Editing Rod Serling (section)

==American military service==
Serling enlisted in the [[United States Army|U.S. Army]] the morning after high school graduation, following his brother Robert.<ref name=Sander1992/>{{rp|34, 37}}

Serling began his military career in 1943 at [[Camp Toccoa]], Georgia, under General [[Joseph May Swing]] and Colonel [[Orin D. Haugen]]<ref name= Sander1992/>{{rp|36–37}} and served in the [[511th Parachute Infantry Regiment (United States)|511th Parachute Infantry Regiment]] of the [[11th Airborne Division (United States)|11th Airborne Division]].<ref name=Scribner/> He eventually reached the rank of [[Technician Fourth Grade]] (T/4).<ref>{{cite web| url = http://army.togetherweserved.com/army/servlet/tws.webapp.WebApps?cmd=ShadowBoxProfile&type=Person&ID=180324| title=Serling, Rodman, T/4 | first=Trey W. |last=Franklin| work= TogetherWeServed.com| access-date= October 31, 2016| archive-date= October 31, 2016|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20161031235004/http://army.togetherweserved.com/army/servlet/tws.webapp.WebApps?cmd=ShadowBoxProfile&type=Person&ID=180324 | url-status=live}}</ref>

Over the next year of paratrooper training, Serling and others began [[boxing]] to vent aggression. He competed as a [[flyweight]] and had 17 bouts, rising to the second round of the division finals before being knocked out.<ref name= Sander1992/>{{rp|40}} He was remembered for his [[Berserker]] style, and for "getting his nose broken in his first bout and again in the last bout".<ref name= Hudson /> He tried his hand at the [[Golden Gloves]], with little success.<ref name=Grams />

On April 25, 1944, Serling received his orders and saw that he was being sent west to California. He knew that he would be fighting against the [[Empire of Japan]] rather than [[Nazi Germany]]. This disappointed him because he had hoped to help fight against [[Adolf Hitler]].<ref name= Sander1992/>{{rp|40–41}} In May, he was assigned to the [[Pacific Ocean theater of World War II|Pacific Theater]] in [[New Guinea]] and the [[Philippine islands]].<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cwzIDAAAQBAJ&q=%22He+was+assigned+in+may+1944+to+the+Pacific%22&pg=PA3|url-access= subscription| isbn=978-1491720134| last= Reynolds| first=Kenneth|title=The Twilight Zone: Rod Serling's Wondrous Land| year= 2014 |page=3|publisher= iUniverse|access-date=July 6, 2019}}</ref>

[[File:511th PIR at Manarawat, 1944.jpg|thumb|left|Troops of the 511th Parachute Infantry Regiment evacuate a wounded soldier to an aid station at Manarawat on the island of [[Leyte, Philippines]] dated on December 1944.]]
In November 1944, his division first saw combat, landing in the [[Philippines]]. The [[11th Airborne Division]] was not used as paratroopers, however, but as light infantry during the [[Battle of Leyte]]. The division helped secure the area after the five divisions that had gone ashore earlier.<ref name= Sander1992/>{{rp|43}}

For a variety of reasons, Serling was transferred to the 511th's demolition platoon, nicknamed "The Death Squad" for its high casualty rate. According to Sergeant Frank Lewis, leader of the demolitions squad, "He screwed up somewhere along the line. Apparently he got on someone's nerves."<ref name= Sander1992/>{{rp|45}} Lewis also judged that Serling was not suited to be a field soldier: "he didn't have the wits or aggressiveness required for combat."<ref name= Sander1992/>{{rp|45}} At one point, Lewis, Serling, and others were in a firefight, trapped in a foxhole. As they waited for darkness, Lewis noticed that Serling had not reloaded any of his extra magazines. Serling sometimes went exploring on his own, against orders, and got lost.<ref name=Sander1992/>{{rp|45}}

Serling's time in Leyte shaped his writing and political views for the rest of his life. He saw death every day while in the Philippines, at the hands of his enemies and his allies, and through freak accidents such as that which killed another Jewish private, Melvin Levy. Levy was delivering a comic monologue for the platoon as they rested under a palm tree when a food crate was dropped from a plane above, decapitating him. Serling led the funeral services for Levy and placed a [[Star of David]] over his grave.<ref name= Sander1992/>{{rp|45}} Serling later set several of his scripts in the Philippines and used the unpredictability of death as a theme in much of his writing.<ref name= Sander1992/>{{rp|46}} In the 1960 ''Twilight Zone'' episode "The Purple Testament", a prologue written by Serling stated, "Infantry platoon, U.S. Army, Philippine Islands, 1945. These are the faces of the young men who fight, as if some omniscient painter had mixed a tube of oils that were at one time earth brown, dust gray, blood red, beard black, and fear—yellow white, and these men were the models. For this is the province of combat, and these are the faces of war."

Serling returned from the successful mission in Leyte with two wounds, including one to his kneecap,<ref name= Sander1992/>{{rp|47}} but neither kept him from combat when General [[Douglas MacArthur]] deployed the paratroopers for their usual purpose on February 3, 1945. Colonel Haugen led the 511th Parachute Infantry Regiment as it landed on [[Tagaytay|Tagaytay Ridge]], met the [[188th Infantry Regiment (United States)|188th Glider Infantry Regiment]] and marched into [[Manila]]. It met minimal resistance until it reached the city, where Vice Admiral [[Sanji Iwabuchi]] had arranged his 17,000 troops behind a maze of traps and guns and ordered them to fight to the death.<ref name= Sander1992/>{{rp|47–49}} During the next month, Serling's unit battled block by block for control of [[Battle of Manila (1945)|Manila]].

When portions of the city were taken from Japanese control, local civilians sometimes showed their gratitude by throwing parties and hosting banquets. During one of these parties, Serling and his comrades were fired upon, resulting in many soldier and civilian deaths. Serling, still a private after three years, caught the attention of Sergeant Lewis when he ran into the line of fire to rescue a performer who had been on stage when the artillery started firing.<ref name=Sander1992/>{{rp|49}}

As it moved in on Iwabuchi's stronghold, Serling's regiment had a 50% casualty rate, with over 400 men killed or wounded. Serling was wounded and three comrades were killed by shrapnel from rounds fired at his roving demolition team by an anti-aircraft gun.<ref name=Sander1992/>{{rp|50}} He was sent to [[New Guinea]] to recover but soon returned to Manila to finish "cleaning up".

Serling's final assignment was as part of the [[Occupation of Japan|occupation force in Japan]].<ref name= Sander1992/>{{rp|51}}  During his military service, Private Serling was awarded the [[Purple Heart]], the [[Bronze Star Medal|Bronze Star]],<ref name=AAYA>''Rod Serling''. Authors and Artists for Young Adults, vol. 14. Gale Research, 1995. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Michigan: Gale, 2010.</ref>  and the [[Philippine Liberation Medal]].<ref name= Scribner/><ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.military.com/veteran-jobs/career-advice/military-transition/famous-veteran-rod-serling.html| title=Famous Veteran: Rod Serling|  work= [[Military.com]] | access-date= October 31, 2016| archive-date= October 26, 2016| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161026164425/http://www.military.com/veteran-jobs/career-advice/military-transition/famous-veteran-rod-serling.html| url-status=live}}</ref>

Serling's combat experience affected him deeply and influenced much of his writing. It left him with nightmares and [[Flashback (psychology)|flashback]]s for the rest of his life.<ref name= Scribner/> He said, "I was bitter about everything and at loose ends when I got out of the service. I think I turned to writing to get it off my chest."<ref name= CAO/>

===Awards===
{| style="margin:1em auto; text-align:center;"
|colspan="12"|[[File:Combat Infantry Badge.svg|200px]]
|-
|colspan="12"|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=olc|ribbon=Bronze Star Medal ribbon.svg|width=106}} {{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=Purple Heart BAR.svg|width=106}}
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|ribbon=Army Good Conduct Medal ribbon.svg|width=106}}
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|ribbon=American Campaign Medal ribbon.svg|width=106}}
|{{ribbon devices|number=4|type=service-star|other_device=arrowhead|ribbon=Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal ribbon.svg{{!}}border|width=106}}
|-
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=olc|ribbon=World War II Victory Medal ribbon.svg{{!}}border|width=106}}
|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|ribbon=Army of Occupation ribbon.svg|width=106px}}
|{{ribbon devices|number=1|type=service-star|ribbon=Phliber rib.svg|width=106}}
|-
|colspan="12"|[[File:USAAF - Glider Pilot 4.png|106px]] [[File:US Army Airborne basic parachutist badge.gif|106px]]
|-
|colspan="12"|{{ribbon devices|number=0|type=olc|ribbon=U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force Presidential Unit Citation ribbon.svg|width=106}} {{ribbon devices|number=0|type=oak|ribbon=Philippines Presidential Unit Citation.png|width=106px}}
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="margin:1em auto; text-align:center;"
|-
|colspan="12"|[[Combat Infantryman Badge]]
|-
|colspan="6"|[[Bronze Star]]
|colspan="6"|[[Purple Heart]]
|-
|colspan="4"|[[Army Good Conduct Medal]]
|colspan="4"|[[American Campaign Medal]] 
|colspan="4"|[[Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal]] <br /> with [[arrowhead device]] and four [[campaign stars]]
|-
|colspan="4"|[[World War II Victory Medal (United States)|World War II Victory Medal]]
|colspan="4"|[[Army of Occupation Medal]] 
|colspan="4"|[[Philippine Liberation Medal]] <br /> with one [[service star]]
|-
|colspan="6"|[[Glider Badge]]
|colspan="6"|[[Parachutist Badge]] 
|-
| colspan="6"|[[Presidential Unit Citation (United States)|Army Presidential Unit Citation]]
| colspan="6"|[[Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation|Philippine Presidential Unit Citation]]
|}