This bibliography brings together the primary and secondary sources used to examine Audie Murphy’s wartime experiences and their portrayal in the 1955 film To Hell and Back. Primary sources include Murphy’s autobiography, military records, contemporary accounts, film publicity, and reviews, while secondary sources provide historical context and analysis of Murphy, his military service, and the film.
THE RECORD BEHIND THE FILM
Military records, contemporary accounts, and scholarship behind To Hell and Back
Image: Audie Murphy and his military decorations. Medal display photograph by Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0. War History Online, 2016.
Primary Sources
Film and Memoir
Hibbs, Jesse, dir. To Hell and Back. Universal-International, 1955. Film.
Murphy, Audie. To Hell and Back. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1949.
Military and Wartime Sources
Taggart, Donald G., ed. History of the Third Infantry Division in World War II. Washington, DC: Infantry Journal Press, 1947. Internet Archive.
Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of American History. “Audie L. Murphy Medal of Honor Citation.” 1945.
Film Production and Publicity
Universal-International. To Hell and Back. Pressbook. 1955. Heritage Auctions.
Universal-International. To Hell and Back. Theatrical insert, 14 × 36 in. 1955. Heritage Auctions.
Contemporary Film Reception
Weiler, A. H. “To Hell and Back.” New York Times, September 23, 1955.
“To Hell and Back.” Variety, 1955.
Secondary Sources
Books and Scholarly Work
Smith, David A. The Price of Valor: The Life of Audie Murphy, America’s Most Decorated Hero of World War II. Washington, DC: Regnery History, 2015.
Hourly History. Audie Murphy: A Life from Beginning to End. Hourly History, 2021.
Articles and Film Analysis
Sweet, Matthew. “To Hell and Back: Real Life to Reel Life.” The Guardian, December 3, 2009.
HistoryNet. “Audie Murphy: One-Man Stand at Holtzwihr.”
Battle of the Bulge Association. “The Battle of the Colmar Pocket.” June 13, 2017.
Warfare History Network. “Saving Operation Grandslam.”
Government and Institutional Sources
Congressional Medal of Honor Society. “Audie L. Murphy.”
U.S. Department of War. “Medal of Honor Monday: Army Maj. Audie Murphy.”