Prior to World War II, and before his film career, Albert had toured Mexico as a clown and high-wire artist with the Escalante Brothers Circus, but secretly worked for U.S. Army intelligence, photographing German U-boats in Mexican harbors.[4] On September 9, 1942, Albert enlisted in the United States Navy and was discharged in 1943 to accept an appointment as a lieutenant in the U.S. Naval Reserve. He was awarded the Bronze Star with Combat "V" for his actions during the invasion of Tarawa in November 1943, when, as the pilot of a U.S. Coast Guard landing craft, he rescued 47 Marines who were stranded offshore (and supervised the rescue of 30 others), while under heavy enemy machine-gun fire.[5]
The thing that always struck me about Albert’s heroics, and those of so many like him, was the reluctance to accept any fuss or accolades over it. I saw an interview with him a couple years before his death. When the subject came up, he merely said something to the effect of “We were all just doing our job.”
BTW, Alvy Moore, who played the County Ag agent “Mr. Kimball” on Green Acres, was also in WW2. He was a Marine and fought at Iwo Jima.