Lawrence Kermit White

Colonel Lawrence Kermit "Red" White (June 10, 1912 – April 5, 2006)[1] was an American army officer during World War II and later Director of the Foreign Broadcast Information Service, Deputy Director for Administration and Executive Director for the Central Intelligence Agency.

Lawrence Kermit White
Lawrence "Red" White
Nickname(s)"Red"
Born(1912-06-10)June 10, 1912
Tennessee
DiedApril 5, 2006(2006-04-05) (aged 93)
AllegianceUnited States of America
Service/branchUnited States Army
Years of service1929 - 1947
RankColonel
Battles/warsWorld War II
AwardsDistinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, Legions of Merit (2), Bronze Star (3)
Other workDeputy Director, Central Intelligence Agency. Codename "Blue"

Biography

White was the son of a Presbyterian minister in Tennessee, he earned money digging ditches at aged 16, before graduating from Troy High School in 1929 and was accepted at the United States Military Academy at West Point on 1 July 1929 with help from congressman Jerry Cooper.[2] In September 1942 White was sent to serve in the Pacific theater of the Second World War, seeing combat in New Georgia, Bougainville and the Philippines. White earned a Distinguished Service Cross, a Silver Star, two Legions of Merit, and three Bronze Stars. Reaching the rank of colonel in the Philippines in 1945,[3] he was severely wounded and had to be dragged to safety while under fire by US Army Chaplain Elmer Heindl. From 1945 until 1947 White recuperated in a number of US veterans hospitals.

After release, White joined the CIA in the Office of Operations, becoming head of the Foreign Broadcast Information Branch and by December 1950 Deputy Assistant Director of the Office of Operations. He was promoted again to Assistant to the Deputy Director for Administration in 1952 and to Deputy Director for Administration in 1954 by DCI Allen Dulles. In 1964, DCI William Raborn made White Executive Director-Comptroller until his retirement in 1972.[2]

References
  1. "NNDB profile".CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  2. "An Interview With Former CIA Executive Director Lawrence K. "Red" White". CIA. Retrieved June 22, 2007.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  3. "Burning City". TIME Magazine. February 19, 1945. Retrieved June 22, 2007.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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