Burgett was born in Detroit, Michigan, and grew up on the city's west side. In the opening paragraph of his memoir Currahee!, he wrote that he was determined to follow his older brother Elmer, who had joined the Paratroops in 1942.
Burgett was born in Detroit, Michigan, and grew up on the city's west side. In the opening paragraph of his memoir Currahee!, he wrote that he was determined to follow his older brother Elmer, who had joined the Paratroops in 1942.