AP’s George Esper passes

George Esper

George Esper, the tenacious Associated Press correspondent who refused to leave his post in the last days of the Vietnam War, remaining behind to cover the fall of Saigon, has died. He was 79.
Esper died in his sleep on Thursday night, his son, Thomas, told the AP on Friday. Esper suffered from a number of ailments, especially serious heart issues, and less than two weeks ago was released from a rehab center in Braintree, where he had been sent after his latest treatment at Massachusetts General Hospital.


“George was most famous for his journalistic chops, his courage and tenacity, particularly in Vietnam. But those lucky enough to know him will celebrate his enormous generosity and boundless good cheer,” said Kathleen Carroll, AP’s executive editor and senior vice president.
Besides covering stories, Esper mentored young reporters in the AP and aspiring journalists he taught as a college professor.


“Hundreds of journalists learned from him in the field or in the classroom at West Virginia University and his words and his spirit inspire them every day,” Carroll said. “He was a gentleman journalist and we will miss him sorely.”

Esper earned accolades for breaking important stories and logged 10 years in Vietnam, the last two as AP’s bureau chief. He regularly wrote AP’s daily war roundup, a comprehensive story that was a fixture in many American and foreign newspapers.

In 1965, as the U.S. military in Vietnam shifted from an advisory role to deploying full combat divisions, Esper joined AP’s growing Saigon staff. Other than a return to New York for several months in 1966, he stayed to the end. (Edited from AP Sources).