Philip Joseph Caputo[1] (June 10, 1941 – May 7, 2026) was an American author and journalist.[2] He was best known for A Rumor of War (1977), a best-selling memoir of his experiences during the Vietnam War. Caputo wrote 19 books, including three memoirs, five books of general nonfiction, nine novels, and two books of short stories. His latest was a collection of short stories Wandering Souls: And Other Stories which was published in 2025 by Arcade Publishing.
Early life and career
Philip Caputo was born in Chicago and raised in suburban Berwyn and Westchester.[1] He attended Fenwick High School and Loyola University Chicago, graduating with a B.A. in English in 1964. From 1965 to 1966 Caputo served in the Republic of Vietnam (RVN) as an infantry lieutenant (platoon commander) in the United States Marine Corps. Caputo served in combat and earned several medals and awards upon completion of his tour of duty.[3]
After serving three years in the Corps, Caputo began a career in journalism, joining the staff of the Chicago Tribune in 1968. In 1973, Caputo was part of a writing team that won the Pulitzer Prize for reporting on election fraud in Chicago. For the next five years, he was a foreign correspondent for the Tribune. He covered the fall of Saigon in 1975, and he worked in Italy, the Soviet Union and the Middle East.[4] In 1975, he was shot and wounded in the ankle by a militiaman with an AK-47 during the Battle of the Hotels in Lebanon.[5][6]
Personal life and death
Caputo's first two marriages, to Jill Ongemach and Marcelle Basse, ended in divorce.[1] He had two sons from his first marriage.[1] In 1988, he married Consumer Reports editor Leslie Ware. Caputo died from cancer at his home in Norwalk, Connecticut, on May 7, 2026, at the age of 84.[1]
Books and articles
Caputo's memoir of Vietnam, A Rumor of War (1977), has been published in 15 languages, and has sold two million copies since its first publication. It is widely regarded as a classic in the literature of war. The book was adapted as a 1980 two-part TV movie of the same name, starring Brad Davis, Keith Carradine, Brian Dennehy, and Michael O'Keefe. A Fortieth Anniversary Edition of A Rumor of War was published in summer 2017.[7]
Memory and Desire (2023), Caputo's 18th book, is a novel set in south Florida about love and the persistence of love, about desire and desire remembered, and the reunion of a fifty-year-old man with a son he fathered out of wedlock in his youth.[8]
Wandering Souls: And Other Stories (2025), Caputo's final book, is a collection of short stories that explore war, love, nature, life, and death.[9]
He also worked as a screenwriter for Paramount Pictures and Michael Douglas Productions. Caputo was a guest on the Charlie Rose Show and the Today Show. He narrated or appeared in several TV documentaries on the Vietnam War, the Cold War, and other subjects.[4]
