Crusade in Europe is a personal account by one of the senior military figures of World War II. It recounts his appointment by General George Marshall to plan the defense of the Philippines and continues to describe his appointment to, and execution of, the role of Supreme Allied Commander in Northern Europe.
The book was dictated by Eisenhower to Kenneth McCormick of Doubleday and Joseph Fels Barnes, former foreign editor of the New York Herald Tribune. It was revised by Eisenhower's aide Kevin McCann.[1][2]
Eisenhower's profit on the book was substantially aided by an unprecedented ruling by the Treasury Department that Eisenhower was not a professional writer, but rather, was marketing the lifetime asset of his experiences, and thus only had to pay capital gains tax on his $635,000 advance rather than the much higher personal income tax rate. The ruling saved Eisenhower approximately $400,000.[3]
TV series
In 1948, Twentieth Century Fox obtained the exclusive rights to create a television series called Crusade in Europe, based on the newly published book. Produced as part of The March of Time, the 26-episode TV series showed World War II film footage from the US military and other sources, with a voice soundtrack based on a narration of the book. It aired from May 5 to October 27, 1949.
Crusade in Europe was the first extensive documentary series for television. Aired on ABC, the series received a Peabody Award and one of the first Emmy Awards (Best Public Service, Cultural or Educational Program).[4]
