Shadow Divers (44 page)

I was able to accurately envision the crew of
U-869,
as well as the submarine itself, thanks to dozens of photographs of the men and their boat, some of which were taken by the Kriegsmarine, others of which were given to Chatterton and Kohler by family members of the crewmen and by Mr. Guschewski.

I was able to reconstruct
U-869
’s doomed patrol thanks in part to Niestlé’s 1994 breakthrough monograph,
The Loss of U-869.
It was this written report that changed the thinking about the fate of
U-869
and (indirectly) advanced the divers’ efforts to identify the mystery wreck. Also invaluable was Blair’s summary of the patrol in volume 2 of
Hitler’s U-boat War.
Text from Allied intelligence analysis of radio intercepts between
U-869
and U-boat Control were taken from copies of those analyses. Over the course of a lengthy in-person interview in Germany, Niestlé helped me to envision the most likely scenario to explain and describe
U-869
’s final moments.

Finally, I accompanied Kohler to Germany in 2002; my account of his trip is taken from my own experience.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The author is grateful for the kind help and support of the following people:

Heather Schroder at International Creative Management. A writer dreams of finding an agent like Heather. She is at once a fierce and tireless advocate, a lover of great story, an exceptional and eager reader, and a lovely person. I cannot imagine a journey without her. Thanks also to Heather’s assistant, Chrissy Rikkers, for reading my work and for her cheerful patience.

Jonathan Karp, my editor at Random House. In ways, Jon understood this book before I did. He distilled the essence of this story, and urged me to bet on it, and for that I will be forever grateful. To this day, I remain the lucky beneficiary of his storytelling instincts, and continue to admire his gracious and unhurried way and gentlemanly demeanor. While researching this book in Toronto, I had a short telephone conversation with Jon in which he outlined his conception of great narrative nonfiction. I have thought differently about writing ever since. Thanks also at Random House to: Jonathan Jao, assistant to Jonathan Karp, for reading and commenting on my work; Dennis Ambrose, my thoughtful production editor (and a scuba diver to boot); Bonnie Thompson, an extraordinary copyeditor and a true artist at her craft; Amelia Zalcman, for her fine review of my manuscript; and also to Gina Centrello, Elizabeth McGuire, Anthony Ziccardi, Carol Schneider, Thomas Perry, Sally Marvin, Ivan Held, Ann Godoff, Gene Mydlowski, Kate Kim-Centra, Claire Tisne, Nicole Bond, Rachel Bernstein, Susanne Gutermuth, Erich Schoeneweiss, Stacey Ornstein, Bridget Piekarz, Tom Nevins, Jaci Updike, Don Weisburg, Martin McGrath, Allyson Pearl, Sandy Pollack, Liz Willner, David Thompson, John Groton, Andrew Weber, David Underwood, Janet Cooke, Peter Olson, and Kelle Ruden.

John Chatterton and Richie Kohler. Once in his life, if he’s lucky, a writer has the chance to work with a true pioneer. In Chatterton and Kohler, I got to work with two. Each is exceptionally bright, self-critical, and descriptive, a gift from the heavens for an author. And each was endlessly generous with his time, granting me hundreds of hours of interviews in person, over the phone, aboard the dive boat
Seeker,
on the autobahn in Germany, and even while crouching between compartments inside
U-505,
the captured German submarine on display in Chicago. I could phone either of them at midnight and each understood instinctively why I had to know right away rather than the following morning. In knowing these men, I feel closer to understanding what it means to be a seeker. Thanks also to Chatterton’s wife, Carla Madrigal, and Kohler’s wife, Carrie Bassetti, two wonderful people who indulged my demands on their husbands’ time with kindness and hospitality.

Annette Kurson, among the finest writers I know, who tirelessly read and edited my manuscript, and who taught me years ago that good writing derives from good thinking.

Axel Niestlé, an original scholar and thinker, and a true gentleman. Dr. Niestlé always was gracious and precise when I called upon his U-boat expertise. It is an honor to know such a person.

John Yurga, an extraordinary deep-wreck diver who was invaluable in the effort to discover the identity of the mystery U-boat. His insight, command of detail, dedication, and intellect—all in a soft-spoken and humble package—were inspiring.

Werner Hirschmann, chief engineer of
U-190.
No one speaks more insightfully and poetically about life aboard a U-boat than does Hirschmann. He received me at his home in Toronto, drove me in his vintage orange Karmann Ghia, and told beautiful and poignant stories about life as a U-boat officer. His account of the homesick crewmen adopting a fly aboard his submarine—and then nurturing and loving that fly—continues to linger with me.

In the United States, Captain Dan Crowell, Barbara Bowling, and Tim Requarth were exceedingly generous in lending their time, expertise, and reflection.

In Germany, these people opened their homes and memories to me: Hans-Georg Brandt and the Brandt family; Gisela Engelmann; Michael Foedrowitz; Friedhelm Neuerburg; and Jürgen Neuerburg. And special thanks to Herbert Guschewski, who devoted long days to recounting memories that have, for decades, been both painful and sacred.

The following people kindly granted me interviews, all of which made this book better and more complete:

Dean Allard, Bernard Cavalcante, William Dudley, R. W. Bill Hamilton, Hank Keatts, Kathleen Lloyd, Timothy Mulligan, Gordon Vaeth, and Lt. Col. Gregory Weidenfeld.

Captain Sal Arena, Steve Bielenda, Dr. Fred Bove, Kevin Brennan, Kip Cochran, Harry Cooper, Captain Skeets Frink, Lloyd Garrick, Steve Gatto, Pete Guglieri, John Hildemann, Jon Hulburt, Captain Howard Klein, Dr. Lewis Kohl, John Lachenmeyer, Mark McMahon, John Moyer, Ed Murphy, Andrew Nagle, Tom Packer, Captain Billy Palmer, George Place, Captain Paul Regula, Doug Roberts, Pat Rooney, Susan Rouse, Dick Shoe, Brian Skerry, and Paul Skibinski.

Patricia Arison, Felicia Becker, Lisa Biggins, Clemens Borkert, Kathy Chatterton, Bernie Chowdhury, Tommy Cross, Don Davidson, Bill Delmonico, Marty Dick, Captain Paul Hepler, Hank Hoke, John Hopkins, Charles Kinney, Fran Kohler, Frank Kohler, Frankie Kohler, John Kohler, Richard Kohler Sr., John Lacko, Ruby Miller, Paul Murphy, Inge Oberschelp, Andrew Ross, Dr. Norman Sakai, Heinz Schley, and the excellent filmmakers Rush DeNooyer and Kirk Wolfinger of Lone Wolf Pictures.

These men have believed in me and made me a better writer: David Granger, Peter Griffin, and Mark Warren of
Esquire;
Joseph Epstein of Northwestern University; and Richard Babcock of
Chicago
magazine. Without Babcock’s generosity and patience, I could not have written this book.

I cannot adequately thank the Wisniewski family—Kazimiera, Eugeniusz, and Paula—for providing our family the love and care that allowed me the time and peace of mind to complete this work.

And, finally, thanks to my son, Nate, whose natural joy and sweetness inspires me every day, and to my wife, Amy Kurson, the smartest and kindest person I know. In the midst of raising a new baby and conducting her own demanding career, Amy talked for hours with me about the story and gave me endless space and support, always with a smile. It is through her that I see good in the world I do not otherwise see.

A
BOUT THE
A
UTHOR

R
OBERT
K
URSON
grew up in the Chicago suburbs. He earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from the University of Wisconsin, then a law degree from Harvard Law School. He practiced real estate law, but quit to pursue a writing career. To make ends meet, he worked full-time as a drapery and window-blinds installer, then as a Wal-Mart options trader at the Chicago Board Options Exchange. He was hired by the
Chicago
Sun-Times
as a data-entry clerk, a position that led to a full-time features writing job. In 2000,
Esquire
published “My Favorite Teacher,” his first magazine story, which became a finalist for a National Magazine Award. He moved from the
Sun-Times
to
Chicago
magazine, then to
Esquire,
where he is a contributing editor. His stories have appeared in
Rolling
Stone,
The
New
York
Times
Magazine,
and other publications. He lives in the Chicago suburbs and can be reached via the Internet at
www.robertkurson.com
.

Copyright © 2004 by Robert Kurson and U-869 Partnership

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. Published in the United States by Random House, an imprint of The Random House Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.

R
ANDOM
H
OUSE
and colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.

Title-page art: Dan Crowell

Illustration on page xii copyright © David Lindroth, Inc.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Kurson, Robert.
Shadow divers: the true adventure of two Americans who risked everything to solve one of the last mysteries of World War II / by Robert Kurson

p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
1. U-869 (Submarine).  2. Excavations (Archaeology)—New Jersey.  3. Nagle, Bill, 1952–1993.  4. Chatterton, John.  5. World War, 1939–1945—Naval operations—Submarine.  6. World War, 1939–1945—Naval operations, German.  7. Shipwrecks—New Jersey.  8. Underwater archaeology—New Jersey.  9. Deep diving—New Jersey.  I. Title.

VA515.U158K87 2004      940.54'51—dc22      2003060362

Random House website address:
www.atrandom.com

eISBN: 978-1-58836-249-0

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