Frank C. Langdon was a lieutenant commander in the United States Navy during the Second World War. He served as a communications officer in the Pacific area and in 1946 and 1947 remained in Japan as an economic advisor on the staff of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Forces in Tokyo. In the course of researching this book he returned three times to Japan to interview statesmen, politicians, scholars and businessmen. Dr. Langdon is fluent in Japanese. A native of Illinois, Dr. Langdon is professor of political science at the University of British Columbia. He holds a BA in economics, an MA in Asian studies (both from Harvard) and his PhD is from the University of California (Berkeley).