Phillips was born in Mobile, Alabama, the second child after his sister Katharine. A younger brother, John, followed. Their father, Sidney, was a US Army veteran of the Battle of Argonne Forest who became a teacher, then the principal of Murphy High School, where Phillips graduated in 1941.
Career and higher education
After graduating from high school, Phillips enlisted in the US Marine Corps at age 17, on December 8, 1941. He was inducted later that month after obtaining parental permission. He served with How Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division and saw combat as an 81mm mortarman in a number of battles including the Battle of the Tenaru during the Guadalcanal Campaign and the Battle of Cape Gloucester. He reported that his mortar crew observed effective fire control discipline; one example was a firefight on Cape Gloucester where they were able to provide light high explosive rounds through the jungle canopy only 15 yards in front of their own lines. Phillips reported that after his overseas duty he enrolled in V12, a program designed to educate young men so they could become US Navy officers. However, his four-year US Marine Corps enlistment expired on December 31, 1945, freeing him to return to Mobile. He had decided while at Cape Gloucester to become a physician, so he enrolled in Spring Hill College, then went to medical school to become a family physician. He enlisted in the USMC Reserves while at Spring Hill, then was finally discharged in April 1948. Phillips reported that Eugene Sledge's widow and sons introduced him to Ken Burns' writing team, then later the HBO writers, so that he was able to provide needed information about the lives of Marines in combat for the making of The Pacific.
Phillips died in Alabama, after completing a long career and finally retiring. He died on September 26, 2015.
In media
Phillips wrote the memoir You'll be Sor-ree, an accounting of his experiences in the US Marines. As a surviving veteran of World War II battles including the Guadalcanal Campaign and the Battle of Cape Gloucester, he has provided valuable documentary interviews describing his recollections of the Pacific Theater of Operations. His character was played by actor Ashton Holmes in the HBO miniseries The Pacific.
