Joseph Stilwell Joseph Stilwell Joseph Warren Stilwell (March 19, 1883 – October 12, 1946) was a United States Army general who served in the China Burma India Theater during World War II. His caustic personality was reflected in the nickname "Vinegar Joe". Distrust of his Allies and a lack of resources meant Stilwell was continually forced to improvise. He famously differed as to strategy, ground troops versus air power, with his subordinate, Claire Chennault, who had the ear of Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek. General George Marshall, the Army Chief of Staff, acknowledged he had given Stilwell "one of the most difficult" assignments of
Joseph Stilwell for the China command; Mitter projects that his talents could have been far better employed in North Africa, as Marshall had originally planned. Stilwell is portrayed on film by Erville Alderson in "Objective, Burma!" (1945), by John Hoyt in Samuel Fuller's "Merrill's Marauders" (1962), by Robert Stack in Steven Spielberg's "1941" (1979), and by Yachun Dong in "Chinese Expeditionary Force (TV series)" (2011). On August 24, 2000, the United States Postal Service issued the first 10¢ Distinguished Americans series postage stamp honoring Stilwell. The award for the Outstanding Overall Cadet, Senior Division, in the California Cadet Corps is named the