Thomas William Kelly (16 November 1932 – 6 June 2000) was a lieutenant general in the United States Army who served as Director for Operations (J3) on the Joint Staff from 1988 to 1991. Responsible for helping to plan the United States invasion of Panama in 1989 and Operation Desert Storm in 1991, he personally conducted the daily Pentagon press briefings at 15:00 U.S. Eastern Time during the Gulf War.

Early life and education

Born in Philadelphia, Kelly attended Temple University and earned a B.S. degree in journalism in 1956. He was commissioned a second lieutenant of armor through the Army ROTC program. Kelly later studied at the Army Command and General Staff College and the Army War College.

Military career

During the Vietnam War, Kelly served in Vietnam in 1967 and 1968 with the

1st Infantry Division 1st Division may refer to: Military Airborne divisions *1st Parachute Division (Germany) *1st Airborne Division (United Kingdom) *1st Airmobile Division (Ukraine) *1st Guards Airborne Division Armoured divisions *1st Armoured Division (Australi ...

. While being transported by helicopter, he was shot down four times and crashed six times. As a

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

, Kelly served as commanding officer of the 1st Battalion, 63rd Armor, 1st Infantry Division (Mechanized) at Fort Riley, Kansas. As a colonel, he was given command of the

194th Armored Brigade The 194th Armored Brigade is a separate brigade of the US Army. All armor, cavalry, and armor and cavalry mechanic soldiers, and Marines in equivalent specialties, are trained by the 194th under the armor component of the Maneuver Center of Excell ...

Fort Knox Fort Knox is a United States Army installation in Kentucky, south of Louisville and north of Elizabethtown. It is adjacent to the United States Bullion Depository, which is used to house a large portion of the United States' official gold res ...

, Kentucky. As a major general, Kelly served as commanding officer of the U.S. Army Training Center and

Fort Dix Fort Dix, the common name for the Army Support Activity (ASA) located at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, is a United States Army post. It is located south-southeast of Trenton, New Jersey. Fort Dix is under the jurisdiction of the Air Force A ...

, New Jersey. After that, he was placed in charge of the U.S. Army Security Assistance Command from August 1987 to January 1988. His promotion to lieutenant general was approved in March 1988. During the 1989 Panama invasion and the 1991 Gulf War, Kelly was in charge of the

National Military Command Center The National Military Command Center (NMCC) is a Pentagon command and communications center for the National Command Authority (i.e., the President of the United States and the United States Secretary of Defense). Maintained by the Department o ...

at the Pentagon. His first experience conducting large press briefings was in 1989. CNN correspondent Wolf Blitzer recalled that "he came across as someone credible and honest." After the Gulf War, Kelly retired from active duty at the beginning of April 1991.

Later career

After retirement, Kelly embarked on a round of public speaking engagements. His first time flying First Class was to appear on '' The Tonight Show'' with

Johnny Carson John William Carson (October 23, 1925 – January 23, 2005) was an American television host, comedian, writer and producer. He is best known as the host of ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' (1962–1992). Carson received six Pr ...

. In 1995, the

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militi ...

presented him with their Distinguished Service Medal.

Personal

Kelly was the son of Vincent De Paul Kelly (13 March 1901 – 12 May 1942) and Mary Gertrude (Kirrane) Kelly (17 May 1901 – 11 March 1984). He had four sisters. Kelly married Dorothy Mary Bursak in 1957. They had two sons, a daughter and four grandchildren. After his death in Clifton, Virginia from liver cancer, Kelly was interred at Arlington National Cemetery on 14 June 2000.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kelly, Thomas William 1932 births 2000 deaths Military personnel from Philadelphia Temple University alumni United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War Recipients of the Air Medal Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Meritorious Service Medal (United States) Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Army generals Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal Deaths from liver cancer in the United States Burials at Arlington National Cemetery