born Aug. 26, 1901, Keytesville, Mo., U.S.
died April 19, 1987, Washington, D.C.
U.S. army officer.
He graduated from West Point and helped organize the army's first airborne division early in World War II. He commanded a parachute assault in the Normandy Campaign and in the Battle of the Bulge (1944). He served as commanding general of UN forces in Korea (1953), as U.S. Army chief of staff (1955–59), and as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (1962–64). He was appointed ambassador to South Vietnam (1964–65) and was a special consultant to Pres. Lyndon B. Johnson (1965–69). He advocated the maintenance of conventional infantry as a prudent alternative to the use of nuclear weapons in war.