret.), author of best-selling book: "We Were Soldiers Once and Young", (made into a movie). "This is a personal recollection of lessons General Rowny learned from his role model General Wood when serving in the Army. Written with passion, the book shows how inspiration leads to a better understanding of military duties, professional perfection and success. History is made by people of such a persisting vision." Radoslaw Sikorski, Minister of Foreign Affairs
Lieutenant General Edward L. Rowny, born in 1917, was a U.S. Army general and an ambassador, chief U.S. negotiator in arms reduction talks with the Soviet Union, and one of the originators of the helicopter as a platform for combat. The citation from his Presidential Citizen's Medal, which he received in 1989, reads: "one of the principal architects of peace through strength policy." He served as an arms control adviser and negotiator to fi ve presidents - Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan and Bush. Rowny, a 1941 graduate of West Point, has received numerous awards for valor and achievement, including combat in World War II, Korea and Vietnam. An author of various books and memoirs, Rowny founded the Paderewski Scholarship Fund in 2004 to bring deserving Polish students to the United States to study the American style of democracy and capitalism, and currently serves as president of the American Polish Advisory Council. He lives in Washington, D.C. with his wife Elizabeth.
