Posted on 09/24/2015 5:31:44 PM PDT by West Texas Chuck
He had a list of people I remembered. I had no idea about some of them, a lot oh yeah, I mean I know about Audie Murphy, but some of those were quite unexpected. I actually teared up a couple of times from old memories not seen since at least the early 70s.
I need a link people.
And I had no idea Lee Marvin was in Arlington, She Who Must Be Obeyed and I would have paid him some respect the way we did that Texas boy, when we were up yonder.
Yes, I know this cat. He and his father died in a car crash a decade or so ago.
“A Christmas Story.” When they write the story of my life, that film will be referenced in several places.
As a vet and an American, I appreciate this post so very much. Bravo Zulu!
At first I thought that was Lou Diamond Phillips.
Named himself after a legendary Marine.
Thanks so much for the post. Bookmarked.
Don Rickles, Robert Mitchum and Jonathon Winters. Three of
my absolute favorites.
Thank you for your service Brother. It was never my honor, but I love me some American Warriors.
James Doohan, Star Treks Scotty, lost a finger at D-Day
Thank you for that great post.
And here I thought Larry Storch was only notable for “F-Troop”, and establishing a world-famous acting school.
James Arness. Anzio Italy hero WWII
Robert Keeshan, Capt Kangaroo, was part of the Normandy invasion
Post of the year, yes. But I’m in tears, scanning this collection
Jimmy Stewart was a general? Mickey Rooney, bronze star? etc
Post of the decade
John Wayne was exempt as being older, married and the sole support of his children.
HOWEVER, in a document kept in a safe place in the National Archives, College Park, Md., is Wayne’s application to the OSS (Office of Special Services) in which he offered to serve them any way he could be used.
Under skills, he wrote: Horse riding, but that he did fall off a lot.
Sometimes a person can serve both on the home-front for moral purposes that greatly help the civilians to get through a war, as well as visiting the frontlines to show support for the troops (Bob Hope and his crew, including Jerry Cologna). Benny Goodman died while entertaining the troops in Europe. Plane went down. Believe it was never found.
Wayne, and George “Sulu” Takei, both went to SVN during the war to get a good look at the landscape and military posts of that country, for their filming of “The Green Beret” in the Philippines.
A “rumor” I heard from some top people while I was in Vietnam said that when Wayne was out one day visiting places, he heard what he thought was sniper fire. He then grabbed an M 16 and blasted the nearby trees.
Never got it confirmed but it made us laugh because if it were true, and photographed, that photo would rival that of the raising of the flag on Iwo Jima (which my father-in-law saw in person - 75th JASCO, USA).
Right now you probably couldn’t really find a “John Wayne” in Hollywood though some of the liberals are really decent supporters of our troops.
They “knew” but they didn’t know.
From wikipedia
America’s entry into World War II resulted in a deluge of support for the war effort from all sectors of society, and Hollywood was no exception. Wayne was exempted from service due to his age (34 at the time of Pearl Harbor) and family status, classified as 3-A (family deferment). He repeatedly wrote John Ford saying he wanted to enlist, on one occasion inquiring whether he could get into Ford’s military unit, but consistently kept postponing it until after “he finished just one or two pictures”.[4]:212 Wayne did not attempt to prevent his reclassification as 1-A (draft eligible), but Republic Studios was emphatically resistant to losing him; Herbert J. Yates, President of Republic, threatened Wayne with a lawsuit if he walked away from his contract,[4]:220 and Republic Pictures intervened in the Selective Service process, requesting Wayne’s further deferment.[4]:213
Wayne toured U.S. bases and hospitals in the South Pacific for three months in 1943 and 1944.[4]:253 with the USO[27][28][29] By many accounts, Wayne’s failure to serve in the military was the most painful experience of his life.[4]:212 His widow later suggested that his patriotism in later decades sprang from guilt, writing: “He would become a ‘superpatriot’ for the rest of his life trying to atone for staying home.”[30]
U.S. National Archives records indicate that Wayne had, in fact, made an application [31] to serve in the OSS, today’s equivalent of the CIA, and had been accepted within the U.S. Army’s allotted billet to the OSS. William Donovan, OSS Commander, wrote Wayne a letter informing him of his acceptance in to the Field Photographic Unit, but the letter went to his estranged wife Josephine’s home. She never told him about it.[32] Donovan also issued an OSS Certificate of Service to Wayne.[33]
John Wayne didn’t serve formally. Later in life though he gave and gave to the armed services. John Wayne was one of those unique stars that absolutely loved his country for all the right reasons.
Columbia was putting Robert Fiske all over the place for a while, in b-films, shorts, and various bits in A’s. There’s a Bill Elliott b-western from around 1940 or 1941 which I saw that gave him a pretty good role as the hero’s ill-fated friend.
I always take note of Fiske when I see him in an old Columbia film, and raise my glass in honor.
Check the records, he was 4F
Add in William Windom, aka Commodore Dekker, Star Trek, “The Doomsday Machine” and “Gilmore”, the DA, in “To Kill a Mocking Bird”.
He was a paratrooper during D-Day. In one of the 500 series regiments, 503 or 505. I had a nice talk with him many years ago. A really decent man.
WOW. Very very impressive. Thank you!
Quite a few in that list I wouldn’t want to tangle with.
Heck, even Ted Knight has a “don’t mess with me” look.
Don’t see James Garner, whose war story would make a movie in itself.
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