Brig. Gen. Edwin Howard Simmons, USMC (Ret.), served in the Marine Corps for thirty-six years, from 1942 to 1978, and is a decorated veteran of World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. He also served the Corps for seventeen years as a civilian, including many years as Director of Marine Corps History and Museums. Brigadier General Simmons passed away in May 2007.

Lt. Col. Charles P. Neimeyer, USMC (Ret.), began his twenty-year active-duty service as a Marine Corps officer, having held roles in all three Marine Corps divisions. He served as a strategic plans officer at Headquarters Marine Corps and was part of the White House staff for Presidents George H. W. Bush and William J. Clinton. After retiring in 1996, he became a professor at the Naval War College and later served as Director of Marine Corps History from 2006 to 2018. Upon completion of federal service, he received the Department of the Navy's Distinguished Civilian Service Award and the Marine Corps University Foundation Chapman Medallion. He is the author of War in the Chesapeake and editor of On the Corps. He lives in Stafford, Virginia.