Author says he was duped by source on Hiroshima book

The author of a bestselling new book about the use of the atomic bomb said Monday he was deceived by a Westbury man whose claims about escorting the device to Hiroshima have turned out to be false.

"I should have been more skeptical," said Charles R. Pellegrino, author of "The Last Train from Hiroshima," in an interview.

The book was hailed by critics after its release on Jan. 19 and climbed to No. 24 on The New York Times hardcover nonfiction bestseller list. Film director James Cameron - whom Pellegrino advised on "Avatar" and "Titanic" - has purchased the movie rights.

But Pellegrino's research was thrown into question when the claims of a key source, Joseph Fuoco, a Westbury man who died in 2008, began falling apart over the weekend. The New York Times first reported on the discrepancies on Sunday.

Pellegrino, who lives in New York City and Long Beach, said Fuoco was the main source for a key assertion - the Hiroshima bomb, dubbed Little Boy, experienced a radiation accident before its bombing run that killed an unnamed worker.

Pellegrino also wrote that Fuoco was a last-minute replacement for Sgt. James R. Corliss as flight engineer on the Necessary Evil, an escort plane for the Enola Gay on its mission to Hiroshima.

Pellegrino said a friend referred him to Fuoco, who showed him extensive documentation.

In a brief interview, Fuoco's widow, Claire, said she stood by her husband's story.

But Corliss' family in Florida say they have proof that Corliss was on the Necessary Evil, including a medal from President Harry S. Truman. And the 509th Composite Group - which included the crews that dropped both atomic bombs - released statements from two crew members who said they remember Corliss being there and never heard of Fuoco. "It was my husband on that plane," said Corliss' widow, Ethel, of Venice, Fla.

Pellegrino said he has reviewed the evidence and concluded Corliss was on the plane, not Fuoco. He said he will delete passages that use Fuoco as a source in all future editions, affecting about five pages out of 384.

"My job is to get Mr. Corliss in his rightful place in history," Pellegrino said.

In a statement, Stephen Rubin, president of Pellegrino's publisher, Henry Holt and Co., called its author "a highly respected science writer" and author of more than 12 books who was "deceived."

"e and we will do everything in our power to set the historical record straight as soon as possible," Rubin said.