who was the other kid that beat Fletcher was his name Newton or something like that been way to long for me
OT: "Old" people stories
- Thread starter AgSurfer
- Start date
My other great uncle had a younger brother that was a cook in the Navy. He remained aboard ship two days before his 22nd birthday as the Normandy invasion was launched. One time either when they had liberty or on discharge, he accepted an invitation to visit his buddy's family and found out his buddy had a sister in a little town called Victor Iowa. They married and when their first of many children was born he left his employment to learn farming, raising corn, soybeans and had a couple hundred head of hogs.
Unfortunately, one day he came home to find my Aunt has perished accidently.. He didn't last much longer.
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Although I never got to go visit them, several of my cousins headed East to see us. One came by motorcycle.
They are just about all warm and engaging people, but their taste in college wrestling teams is terrible. The year the Lions were last beaten in CHA, I got a picture of the scoreboard with nothing else.
The next time they try to visit, lining the road by your house with IEDs is not illegal. I read your local code.
Unless they start yelling "that's a 665 pound deadlift, baby", it would seem easier to just buy ticket for RH/BJC and the return the favor.
regarding military and wrestling stories ... I was stationed on a sub in the early 90s
Being on a sub you didn't get "live" TV - you barely got a wire update depending on when the sub was able to get a broadcast link. On one of my deployments, we didn't get the super bowl score until 2 weeks after the game?!?!
a couple guys on the sub were "wrestling fans" - not fanatics but knew some stuff. Mail was difficult as well - could take a couple of weeks or more until packages caught up to the sub. I was lucky enough to get a copy of that year's ESPN NCAA final broadcasts sent to me on VHS, as well as the PA finals.
crew's mess had 7 tables for sitting - a hang out spot for off shift sailors, also had the tv and vcr for movies ... the crew found out fast that I got a taped event, tables were packed to watch sports that happened a month earlier when none of us knew the results! Fond memory of mine ...
Being on a sub you didn't get "live" TV - you barely got a wire update depending on when the sub was able to get a broadcast link. On one of my deployments, we didn't get the super bowl score until 2 weeks after the game?!?!
a couple guys on the sub were "wrestling fans" - not fanatics but knew some stuff. Mail was difficult as well - could take a couple of weeks or more until packages caught up to the sub. I was lucky enough to get a copy of that year's ESPN NCAA final broadcasts sent to me on VHS, as well as the PA finals.
crew's mess had 7 tables for sitting - a hang out spot for off shift sailors, also had the tv and vcr for movies ... the crew found out fast that I got a taped event, tables were packed to watch sports that happened a month earlier when none of us knew the results! Fond memory of mine ...
Good for you! If not for vets, who would heal sick animals? 👍
Well if people would stop welding them….
Ive been flip-flopping back and forth as to whether I should reply to your post or not. I'd write a response and then delete it time and time again. So many memories came flooding back to me in reading your post. Please allow me give you a bit of a backstory on my first and only visit to Hue. First of all, most of us didnt know the correct pronunciation of the city. Most of us called it "hugh". It wasnt till after a week or so of combat that we leaned it was pronounced "way". The bridge connecting the south city to the old city was an awful conflict and many a good man lost his life trying to secure it. we were eventually repulsed and the NVA blew up the bridge. So tell me, i assume the bridge was rebuilt but do you know if it was bulit on the same location?? And the Citadel itself, was that ever rebuilt?? Ever since my tour ended I never had any interest in knowing a damn thing about that city. I can guarantee you that you saw more of that town in the short time you were there than I did in the month. In the past I've tried to watch stuff on Youtube to learn more about the city but they show too much combat and I rarely make it thru the first minute or so of them.I went to "nam in 2019 with my brother when he retired. He was stationed in Quang Tri and Khe Sanh in early 1971. We flew into Hanoi and spent two days decompressing (went to Ha Long Bay, which was awesome). We then flew to Da Nang and stayed in a hotel in Hue. We chose that because it has good hotels and restaurants. We hired a driver and visited Quang Tri, went over past "the rockpile" and Khe Sanh. This is a museum and coffee farm now. The museum curator was waiting for us, I don't know how he knew we were coming, and never left my brother's side. My brother told several stories that I'd never heard. The prompting by the curator got him going. He turned to me and said he'd not remembered these things for 40 years. On the road parallel to what was once the DMZ, my brother pointed out a place where two friends were killed trying to repair a broken down tank. We also visit a forward firebase where a friend's father was killed in an ambush when his wife was pregnant with my friend. I took a photo and sent it to him. There was a small area where locals lit incense. We then went over the DMZ and visited the Vinh Moc Tunnels. Amazing.
We finished back where we started: the JW Marriott in Hanoi. What we didn't know was that the communist party was having a convention at the nearby conversion center. Security was very high. We were scared to death, with my brother being a former Army person who fought them. What happened was the opposite of what we expected. In Hanoi, Hue, Quang Tri and Da Nang people would stop us and ask if they could take a picture with them. People would send over deserts and discount our bill. It was amazing and, I think, cathartic for my brother.
Anyway, thanks for sharing what you did and thanks for indulging this tired old war horse for a minute or two.
PR
First, thank you for your service. It is appreciated by far more people than you expect, including those in Vietnam. Second, thanks for posting. I'll try to give you as much detail as I can remember (but some could be remembered wrong):
- It was 2016, so 8 years ago now (time flies). When we got into Hanoi, I looked up and we saw a Popeye's Chicken at the baggage claim area. We stayed at the JW Marriott in Hanoi and went to Ha Long Bay, which is incredible in case you decide to visit. We visited Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum and a soldier kept motioning to my brother. We were nervous. It turned out, he wanted my brother to take his hat off (he had a Duck Dynasty hat as I recall). Funny. When we left, my brother turned to me after seeing Minh's dead body and said "Mission accomplished". Traffic was the worst I've seen in my life and I've been to Singapore, rome, Lisbon, Paris and London. Another observation is we didn't see very many people over the age of 50 FWIW.
- On the morning of our third day, we flew from Hanoi to Da Nang and had a car to Hue. We chose Hue because it had nice hotels and restaurants with one of the largest open markets in the nation.
- IIRC, there was a river separating the downtown area from the market but both sides were busy. We walked over that bridge at least ten times. the market was huge and would be considered a "wet market" but also had goods. I bought two pairs of silk pajamas for my wife and daughter and paid $100 for both after getting them down from $400. The Hotel mger said I could have gotten both for $20. The hotel we stayed at is the Serene Palace with a suite overlooking the river. I think we paid $35 per night. You can find a couple of Michael Bourdain shows in Vietnam, one in the Hue market
- The restaurant area was right around the corner. So we walked there often. There were a lot of shops and places to eat. I quickly realized all you needed to do to open a restaurant is to have a plastic table, four plastic chairs and make a bowl of Pho. It was always good but we couldn't help but wonder if the meat was dog as we'd seen several places grilling a dog. They'd try to hide it when they saw Americans walk up. No inspections or health oversight at all.
- The Citadel was totally redone and spectacular. The only issue is that they had a lot of war equipment from the war against the USA on display at the entrance. I was told that people had been buried under the rebuilt sidewalks of Hue and always wondered about this when we walked along. We also visited a large Buddhist monastery where they had backward swastikas embedded in their buildings and railings. But this was done in like the 12th century so it wasn't anything about Nazis.
- The hotel helped us hire a driver to go to Quang Tri and Khe Sahn. It turns out the driver's father was an ARVN colonel in the war. I think the hotel arranged that without us knowing. His father was sent to a reeducation camp for 18 months after the war. When he got back he told the family it took him that long to be comfortable telling them what they wanted to hear. I mentioned that the curator at Khe Sanh Museum was there to greet us, again arranged by the hotel without us knowing. He didn't leave my brother's side. My bro told the story that was funny. he was a mechanic who worked on tanks and hueys mostly. He was approached by a Colonel who's jeep broke down and he asked if my brother could fix it over the weekend (it was a Friday). My brother said if he can get the parts he can fix it. The Colonel had the parts Saturday morning and the jeep was fixed Sat afternoon. He and a co-worker decided not to tell anyone it was fixed. When the colonel showed up sunday afternoon, they pretended that they worked all weekend without sleep. The Colonel was VERY appreciative and left. A week later they got a box full of T-bone frozen stakes and were the heroes of their group. They also talked about swimming in a local water hole where they'd toss a grenade first to make sure no NVA were in the water waiting to snipe them. They'd also slide a tank down the hill to the watering hole as it was very wet and slippery. they'd take turns sliding the tanks down the hills. My brother bought a hand-carved rosewood Huey replica at Khe Sanh for $15. The Vinh Mock Tunnels were crazy as people lived there for ten years as it was heavily bombed. BTW, we toured it with a Vietnamese drop dead gorgeous young gal who didn't speak English.
- Back in Hue for the night, my brother ordered something and the owner came out to talk to him about his time in Vietnam as a soldier. At the end, the guy said he'd make his specialty for my brother for free (I had to pay). It was a fish wrapped in a banana tree leaf and grilled. It was great. We couldn't find Ice Cream for dessert so they directed us to a little shop where a guy had a deep freezer. It was caked with ice over the years in that humidity and the ice cream was crystalized. It was old and had thawed at least once in its life. But the guy was so proud to be able to serve us we acted like it was the best thing we ever tasted. The staff got a photo with us and several people stopped us to ask if we were Americans. When told my brother was vet, they would ask for photos. We also took a boat trip up the river and back. Pho was great and we ate it every day. Great food and people.
- We flew back out of Da Nang on Vietjet. But we found that the times of flights was only a guideline and it was very common, almost probably, that they'd be wrong by hours. But it was only $49 round trip. When we learned our 10am flight was delayed by 8pm, we booked on Vietnam Airlines as we didn't want to be out at night. It was $85 one-way. My point is that it was very inexpensive.
- Back to the JW Marriott. We had a midnight flight out so hung out if the expansive and incredible concierge room until 9:30 and leaving for the airport. Next to us were two guys going over contracts. One was a rep of some kind of casino in Vegas and the other a lawyer. They'd read a paragraph in the contract, review it, talk about other stuff for ten minutes and then read another paragraph to redline. From what we could tell, Marriott was going to build a half dozen resorts in South Vietnam on the coastal waters. The contract was to open casinos that would be controlled by the govt but the Vegas people would run the operations. We spoke to a young lady in the lobby (a beautiful gal) when we were checking out. She was the Asst mgr who asked us how our stay was. When asked about the casinos, she said that she and several others were in training to manage them in the south. She also admitted to eating dog but it took us some time to get her to admit it. She said, as a young gal, this was a weekly dish served by her mom. Yikes. Also, the staff at the JW concierge room and in the lobby both asked for photos. All the time, Communist Party dignitaries were running around at their convention. We flew home and ran into a young kid who saw my PSU tag on my carry-on. He was flying back to the USA as he was attending a small college in Harrisburg (not PSU). Funny.
I hope I didn't bore you!!!
The Citadel
JW Marriott Hanoi
Hue market
Hue Restaurant
Tunnels
when I was in the navy had a guy on my ship saying he was a 2 time champ in Colorado I told him let's have a go I was about 135 then and he was about 150 needless to say I smoked him twice so I don't know if he was truthful or not!
Definitely NOT boring. Thank you for your kind words and sharing this with me. So many memories came flooding back to me. In fact, I had to wait till my eyes dried and I could regain my composure before I could respond. Where to start??First, thank you for your service. It is appreciated by far more people than you expect, including those in Vietnam. Second, thanks for posting. I'll try to give you as much detail as I can remember (but some could be remembered wrong):
I hope you found this interesting. But I do want to say one thing. When asked why they liked Americans, and especially vets, we were told that the US made life easier for them after the fall as the communist party adapted to a less damaging communist system. Secondly, they said that Vietnam was a tactical battle in the worldwide war on communism. While Vietnam eventually fell, it really stopped the spread of communism as the Russians and Chinese exhausted resources there. So their view was that the USA lost the battle there, but won the war.
- It was 2016, so 8 years ago now (time flies). When we got into Hanoi, I looked up and we saw a Popeye's Chicken at the baggage claim area. We stayed at the JW Marriott in Hanoi and went to Ha Long Bay, which is incredible in case you decide to visit. We visited Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum and a soldier kept motioning to my brother. We were nervous. It turned out, he wanted my brother to take his hat off (he had a Duck Dynasty hat as I recall). Funny. When we left, my brother turned to me after seeing Minh's dead body and said "Mission accomplished". Traffic was the worst I've seen in my life and I've been to Singapore, rome, Lisbon, Paris and London. Another observation is we didn't see very many people over the age of 50 FWIW.
- On the morning of our third day, we flew from Hanoi to Da Nang and had a car to Hue. We chose Hue because it had nice hotels and restaurants with one of the largest open markets in the nation.
- IIRC, there was a river separating the downtown area from the market but both sides were busy. We walked over that bridge at least ten times. the market was huge and would be considered a "wet market" but also had goods. I bought two pairs of silk pajamas for my wife and daughter and paid $100 for both after getting them down from $400. The Hotel mger said I could have gotten both for $20. The hotel we stayed at is the Serene Palace with a suite overlooking the river. I think we paid $35 per night. You can find a couple of Michael Bourdain shows in Vietnam, one in the Hue market
- The restaurant area was right around the corner. So we walked there often. There were a lot of shops and places to eat. I quickly realized all you needed to do to open a restaurant is to have a plastic table, four plastic chairs and make a bowl of Pho. It was always good but we couldn't help but wonder if the meat was dog as we'd seen several places grilling a dog. They'd try to hide it when they saw Americans walk up. No inspections or health oversight at all.
- The Citadel was totally redone and spectacular. The only issue is that they had a lot of war equipment from the war against the USA on display at the entrance. I was told that people had been buried under the rebuilt sidewalks of Hue and always wondered about this when we walked along. We also visited a large Buddhist monastery where they had backward swastikas embedded in their buildings and railings. But this was done in like the 12th century so it wasn't anything about Nazis.
- The hotel helped us hire a driver to go to Quang Tri and Khe Sahn. It turns out the driver's father was an ARVN colonel in the war. I think the hotel arranged that without us knowing. His father was sent to a reeducation camp for 18 months after the war. When he got back he told the family it took him that long to be comfortable telling them what they wanted to hear. I mentioned that the curator at Khe Sanh Museum was there to greet us, again arranged by the hotel without us knowing. He didn't leave my brother's side. My bro told the story that was funny. he was a mechanic who worked on tanks and hueys mostly. He was approached by a Colonel who's jeep broke down and he asked if my brother could fix it over the weekend (it was a Friday). My brother said if he can get the parts he can fix it. The Colonel had the parts Saturday morning and the jeep was fixed Sat afternoon. He and a co-worker decided not to tell anyone it was fixed. When the colonel showed up sunday afternoon, they pretended that they worked all weekend without sleep. The Colonel was VERY appreciative and left. A week later they got a box full of T-bone frozen stakes and were the heroes of their group. They also talked about swimming in a local water hole where they'd toss a grenade first to make sure no NVA were in the water waiting to snipe them. They'd also slide a tank down the hill to the watering hole as it was very wet and slippery. they'd take turns sliding the tanks down the hills. My brother bought a hand-carved rosewood Huey replica at Khe Sanh for $15. The Vinh Mock Tunnels were crazy as people lived there for ten years as it was heavily bombed. BTW, we toured it with a Vietnamese drop dead gorgeous young gal who didn't speak English.
- Back in Hue for the night, my brother ordered something and the owner came out to talk to him about his time in Vietnam as a soldier. At the end, the guy said he'd make his specialty for my brother for free (I had to pay). It was a fish wrapped in a banana tree leaf and grilled. It was great. We couldn't find Ice Cream for dessert so they directed us to a little shop where a guy had a deep freezer. It was caked with ice over the years in that humidity and the ice cream was crystalized. It was old and had thawed at least once in its life. But the guy was so proud to be able to serve us we acted like it was the best thing we ever tasted. The staff got a photo with us and several people stopped us to ask if we were Americans. When told my brother was vet, they would ask for photos. We also took a boat trip up the river and back. Pho was great and we ate it every day. Great food and people.
- We flew back out of Da Nang on Vietjet. But we found that the times of flights was only a guideline and it was very common, almost probably, that they'd be wrong by hours. But it was only $49 round trip. When we learned our 10am flight was delayed by 8pm, we booked on Vietnam Airlines as we didn't want to be out at night. It was $85 one-way. My point is that it was very inexpensive.
- Back to the JW Marriott. We had a midnight flight out so hung out if the expansive and incredible concierge room until 9:30 and leaving for the airport. Next to us were two guys going over contracts. One was a rep of some kind of casino in Vegas and the other a lawyer. They'd read a paragraph in the contract, review it, talk about other stuff for ten minutes and then read another paragraph to redline. From what we could tell, Marriott was going to build a half dozen resorts in South Vietnam on the coastal waters. The contract was to open casinos that would be controlled by the govt but the Vegas people would run the operations. We spoke to a young lady in the lobby (a beautiful gal) when we were checking out. She was the Asst mgr who asked us how our stay was. When asked about the casinos, she said that she and several others were in training to manage them in the south. She also admitted to eating dog but it took us some time to get her to admit it. She said, as a young gal, this was a weekly dish served by her mom. Yikes. Also, the staff at the JW concierge room and in the lobby both asked for photos. All the time, Communist Party dignitaries were running around at their convention. We flew home and ran into a young kid who saw my PSU tag on my carry-on. He was flying back to the USA as he was attending a small college in Harrisburg (not PSU). Funny.
I hope I didn't bore you!!!
The Citadel
JW Marriott Hanoi
Hue market
Hue Restaurant
Tunnels
I've never been in one of those tunnels and I'm certain we were close to them but never knew one way or the other. I've talked to guys that did and the stories they told are horrific.
Good looking Vietnamese Woman?? Never knew they existed. My memories of the women were old biddies that constantly chewed those damn betel nuts that stained their teeth and made them high.
The stories about the sidewalks having citizens buried under them are no doubt true. The snipers would pick off any man women or child that strayed out on the streets and then would wait until family members would try to retrieve the bodies and shoot them as well.
Your first picture brought back a flood of memories. There were snipers in stratigically placed in both of those towers and they waited until we were midway across it before they's open fire on us. We were caught in a crossfire and that's when and where I earned my first purple heart. Our Lt ordered us forward and I told him that was suicide and we'd be going into a trap. I refused to move forward and was told I'd be facing a court martial when the battle was over. He and 5 other guys went forward and were immediately cut down by VC hiding in the arch on the far left of your picture. Those 5 brave men that went forward probably saved the lives of the rest of us. When they were being fired upon that allowed the rest of us to retreat and set up behind that low wall in the front of that picture. However, one of our squad, one of my very best friends during and after the war, jumped over into the moat and took up shelter in the flow-thru that you see pictured. He was trapped in there. When the snipers realized that he was in there they continued to fire towards the openings using rocket mortars and everything they had, on each side hoping a ricochet would hit him. We were trapped and he was trapped until nightfall, but he was also hit. Once nightfall came, I jumped the wall and went after him(I always told him I had to cause he had all the good C-rations). With our Lt KIA and our Gunny injured, I was third in command and in charge. We moved silently along the base of the bridge till we reached the far bank, climbed the bank and skirted the front wall and took cover behind the wall on the far right and that was our position. Thru the night and into the morning. Reinforcements came up and took their position at the same wall on the nearside of the creek that we had vacated. That entire battle was a living hell but just one of many we fought taking the city. Incidentally, I was actually reported for disobeying an order and busted back down to a Corporal. I cant say that for the longest time I felt strong animosity toward our Lt but finally came to realize that he was a kid just like me who probably didnt want to be there any more than me and paid the ultimate sacrifice in doing so.
Your last paragraph brings peace and honestly a sense of closure to me. I often wondered why we were there. Now I finally know and understand. God bless you and thank you for making my day.
You guys just wrote two of the most awesome posts I’ve ever read on this forum. Nothing about wrestling either, but so what. Like I said in my other post, making new friends and learning about them is the greatest thing I’ve ever gotten from wrestling.
Being from Lickdale PA, and you from Harrisburg, I thought I would post this. My dad was in from the end of WW2 to 1976. Was in all the wars from WW2 to 1976. Started in recon taking pictures from the bubble on lower deck of plane, civil engineer and navigator from 2-seater jets to bombers, carriers and radar planes.
Here is a little video the Patriot News did with him. He did not say much about what all he did. I know he received two distinguished flying crosses because I read the packets that came with the medals going thru his things after he passed. I learned things watching this video.
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Best off season thread ever. Thank you all for your service!
The "off season" qualifier was not needed.
I try to thank veterans for their service and their families for their sacrifices. I do manage sometimes. However, it is very hard for me to say anything because I feel so much less than all of them. I could live 100 years and not do anything as great as what those men and women did in months.
If you are a veteran and read this. Thank you.
I've just finished going through this thread and have enjoyed the war stories immensely.
My late father was a huge PSU sports fan, mainly football and wrestling. We went to quite a few matches together, but unfortunately he passed away of mesothelioma in Jan of 2005. I wished he could see our wrestling team today, because he would love it.
My father was a WW2 vet in the 284th field artillery battalion. He fought under Gen Patton in the Battle of the Bulge, and was a Staff Sargent in charge of 8 men and several 105 mm howitzers. I was able to attend one of his reunions in Montoursville, Pa, and could have listened to my Dad and his army buddies stories all day. Below is my favorite story.
The 284th rolled into Santeiul, France on Aug 20th, 1944, and the towns people were going ballistic in celebration. Soon they got word that they were 35 miles behind enemy line. My Dad's commanding officer had the whole battalion retreat, but left my Dad there with a few other guys and a couple of howitzers to hold off the German tanks if they showed up. Thankfully for my Dad, the other few guys and me they didn't or you'd never hear this story.
My Dad had an army friend named Edger Roe from Junction, IL, who named his son Don after my Dad. That always made me realize how special my Father was, to not only me, but so many others.
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Die or be demoted. Sophie’s choice.
It would be a difficult visit but if you can, you should go. I think you’d be shocked but it would also bring back some bad memories. if I get some time, I’ll post some personal photos. Let me know how I can help.
I usually go back there 2-3 times a week when I sleep and then i'm awakened by my wife's elbow in my ribs!!! But seriously, I could never go back there. Too much pain and too many experiences. We literally fought street by street and house by house. We had to take what was then the treasury building and then fight our way thru the streets to the hospital and fought to take control of that.
Thanks for all you've done and thanks to everyone for their kind words and support. One last thing; what we did in Hue pales in comparison to what the brave boys did on Normandy Beach. That certainly was the greatest generation.
PR
You vets who have been in real life combat are such a testimony to the mental toughness that some people have.
I watched the HBO series The Pacific and later read Eugene Sledge’s book With the Old Breed. Both the HBO series and the book got me really choked up inside. I can’t begin to imagine the horror that those guys experienced, yet they managed to pull it together and lead normal lives after the war was over.
I know a lot of guys were dealing with what we now know as PTSD. It wasn’t understood back then, but there were so many vets that just shook it off and got on with their lives. My prayers go out to anyone who had to go through those experiences, and I pray that the remainder of your life will be filled with peace and joy.
I appreciate you. And I would say, anyone who gives the full measure or even puts their lives on the line are just the same as those brave soldiers who stormed Normandy. Normandy, Tarawa, Iwo, Gettysburgh, Hue, Khe Sanh, Wilderness, Inchon, etc are all just theaters.
BTW - Dick Winters who was one of the main characters profiled in Band of Brothers was a wrestler. I know he wrestled in high school and he later attended college at Franklin & Marshall. I don't know if he competed while in college. Dick lived out his later years on a farm just outside of Hummelstown which is only about 7 miles from where I used to live. Of course I never met him, but it's still cool to know that a real life hero lived so close to where I grew up.
Ag, I had 3 uncles that all fought in WW2 also. My uncle George, who we called Poose, was captured by the Germans. He was being questioned by a German officer about where he was from. He said, Trout Run, Pa. The German officer in his best English says, Trot Run where's dat? It was near the end of the war, and one day he woke up and the Germans were gone. God was definitely looking out for him. He never talked much about the war, but told that story.
That same Uncle had a son, my cousin Jimmy, who was a Dustoff on a Medivac chopper in the Vietnam War. I know that he saw a lot of horrific things. I remember an article in the Wmspt paper about him receiving a medal for rescuing wounded soldiers, while taking on heavy fire. He also doesn't talk about the War, but has my utmost respect for all he did.
Dick Winters' grandson once asked him if he was a hero. His reply was "No but I served with a company of heroes".
This is a pretty tough week for myself and Pitteefool. In fact, to escape the Memorial Day crowds, he and i and our wives will head up to camp and spend a quiet weekend away from it all. Please take time to reflect on and pay tribute to those that gave the ultimate sacrifice. Some years ago I posted something similar on a different forum and got absolutely eviscerated for even mentioning it. Someone had asked what members had served and when i responded that I had someone asked if I had served with someone they knew who had just passed away. Anyway, we had a conversation back and forth and someone took offense that we were discussing war stories on a football forum. Honestly, I was shocked by the negative feedback we received. I'm glad you guys arent like that. You're all class in my book and can sit by my fire anytime you wish.
You're dismissed.
Smoke 'em if ya got 'em.
Did PR break forum rules by not posting a picture of his wife??
Yeah, this weekend is a laid back affair for us. We do some fishing (and hope the fish leave us alone), sitting on the porch bullshitting and just hanging out.
On Memorial day there's no drinking but only a somber reflection on our comrades in arms that never made it home.
this past weekend I shared this story with Pitteefool and our wives. I dont want to drag on about war stories and bore anyone to tears but this one is my fondest memory of my time in Nam.
I got in country in late November of '67. I had only been there a few weeks when I was told we were heading to Chu Lai. We choppered out immediately and upon arrival, something seemed amiss. There were several thousands of marines already mustered there and just milling about. We noticed a stage and a certain buzz of excitement in the air that seemed amiss. We later learned that Bobe Hope would be arriving via chopper to put on a USO Christmas show for us. I was told by some short timers in my unit that grunts were never invited to this type of stuff and it was mostly reserved for REMF's and pencil pushers.
We assembled and waited patiently for BH and his entourage to show up. We had no idea who he was bringing to perform. The chopper finally came and lo and behold it was none other than the lovely Raquel Welch who exited the chopper and but one a show for us. There were other entertainers but she was the only one I remembered well. I'm pretty sure there was a Miss America or a Miss USA or something like that but my memory isnt recalling who it was. But I'll never forget RW. What a beautiful woman she was. And very down to earth. This was in the time before boob jobs and face lifts and bo-tox and all that other $hit. She was all lady and I can remember thinking bringing her onstage was like throwing a steak to a pride of lions.
My tour in Nam pretty much went down hill after that. It was hard to fathom going from seeing RW on stage in December and then fighting for your life a month or so later. That was definately the good followed by the bad and the ugly.
I got in country in late November of '67. I had only been there a few weeks when I was told we were heading to Chu Lai. We choppered out immediately and upon arrival, something seemed amiss. There were several thousands of marines already mustered there and just milling about. We noticed a stage and a certain buzz of excitement in the air that seemed amiss. We later learned that Bobe Hope would be arriving via chopper to put on a USO Christmas show for us. I was told by some short timers in my unit that grunts were never invited to this type of stuff and it was mostly reserved for REMF's and pencil pushers.
We assembled and waited patiently for BH and his entourage to show up. We had no idea who he was bringing to perform. The chopper finally came and lo and behold it was none other than the lovely Raquel Welch who exited the chopper and but one a show for us. There were other entertainers but she was the only one I remembered well. I'm pretty sure there was a Miss America or a Miss USA or something like that but my memory isnt recalling who it was. But I'll never forget RW. What a beautiful woman she was. And very down to earth. This was in the time before boob jobs and face lifts and bo-tox and all that other $hit. She was all lady and I can remember thinking bringing her onstage was like throwing a steak to a pride of lions.
My tour in Nam pretty much went down hill after that. It was hard to fathom going from seeing RW on stage in December and then fighting for your life a month or so later. That was definately the good followed by the bad and the ugly.
Had two GF’s that were in WWI. The one was an engineering grad from Drexel (1908) who trained as a pilot. Went to Belgium & France but never flew in battle because of a lack of planes. He did crash one though …. and his pilots log (which I have) seems to indicate he was grounded for a good while. The other Grandfather was a Tank Officer (Univ of Penn 1912) who saw action in France. Like your father, I remember very distinctly that you had to keep you distance when waking him up. He was otherwise a gentleman, but, had a viscous mouth when woken up. He took a small camera (I believe a brownie) to France and took lots of pictures, some of which I donated to the Army Infantry Museum located in Boalsburg. My Dad did the South Pacific thing in WWII and I did my duty (USMC) during the Nam period. Other than a few stories about camp life, stories were not told! Ha … At the risk of going on too long, ….. I do have a player piano roll kept by the one GF that has 40-50 pencil drawings of various military personel doing mundane things (sleeping, playing cards, doing spuds, etc).
Fellow USMC 0311. REMF’s. I remember them. Can you just imagine how many they have in today’s military?
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You guys are hero's, there's no other way to put it. I'm humbled by your stories and service. Thank you.
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It certainly is a different Corps today than when it was when we served.
OOOO-RAH Brother
There's a picture of one of those shows in the Harrisburg Mission BBQ men's room. The celebrity was wearing a mini-skirt and what I think were called "go-go boots". I'm not sure if it was Raquel Welch (might have been Ann Margaret or some other 60's hottie), and you have a good pan of the GI's in the audience. Some looked like really hungry lions.
Thanks for sharing your experience.
My great uncle was at Tarawa. Only survivor in his unit. Last assignment was Hiroshima clean-up and I have to wonder if the bomb claimed his daughter, born in 1946 and who died before her first birthday with an official diagnosis of spina bifida.
Thanks for posting. My uncle Steve never wanted to talk much about the war. I thought the best respect and appreciation I could offer was to not try bring up hellish old memories to satisfy my curiosity.
heres a good old man story in Nam my ship had 3 golden gloves champs,needless to say I was very good friends with them everytime we went out and got rowdy with some marines I didn't have to do much fighting those guys took care of everyone.ahh the good old days!so boxers and wrestlers do get along!
I served as USMC MP for a short while in Jacksonville NC. So …. we go to a bar fight downtown and it’s USMC vs Army and no body is much winning. While intetacting with one of the Army dudes, he cold cocked me while I was reading him his rights (note: if you are ever a cop, memorize Maranda cause if you have to look at some god damned laminated card you gonna get fookin punched.). Knocked the f out. I woke up in the ambulance looking at the Army dude across the way > let’s just say nite sticks work their wonders. Ha …. Glad to laugh about it now.
Today is June 6, 2024. I doubt anyone on this board was at D-day 80 years ago, but if you were, thank you. If know somebody who was, thank them for all of us.
My Father was, my Grandfather on my Mother's side, and my two uncles. D-Day, and D-Day +1.
June 6, 1944 - Omaha Beach
I wanted to save this post for today, mainly as a tribute to Coach Bill Koll but also to pay homage to all of the men who put their lives on the line to put an end to one of the most evil regimes in all of history.
As everyone well knows, today is the 80th anniversary of the Allied landings at Normandy in Northern France. It was one of the largest and most ambitious operations of WW2, and Bill Koll was right there in the thick of it. A lot of what I say here is an interpolation of what he went through as he was very reticent about any of his experiences in WW2. My interpolation is based on the record of events that took place. However, I sent an email to Coach Rob Koll at UNC, and he was gratious enough to tell me what little he knew about his dad's experience.
Coach Koll was assigned to the 149th Combat Engineer Battalion that supported the 116th Infantry Regiment. The 116th was one of the first groups of men to land on Omaha Beach at H-Hour which was scheduled to occur at 6:30 am. The 149th was scheduled to come in as several different groups between 40 to 120 minutes after the first assault groups landed. I don't know what was the exact time that Koll landed, but all of these groups were considered to be part of the first wave. They were the guys who received the worst from the German defenses.
According to Rob Koll, his dad's landing craft was stopped in deeper water and the guys had to jump off in water over their heads. Some of the men drowned because of the heavy equipment they were carrying. Bill Koll almost went down too, but a random big wave came in an lifted him up and drove him in to a spot where he was able to stand. From there, he was able to make it up onto the beach.
What happened after that is not known. He probably scrambled to the shingled beach wall to gather himself together before working to accomplish his mission. However, I do remember reading a first hand account given by a WW2 vet who was also at Omaha beach. He said something about a guy who was a wrestler grabbing a machine gun and firing back at the Germans. Whether or not that was Bill Koll, I have no idea, but considering that Koll was a pretty impressive wrestler, it's interesting that the vet made a specific point about another soldier on the beach being a wrestler.
What we do know is that he made it through the war and came back to the US to win 3 NCAA titles, being named 2X Outstanding Wrestler. His college record was 73-0 which means there are TWO Penn State coaches with an undefeated college record! He also represented the US on the Olympic team in 1948. We will always associate the name of Bill Koll with wrestling, however, to my way of thinking, what he went through on that day 80 years ago makes a wrestling match look like a walk in the park. Let's never forget that Bill Koll was also a WW2 hero.
I wanted to save this post for today, mainly as a tribute to Coach Bill Koll but also to pay homage to all of the men who put their lives on the line to put an end to one of the most evil regimes in all of history.
As everyone well knows, today is the 80th anniversary of the Allied landings at Normandy in Northern France. It was one of the largest and most ambitious operations of WW2, and Bill Koll was right there in the thick of it. A lot of what I say here is an interpolation of what he went through as he was very reticent about any of his experiences in WW2. My interpolation is based on the record of events that took place. However, I sent an email to Coach Rob Koll at UNC, and he was gratious enough to tell me what little he knew about his dad's experience.
Coach Koll was assigned to the 149th Combat Engineer Battalion that supported the 116th Infantry Regiment. The 116th was one of the first groups of men to land on Omaha Beach at H-Hour which was scheduled to occur at 6:30 am. The 149th was scheduled to come in as several different groups between 40 to 120 minutes after the first assault groups landed. I don't know what was the exact time that Koll landed, but all of these groups were considered to be part of the first wave. They were the guys who received the worst from the German defenses.
According to Rob Koll, his dad's landing craft was stopped in deeper water and the guys had to jump off in water over their heads. Some of the men drowned because of the heavy equipment they were carrying. Bill Koll almost went down too, but a random big wave came in an lifted him up and drove him in to a spot where he was able to stand. From there, he was able to make it up onto the beach.
What happened after that is not known. He probably scrambled to the shingled beach wall to gather himself together before working to accomplish his mission. However, I do remember reading a first hand account given by a WW2 vet who was also at Omaha beach. He said something about a guy who was a wrestler grabbing a machine gun and firing back at the Germans. Whether or not that was Bill Koll, I have no idea, but considering that Koll was a pretty impressive wrestler, it's interesting that the vet made a specific point about another soldier on the beach being a wrestler.
What we do know is that he made it through the war and came back to the US to win 3 NCAA titles, being named 2X Outstanding Wrestler. His college record was 73-0 which means there are TWO Penn State coaches with an undefeated college record! He also represented the US on the Olympic team in 1948. We will always associate the name of Bill Koll with wrestling, however, to my way of thinking, what he went through on that day 80 years ago makes a wrestling match look like a walk in the park. Let's never forget that Bill Koll was also a WW2 hero.
