The Ongoing Story of USS Pueblo, with Executive Officer Edward R. Murphy, Jr.

Author and former Navy Leiutenant Edward R. Murphy Jr. shares his experiences as XO aboard USS Pueblo, the American spy ship famously captured and held by North Korea since 1968. Sponsored by Colonel (IL) J.N. Pritzker, IL ARNG (Ret.) and Act One Mayne Stage. 

In January, 1968, the lightly-armed and state of the art spy ship Pueblo was on its first mission to conduct surveillance on the Russians and North Koreans off the coast of East Asia.  While in international waters, Pueblo's mission was compromised when it encountered North Korean fishing vessels. It was later captured by faster and more heavily armed North Korean warships after they opened fire, wounding several of the crew—one of them mortally.  

Pueblo's 83 surviving crew members were held prisoner for 11 long months, during which time they were subjected to brutal conditions and relentless torture as they were interrogated by their captors and frequently punished for acts of defiance, some of which were shared by the media.

Believed by the North Koreans to be the ship’s political leader, Executive Officer Edward R. Murphy, Jr. was singled out for special attention, was forced to make false statements, and was held in a cell next to the interrogation room where he could hear every brutalization of his shipmates. When the time finally came for the crew to be released, the North Koreans told Lieutenant Murphy that if anything went wrong, he would never go home. Thus, Lieutenant Murphy was the last to walk across the bridge into South Korea, carrying with him a great burden. 

Among the most significant compromises in the history of American military intelligence, the capture of the technically-advanced spy ship was the subject of an official inquiry and a source of embarrassment for all those involved. The details of the Pueblo Incident remain the subject of controversy and speculation even now—fueled in part by the vastly different perspectives of Pueblo’s Commander Captain Lloyd M. Bucher, who died in 2004, and his second in command, Executive Officer, Lieutenant Murphy, both of whom published lengthy books about their experiences.  

And today, the Pueblo Incident reminds us no matter how technologically advanced our intelligence capabilities are, we are vulnerable if we are not vigilant. 

EDWARD R. MURPHY, JR. is a former lieutenant in the U.S. Navy and author of Second in Command: The Uncensored Account of the Capture of the Spy Ship Pueblo. A third generation Northern Californian, Murphy left to finish high school in St. Louis and later attended Principia College in Elsah, Illinois. Upon graduating in 1960, he accepted a commission in the U.S. Navy—ultimately serving nine years at various posts, including as the executive officer of USS Pueblo (AGER-2). He and his wife, Carol, live in San Diego, CA, where he remains actively involved in the veteran and nonprofit communities. Learn more by visiting his official website. 

DR. JOHN ALLEN WILLIAMS, moderator, is a professor of Political Science at Loyola University Chicago, with degrees from Grinnell University (B.A.) and the University of Pennsylvania (M.A. and Ph.D.). He is a retired Captain in the U.S. Navy Reserves with a subspecialty in strategic planning, and a member of the Pritzker Military Museum & Library's Board of Directors.