John Bagwell During the Vietnam War
In 1966, I joined the U.S. Army and had the unique opportunity to serve as a disc jockey for American Forces Radio in Vietnam and Italy.
When people learn I was a disc jockey in Vietnam, they often ask if I was part of Good Morning Vietnam, the film featuring Robin Williams as DJ Adrian Cronauer. The answer is no— I arrived in Vietnam after Cronauer had already returned to the United States.
I hosted the afternoon shift and quickly developed a memorable on-air persona. Arriving in Vietnam weighing just 108 pounds, I earned the nickname “The Scrawny Thing” from a fellow disc jockey. The name stuck, shaping my radio presence, which was filled with humor and lively entertainment for troops in the field.
A recording of one of the radio shows is below.
I served with the 15th Admin Public Information Office during his time in Vietnam. My experiences were documented by journalist and friend Mike Larson in Heroes: A Year in the Life of the First Air Cavalry Division, which includes a chapter about his life as a disc jockey and another about the American Forces Television attack.
Numerous books and articles have featured my career in Vietnam. Authors Marc Phillip Yablonka and Rick Fredericksen included them in Hot Mics and TV Lights, a book about AFVN Radio and Television.
Click below to hear an actual recording from one of my radio shows in Vietnam
On January 29, 1968, I left the safety of the First Air Cavalry Division in An Khe to travel to Hue, South Vietnam. My friend Steve Stoube from AFVN had moved there a week earlier, and I was set to join him at the radio station in Hue. However, the North Vietnamese launched an attack on the station. Of the nine people present, five were taken prisoner, three—including Stoube—were killed, and I managed to escape. I survived behind enemy lines for two days before being rescued.
For my service in Vietnam, I was awarded the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star with a “V” device. The Radio and Television station was the only American Forces Radio or Television outpost captured by enemy forces in any war.
My story has been widely documented. Journalist Rick Fredericksen wrote an article in Vietnam Magazine titled “The Last Stand of Detachment 5,” which is available online.
My experiences are also featured in the Apple TV documentary Vietnam: The War That Changed America. Episode two chronicles my story.
This is the house where the nine members of Detachment 5 lived in Hue, South Vietnam. All of the damage was done on February 5, 1968, when they were attacked.