He was a tough, determined kid from North Charleston, from a poor family on the wrong side of the tracks. She was a shy debutante from a fine old Charleston family. He was a hard-nosed, born leader; she a dreamer and sometime skeptic. From those disparate backgrounds, Mendel and Marwee Rivers built a life together that spanned forty years, from the Great Depression to the Vietnam War. Mendel Rivers rose to rescue South Carolina from its post-World War II recession and later became chairman of the House Armed Services Committee. Known as the Serviceman’s Best Friend during the troubled years of Vietnam, L. Mendel Rivers was one of the most charismatic and influential politicians of his day. These memoirs of Marwee Rivers chronicle Mendel’s rise to power, providing an authentic and charming glimpse into the quirky cultures of both old Charleston and the global arena of