The Most Terrifying Man of the Vietnam War

Vietnam, late 1960s. Hostile North  Vietnamese troops pin down a Hatchet Force of elite American MACV-SOG operators.  They have the numbers and the high ground.

Nevertheless, the Americans and their  loyal indigenous Montagnards do not back down. Staff Sergeant Jerry M. Shriver, also  known as Mad Dog, dashes from cover to cover, pummeling the enemy with his unconventional  arsenal of several pistols, revolvers, and a lethal sawed-off shotgun.

Some men are wounded and are slowly hoisted up through the thick jungle  canopy to a chopper. The enemy presses on, but Mad Dog does not flinch. He retaliates  with all the ammunition at his disposal.

The friendlies are lifted one by one until Mad Dog  is left alone. He calls in for Close Air Support several times. The enemy fire intensified to  the point the radio offered Mad Dog Shriver assistance with a fresh unit of ground troops.

He rejects the offers and replies: [QUOTE] “No, no…I’ve got them right where I want  them: surrounded from the inside. ” Jerry M. Shriver was born on September 24, 1941,  in De Funiak Springs, Florida.

Little is known about this man’s life, except that he was destined  to be an American hero, a decorated war veteran, and the embodiment of the actual fighting  man: the soldier enamored with war and real brotherhood forged in the heat of battle. Shriver grew up with tales of veterans from World War 2, those from the thousands of young  men who enlisted to fight in the Pacific against the Empire of Japan and Europe, against  the might of the Third Reich’s Wehrmacht. Inspired by his country’s heroes’, Shriver joined  the United States military at a young age, joining the Army from California.

The young man proved his  worth as a soldier and attended Airborne school, becoming a paratrooper of the legendary  Screaming Eagles of the 101st Airborne Division. Shortly after, Shriver tested his  skills with the Army Special Forces, going through rigorous training to attain  the cherished Green Beret of a true commando. At the time of Shriver’s training, the  tensions of the Cold War between the West and the Soviet Union had led the United  States to support the government of South Vietnam after France’s defeat in 1954 at the  hands of the Communist Viet Minh guerilla.

The nation had embarked on a conflict unlike any  other it had fought. From the late 1950s until 1975, the Army would fight to the bitter  end against a relentless enemy committed to turning Vietnam into a Communist state. Despite the introduction of modern weaponry, such as jet aircraft, helicopters, heavily  armored tanks, surface-to-air missiles or SAMs, guided missiles, and others, the Army desperately  needed special operators trained to survive alone in the jungle and inflict heavy casualties  on the enemy through unconventional warfare.

Luckily for Staff Sergeant Jerry  M. Shriver, he was one of them, and he wanted in; the thrill of the hunt  had possessed him, and the territories of Communist-infested Vietnam were  about to become his hunting grounds. Staff Sergeant Jerry M.

Shriver of the US 5th  Special Forces arrived in Vietnam in 1966. The tall and thin operator with a narrow face  had the personality of a man born for action. Future Medal of Honor recipient Jim Fleming  would later describe Jerry Shriver as: [QUOTE] “The quintessential warrior-loner,  anti-social, possessed by what he was doing, the best teammate, always  training, constantly training.

” Shriver was not amicable to those outside his  unit. His cold eyes were always battle-ready. He was born for combat and spent his free  time training, inspecting his weapons, and learning about the terrain and enemy he  sought to destroy to free Vietnam from Communism.

The Staff Sergeant was strict with his men,  not to establish authority but to make them better soldiers, machines of war, survivors  in the jungle, and hunters of the night. Jim Fleming would also say that: [QUOTE] “Shriver  convinced me that for the rest of my life, I would not go into a bar and cross someone  I didn’t know. ” The Staff Sergeant was a lone wolf who often spent the nights at the  NCO’s club drinking a case of beer for himself, waiting for his next mission.

During his first deployment in 1966, Shriver joined the elite and highly secretive  MACV-SOG or Military Assistance Command, Vietnam Studies and Observation Group.  Only the best of the best joined the unit. Chosen men from the Army, Marines, Navy, Air  Force, and CIA were part of this task force created to tackle the most demanding missions.

From 1966 and for almost three and a half years, Shriver would keep extending his  deployments as part of the battle frenzy that consumed him. He would spend over  1,000 days in Vietnam, knowing its people, especially the allied Montagnard forces. Shriver’s exploits over the battlefield quickly earned him the nickname Mad  Dog, and he truly lived up to it.

The Mad Dog’s reputation grew after every  mission. Shriver became addicted to the adrenaline of combat. He was at home in the  jungles of Vietnam with the troops.

Instead of catching a break after operations, he  would sneak out and join other patrols that were bound to hunt down North Vietnamese  or Viet Cong strongholds deep in the jungle. It is said that Shriver once took leave  to get Rest and Recuperation or R&R, except he did not. Instead, the restless  American warrior traveled to the Plei Djerang Special Forces camp to join another special  operations team to fight alongside them.

Most missions that MACV-SOG carried out were  highly classified and remain so even now. But there is no doubt that Shriver saw  some things beyond the familiar grunt. As the elite, MACV operators employed a unique  tiger stripes camouflage uniform used by the South Vietnamese.

They also had access to special  equipment, such as Colt Commando carbines, state-of-the-art bows for stealth encounters,  and a never-ending supply of the latest armament. Like most the men from MACV, Shriver had a  unique way of dressing up. When off-duty, the legend often exchanged his combat fatigues  for a blue velvet smoking jacket and derby hat.

Nevertheless, Shriver was always armed to  the teeth. He knew there were Communist infiltrators everywhere and never left his  guard down, especially after gaining notoriety among the enemy due to his exploits. It was common for other operators to see Shriver armed with four to six pistols  or revolvers on his person.

All of different calibers. From the old-reliable and  powerful M1911 to the lethal Magnum. Shriver’s kit for combat operations was also  unconventional.

He, like others in MACV, would often employ enemy AK-47s, RPKs, and  other guns that were not standard-issue. Shriver carried a sawed-off shotgun, a  suppressed World War 2 era M3 grease gun, or a . 45-caliber M1A1 Thompson submachine gun.

There is a unique account of Shriver’s arsenal  during his second tour in Vietnam when he went to MACV-SOG's Command and Control North  for a debrief about a mission near the DMZ. Captain Jim Storter recalled: [QUOTE] "He  had pistols stuck everywhere on him; I mean, he had five or six . 38 caliber revolvers.

" The captain, bewildered about the sergeant’s equipment, asked him: [QUOTE] "Sergeant Shriver,  would you like a CAR-15 or M-16 or something? You know the DMZ is not a real mellow area. " The Mad Dog grinned and laconically replied: [QUOTE] "No, those long guns will get you in  trouble, and besides if I need more than these, I got troubles anyhow.

" As time went by, the staff sergeant turned more eccentric. In 1968, the Vietnam veteran was forced by command for a mandatory rest period to the  US. His teammate Larry White accompanied him to purchase a Marlin Lever action rifle  chambered in the powerful .

444 Marlin Cartridge. Shriver did not plan on using such a powerful  cartridge to hunt down Grizzly and Polar Bears. He was thinking of taking down another type  of prey.

Shriver eventually shipped the rifle to MACV-SOG headquarters and said he would  use it to bust bunkers and instill fear in the heart of the enemy with the massive exit  wounds caused by the . 444 Marlin Cartridge. As a member of MACV-SOG, Shriver was a platoon  sergeant of the secret Hatchet Force units.

These small units comprised two or three American  MACV-SOG members and 20 to 30 handpicked locals from the Montagnards or People from the  Mountain and members of the South Vietnamese Army who were trained to fight unconventional warfare. These native Vietnamese were highly loyal to their American leaders and followed them until the end. The Hatchet Forces were a part of MACV-SOG and were tasked with unconventional  warfare, reconnaissance, sabotage, and direct-action missions deep behind enemy lines.

These elite units gathered intelligence, disrupted enemy operations, and carried out special missions  in the challenging terrain of Southeast Asia. Their activities were highly classified and  often involved working with indigenous forces. Hatchet Forces’ name reflected their role as a  quick, precise, and lethal tool in unconventional warfare.

Shriver and his men excelled at that  to the point that Radio Hanoi, a Communist radio station, announced a $10,000 bounty for his head. During one of the many over-the-top engagements where the enemy outnumbered Mad Dog  Shriver and his men, he was establishing radio contact for air support when one of the  operators asked him if he required an exfil, to which Shriver replied: [QUOTE] “No, no…I’ve got them right where I want them: surrounded from the inside. ” Although Mad Dog Shriver was the loner, he was extremely fond of his trusty  Montagnards.

They were fiercely independent tribesmen who lived in the Vietnamese  highlands and despised the Communists. They were courageous in combat  and had a unique ability to track anything that moved in the jungle. His men loved Shriver, and they rewarded him with their loyalty.

In return, he spent most  of his money on his men and their families. Food, clothing, and other donations  were part of Shriver's constant flow of supplies to the mountain people. The Mad Dog spent most of his time with his Montagnards.

He lived, ate, and slept  inside their barracks. Besides his men, Shriver also had another friend: a large German  shepherd named Klaus, whom he adopted in Taiwan. Shriver loved Klaus so much that, upon learning  of a cruel prank some NCOs played on his dog, force-feeding him with beer, Shriver walked  into the NCO club with his .

38 revolver and threatened the men. Not a single man dared  to step forward and claim responsibility. Chapter 5 Last Fight After three years of continuous combat patrols, war began to take  a toll on Mad Dog Shriver.

He wanted to quit but did not wish to leave his men and their  families to their fate. Shriver felt danger was around the corner but kept going forward. During the morning of April 24, 1969, a MACV-SOG company prepared to raid the airfield at Quan  Loi, South Vietnam, some 20 miles away from the secret lair of the Central Office of South  Vietnam, the main HQ of the Communist forces.

B-52 bombers had heavily pummeled the site, and  it was now time for Mad Dog and his comrades to clean house. The operators were heavily armed and  ready to get rid of the North Vietnamese garrison. Due to the secretive nature of the  mission, Shriver and the rest of the MACV-SOG operators were on their own.

There  was no air support unless it was essential. Before boarding the chopper with his Montagnards,  Shriver turned to one of his friends and said: [QUOTE] “Take care of my boy. ” He felt it was the  last time he would see Klaus.

One of the Hueys failed and had to turn back, leaving Shriver’s 1st  and 2nd platoons without valuable ground support. As soon as the men landed, they were  immediately pinned down by several concealed machine gun nests. Mad Dog  estimated his platoon was surrounded by six enemy platoons hidden in the bunkers.

It was up to Mad Dog and his Montagnards to relieve the pinned-down men. He radioed  the team he would try to flank the MG positions and immediately got to work. The fearless warrior inspired his loyal mountain men and charged towards the  enemy emplacement.

They began dashing through a hail of enemy bullets and grenades. Armed with a Uzi SMG, Mad Dog opened fire against the enemy while on the move to protect his  troops. And they did the same for him.

Once they approached the treeline, Mad Dog gathered his  men, smiled at them, nodded, and they all threw grenades before venturing into hostile territory  to shoot down the machine gun emplacement. Mad Dog Shriver was never seen again… In the  following weeks, Hanoi repeated propaganda pieces narrating how they had finally captured and  terminated Shriver, but no proof was ever given. In the following weeks, the military sent a  cleanup team to recover the fallen soldiers, but there was no sign of Shriver. 

He was less than three weeks away from finishing his third tour of duty. Mad Dog was 27 years old when he was officially listed as Missing in Action. True to his spirit,  the legend left behind a couple of dollars, his brave shepherd, Klaus, and his smoking jacket.

Throughout his intense career, Shriver earned a Silver Star, a Soldier’s medal for Heroism, a  Bronze Star with two oak leaf clusters, a Bronze Star with 4 Valor devices, an Air Medal, a Purple  Heart, and several Army commendation medals. In 1974, the Secretary of the Army put Mad Dog’s  file to rest despite his body never being found. The Mad Dog was posthumously awarded a second  Silver Star and promoted to Master Sergeant.