He had a law degree, and had worked as a pro football player. Damon Runyon gave him his first sports writing job.
Ambulance driver Robert Montgomery gave him a ride during the Fall of France in 1940.
He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Radio at 6225 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California.
He won a libel judgment against Hearst newspaper columnist Westbrook Pegler, who had called him a Communist. The civil trial inspired the play, "A Case of Libel.".
He spoke German fluently. He said that Nazi propaganda minister Josef Goebbels was the most powerful evil speaker he ever watched in person.
He introduced John Steinbeck to Ernie Pyle in Algiers, calling their new friendship a "mutual admiration society.".
He was very nice and he wrote the book "A secret for Two".