and a paratrooper in the Korean War.

From Wikipedia:

On April 25, 1944, Serling received his orders and saw that he was being sent west to California. He knew that he would be fighting against the Empire of Japan rather than Nazi Germany. This disappointed him because he had hoped to help fight against Adolf Hitler.[2]: 40–41  In May, he was assigned to the Pacific Theater in New Guinea and the Philippine islands.[9] In November 1944, his division first saw combat, landing in the Philippines. The 11th Airborne was not initially used as paratroopers, however, but as light infantry during the Battle of Leyte. The division helped secure the area after the five divisions that had gone ashore earlier.[2]: 43 


Soldiers of the 511th Parachute Infantry Regiment evacuating a wounded soldier to an aid station at Manarawat, Leyte, December 1944
For a variety of reasons, Serling was transferred to the 511th's demolition platoon, nicknamed "The Death Squad" for its high casualty rate. According to Sergeant Frank Lewis, leader of the demolitions squad, "He screwed up somewhere along the line. Apparently he got on someone's nerves."[2]: 45  Lewis also judged that Serling was not suited to be a field soldier: "he didn't have the wits or aggressiveness required for combat."[2]: 45 

At one point, Lewis, Serling, and others were in a firefight, trapped in a foxhole. As they waited for darkness, Lewis noticed that Serling had not reloaded any of his extra magazines. Serling sometimes went exploring on his own, against orders, and got lost.[2]: 45 

Serling's time in Leyte shaped his writing and political views for the rest of his life. He saw death every day while in the Philippines, at the hands of his enemies and his allies, and through freak accidents such as that which killed another Jewish private, Melvin Levy. Levy was delivering a comic monologue for the platoon as they rested under a palm tree when a food crate was dropped from a plane above, decapitating him. Serling led the funeral services for Levy and placed a Star of David over his grave.[2]: 45 

A great man, indeed.

and gone too soon.

Send the lot of them to the cornfield.

demon Trump, and nobody believes us.