Images of war go on display

There were 135 news photographers killed while covering the war in Vietnam. Roger Mattingly wasn't one of them. "I was lucky," he said.

Mattingly, of Wheeling, spent most of 1970 traversing the country photographing and writing stories for the Stars and Stripes military newspaper and other publications. He'll be showing his images at Cook Memorial Library in Libertyville at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 6.

A native of St. Louis, he graduated from the University of Missouri with hopes of a having a career in photojournalism. He achieved his goal, but not in the way he expected.

The war in Vietnam was still raging in 1970 when Mattingly was drafted by the Army. He was 22 years old. "They sent the kids with college degrees right into the infantry," he said. "Just like cannon fodder."

He was sent to one of the largest U.S. bases in South Vietnam, about 30 miles north of Saigon. His first job was pushing paper as an Army clerk. But when an opening came for a photographer in the Public Information Office, Mattingly's career began.

Armed not with a rifle, but Nikons and Leicas, Mattingly set out to document both life and death in the war-torn country. "I saw more death and destruction than one needs to see," he said. "The only thing I shot, was film," he added.

The collection of more than 150 photos include scenes of everyday life among the peasant population along with images of dead and wounded soldiers. There's also a series of pictures focused on a day-in-the-life of an Army medic. Mattingly also took a portrait of renowned Life magazine combat photographer Larry Burrows when they coincidently crossed paths. Burrows died a week later after being shot down over Laos.

Mattingly came close to being injured during an incident of "friendly fire," but came through the war without an injury. But the memories will always stay with him. "You can't walk away without being hardened in some way," he said.