Army Day at Fort Sam Houston

Did you know that Army Day and Flag Day are both celebrated on June 14?

On the morning of June 14 about 6:00am outside of  our hotel on the first day of our reunion there were Army Platoons doing PT running in the street between the hotel and The Alamo.  Carrying banners, shouting cadence and waking us up.

Bill French writes:

Thanks to a fortuitous early morning walk by Ron and Carol Draper the 2012 Reunion attendees were invited to the Retreat Ceremony In Honor of the Army’s 237th Birthday by the Commanding General of 5th U.S. Army and Fort Sam Houston.

While Ron and Carol Draper were taking an early morning walk around the Alamo they were approached by Lt. Gen. William Caldwell IV, the Commanding General, 5th US Army and Fort Sam Houston when General Caldwell noticed Ron’s Vietnam Veteran cap.  General Caldwell and a group of Fort Sam Houston Soldiers were assembled at the Alamo in preparation for a celebratory run to Fort Sam Houston in observance of the Army Anniversary. When General Caldwell learned of our reunion from Ron and Carol he extended an invitation to the entire group to attend the reception and retreat.

The retreat was held at the Quadrangle, Fort Sam Houston, Texas which houses the 5th Army Headquarters from 1300 to 1700 hours, June 14, 2012.  Several members of the General’s staff and other attendees joined the C/D Company reunion attendees in conversation prior to the ceremony, making us feel welcome and appreciated for our service in Vietnam.  It was evident from the conversations we share common experiences regardless of the time and place of our service.

The retreat ceremony started with the traditional Streamer Ceremony where Battle Streams for each important action are attached to the US Army flag guidon by a soldier dressed in the uniform of the U.S. Army for that period.  Following the invocation and remarks by General Caldwell the Retreat to Colors was held, complete with a gun salute.

Following the ceremony we were all invited to the 5th U.S. Army Headquarters for refreshments. General Caldwell personally presented the 5th U.S. Army challenge coin to several attendees.  This was truly a unique experience for everyone who attended.

Army Offers Free Document Service

The Army’s Human Resources Service Center offers a free service to troops, veterans, military retirees and their family members who need help retrieving information to support claims for entitlements or benefits.

The Center’s operations officer says that many people pay private companies to locate such things as discharge papers or other military records, a service the Center provides at no charge.

“We are here to assist as many people as we can, but the thing is they don’t know about us and that is a shame,” Andrew Dennison said.

All requests must be accompanied by a signed Standard Form 180.

For more information call 1-888-276-9472, email askhrc.army@us.army.mil or access https://www.hrc.army.mil, then click on ASK HRC in the right column.

SOURCE: VFW Magazine June/July 2012

Arlington National Cemetery

Overview: 

Almost four million people a year visit the national cemetery across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C., where a constant vigil is maintained at the Tomb of the Unknowns. Arlington National Cemetery is the site of the changing of a military guard around the clock daily. A stone coffin bearing the body of an unidentified soldier of World War I — entombed on Veterans Day 1921 — is the visible part of the tomb, while crypts next to it under the terrace bear the unknown American service members of World War II and the Korean and Vietnam Wars (the remains from Vietnam were exhumed May 14, 1998, identified as Air Force 1st Lt. Michael Joseph Blassie, and removed for burial). Each Memorial Day and Veterans Day, a presidential wreath is laid at the tomb.  

This may explain why Arlington is America’s most well-known national cemetery, even though it is not the largest or the oldest. Some 230,000 veterans and dependents are buried on the cemetery’s 612 acres. From Pierre L’Enfant, George Washington’s aide during the American Revolution, to American service members killed during Operation Desert Storm, Arlington holds the remains of veterans representing every military action the United States has fought.  

Union Seized Lee’s Property: 

The cemetery’s origins go back to just before the Civil War. George Washington Parke Custis, adopted son of the first president, owned a 1,100 acre plantation and constructed on it a memorial to Washington named Arlington House, which held the world’s largest collection of memorabilia related to the president. Ownership of his estate passed to Custis’ daughter, who had married Robert E. Lee, and they lived in Arlington House for more than 30 years. The Lee family fled when the Civil War was imminent. The Union seized the property because of its strategic location overlooking Washington. Because of the bitter grudge against the South that Union Brig. Gen. Montgomery Meigs bore, and the need for burial space for the Union dead, this commander of forces at Arlington urged the federal government to convert 200 acres of Lee’s property to a cemetery. Meigs ordered burials near the house to make the grounds uninhabitable after the war.  

The first soldier was buried in Arlington in May 1864. By war’s end, 16,000 graves filled the spaces close to Arlington House. Though the Supreme Court ruled finally in favor of the heir to the property, the eldest Lee son ceded title to the government for $150,000 and renounced any thought of living in Arlington House. From the portico of the mansion, the first official Memorial Day was proclaimed in 1868.  

Burials Restricted: 

Whereas after the Civil War, only the poor or unidentified were entombed at Arlington, now it is a burial site particularly coveted by veterans and their families. Space for inground burials is restricted to those who die on active duty, have had 20 years of service, or earned certain military decorations, and their spouses and dependents. Any honorably discharged veterans and dependents may have their cremated remains inurned in Arlington’s columbarium. Honors are rendered daily by military units bearing a flag-draped coffin, firing a rifle volley and performing taps.  

Numerous veterans and civic groups hold memorial services in the cemetery’s marble amphitheater. Monuments have been erected from time to time to memorialize specific groups of military members or veterans buried there.  

Prominent Americans buried at Arlington include:  

Presidents John F. Kennedy and William H. Taft;

World War I General of the Armies John J. Pershing;

Generals Omar Bradley and George C. Marshall of World War II;

Generals Daniel “Chappie” James and Maxwell Taylor of the Vietnam War.

Arlington Cemetery

Will Rogers

Never squat with your spurs on…Will Rogers, who died in a 1935 plane crash, was one of the greatest political sages this country has ever known.

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Some of his sayings:

1. Never slap a man who’s chewing tobacco.

2. Never kick a cow chip on a hot day.

3. There are two theories to arguing with a woman. Neither works.

4. Never miss a good chance to shut up.

5. Always drink upstream from the herd.

6. If you find yourself in a hole, stop digging.

7. The quickest way to double your money is to fold it and put it back into your pocket.

8. There are three kinds of men:

The ones that learn by reading.

The few who learn by observation.

The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence and find out for themselves.

9. Good judgment comes from experience, and a lot of that comes from bad judgment.

10. If you’re riding’ ahead of the herd, take a look back every now and then to make sure it’s still there.

11. Lettin’ the cat outta the bag is a whole lot easier’n puttin’ it back.

12. After eating an entire bull, a mountain lion felt so good he started roaring.

He kept it up until a hunter came along and shot him.

The moral: When you’re full of bull, keep your mouth shut.

ABOUT GROWING OLDER…

First – Eventually you will reach a point when you stop lying about your age and start bragging about it.

Second – The older we get, the fewer things seem worth waiting in line for.

Third – Some people try to turn back their odometers. Not me; I want people to know ‘why’ I look this way. I’ve traveled a long way, and some of the roads weren’t paved.

Fourth – When you are dissatisfied and would like to go back to youth, think of Algebra.

Fifth – You know you are getting old when everything either dries up or leaks.

Sixth – I don’t know how I got over the hill without getting to the top.

Seventh – One of the many things no one tells you about aging is that it’s such a nice change from being young.

Eighth – One must wait until evening to see how splendid the day has been.

Ninth – Being young is beautiful, but being old is comfortable.

Tenth – Long ago, when men cursed and beat the ground with sticks, it was called witchcraft. Today it’s called golf.

And, finally – If you don’t learn to laugh at trouble, you won’t have anything to laugh at when you’re old.

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Roots of the Vietnam War

During World War II, Japan invaded and occupied Vietnam, a nation on the eastern edge of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia that had been under French administration since the late 19th century. Inspired by Chinese and Soviet communism, Ho Chi Minh formed the Viet Minh, or the League for the Independence of Vietnam, to fight both Japan and the French colonial administration. Japan withdrew its forces in 1945, leaving the French-educated Emperor Bao Dai in control of an independent Vietnam. Ho’s Viet Minh forces rose up immediately, seizing the northern city of Hanoi and declaring a Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV) with Ho as president.

Seeking to regain control of the region, France backed Bao and set up the state of Vietnam (South Vietnam) in July 1949, with Saigon as its capital. Armed conflict continued until a decisive battle at Dien Bien Phu in May 1954 ended in French defeat by Viet Minh forces. The subsequent treaty negotiations at Geneva split Vietnam along the latitude known as the 17th parallel (with Ho in control in the North and Bao in the South) and called for nationwide elections for reunification to be held in 1956. In 1955, however, the strongly anti-communist Ngo Dinh Diem pushed Bao aside to become president of the Government of the Republic of Vietnam (GVN).

Vietnam War: U.S. Intervention Begins

With the Cold War intensifying, the United States hardened its policies against any allies of the Soviet Union, and by 1955 President Dwight D. Eisenhower had pledged his firm support to Diem and South Vietnam. With training and equipment from American military and police, Diem’s security forces cracked down on Viet Minh sympathizers in the south, whom he derisively called Viet Cong (or Vietnamese Communist), arresting some 100,000 people, many of whom were tortured and executed. By 1957, the Viet Cong and other opponents of Diem’s repressive regime began fighting back with attacks on government officials and other targets, and by 1959 they had begun engaging South Vietnamese Army forces in firefights.

In December 1960, Diem’s opponents within South Vietnam–both communist and non-communist–formed the National Liberation Front (NLF) to organize resistance to the regime. Though the NLF claimed to be autonomous and that most of its members were non-Communist, many in Washington assumed it was a puppet of Hanoi. A team sent by President John F. Kennedy in 1961 to report on conditions in South Vietnam advised a build-up of American military, economic and technical aid in order to help confront the Viet Cong threat. Working under the “domino theory,” which held that if one Southeast Asian country fell to communism, many would follow, Kennedy increased U.S. aid, though he stopped short of committing to a large-scale military intervention. By 1962, the U.S. military presence in South Vietnam had reached some 9,000 troops, compared with fewer than 800 during the 1950s.

Source: Vietnam War. (2012). The History Channel website. Retrieved 6:22, April 6, 2012, from http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war.

 

Martha Raye

Remember Martha Raye?

Martha Raye

The most unforgivable oversight of TV is that her shows were not taped.

This is a great story about a great woman. I was unaware of her credentials or where she is buried.  Somehow I just can’t see Brittany Spears, Paris Hilton, or Jessica Simpson doing what this woman (and the other USO women, including Ann Margaret & Joey Heatherton) did for our troops in past Wars. Most of the old time entertainers were made out of a lot sterner stuff than today’s crop of activists and whiners.

The following is from an Army Aviator who takes a trip down memory lane:

It was just before Thanksgiving ’67 and we were ferrying dead and wounded from a large GRF west of Pleiku.  We had run out of body bags by noon, so the Hook (CH-47 CHINOOK) was pretty rough in the back. All of a sudden, we heard a ‘take-charge’ woman’s voice in the rear.  There was the singer and actress, Martha Raye, with a SF (Special Forces) beret and jungle fatigues, with subdued markings, helping the wounded into the Chinook, and carrying the dead aboard. ‘Maggie’ had been visiting her SF ‘heroes’ out ‘west’.  We took off, short of fuel, and headed to the USAF hospital pad at Pleiku.  As we all started unloading our sad pax’s, a ‘Smart Ass’ USAF Captain said to Martha…. Ms Ray, with all these dead and wounded to process, there would not be time for your show!  To all of our surprise, she pulled on her right collar and said…..Captain, see this eagle? I am a full ‘Bird’ in the US Army Reserve, and on this is a ‘Caduceus’ which means I am a Nurse, with a surgical specialty….now, take me to your wounded.  He said, ‘yes ma’am…. Follow me.’

Several times at the Army Field Hospital in Pleiku, she would ‘cover’ a surgical shift, giving a nurse a well-deserved break.

Martha is the only woman buried in the SF (Special Forces) cemetery at Ft. Bragg.

Martha Raye in Uniform

Hand Salute! A great lady…

To read more about Colonel Maggie CLICK HERE

VA Benefit Access

VA and the Department of Defense have made it convenient to secure your benefits.

Access Made Easy by eBenefits

The Pentagon and VA now allow troops, veterans, and their families and survivors ready access to information about benefits. Now you can go to a single and secure website to obtain that information, apply for benefits and perform numerous self-service features.

The eBenefits portal (http://www.ebenefits.va.gov) was initiated in March 2007 as recommended by the President’s Commission on Care for America’s Returning Wounded Warriors. It suggested a web portal to provide wounded, injured and ill service members and veterans with a single sign-on, central access point for benefits-related online tools and information.  eBenefits has continued to evolve, providing a host of resources and self-service capabilities tailored to their needs.

BASIC AND PREMIUM ACCOUNTS

The eBenefits portal can be accessed by anyone. However, users must register for either a Basic or Premium account to take advantage of all of its features.

Basic Account: With a Basic account you can view benefits information and customize it to your particular needs and preferences. It can be used to calculate retirement and insurance needs based on your current situation.

Premium Account: With a Premium account you can access the status of pending disability claims and appeals, payment history and some military records, such as a DD-214 form.

There are online courses for the Transition Assistance Program, too, that allow transitioning service members and veterans to explore VA benefits at their leisure.  You also can apply for Veterans Group Life Insurance, and—based on eligibility—access Tricare, your disabled civil service preference, commissary, service verification and benefit verification letters using the Letter Generator. Hearing aid batteries and prosthetic socks also may be ordered through eBenefits. 

IN THE FUTURE

Future enhancements include partnering with veteran service organizations (VSOs). This collaborative effort will allow veterans to obtain their Premium-level eBenefits account through their local VSO, as well as complete and submit VA Form 21-22, Appointment of Veterans Service Organization as Claimant Representative, online.

Other planned enhancements include an improved online application process for benefits, making it easier to manage the list of dependents claimed on a veteran’s profile. You also can check the enrollment status of education benefits under the Post-9/11 GI Bill. The key to unlocking all of these features is obtaining a Premium-level account.  With each quarterly release of eBenefits, new tools and services are made available. More information on eBenefits can be obtained at www.ebenefits.va.gov.

SOURCE: VFW Magazine, January 2012

Casualties by State

CACCF Record Counts by State Home of Record

State Home of Record Number of Records
Alabama 1,207
Alaska      57
Arizona    623
Arkansas    588
California 5,573
Canal Zone       2
Colorado    620
Connecticut    611
Delaware    122
District of Columbia    242
Florida 1,952
Georgia 1,582
Guam 70
Hawaii 276
Idaho 217
Illinois 2,934
Indiana 1,532
Iowa 853
Kansas 627
Kentucky 1,055
Louisiana 882
Maine 343
Maryland 1,014
Massachusetts 1,323
Michigan 2,654
Minnesota 1,072
Mississippi 637
Missouri 1,413
Montana 268
Nebraska 395
Nevada 151
New Hampshire 227
New Jersey 1,484
New Mexico 399
New York 4,121
North Carolina 1,609
North Dakota 198
Ohio 3,096
Oklahoma 988
Oregon 709
Pennsylvania 3,144
Puerto Rico 345
Rhode Island 207
South Carolina 896
South Dakota 193
Tennessee 1,291
Texas 3,415
Utah 366
Vermont 100
Virgin Islands 15
Virginia 1,304
Washington 1,050
West Virginia 732
Wisconsin 1,161
Wyoming 120
Other (non-U.S. home of record) 121
Total 58,193

Record counts provided for informational purposes only, not official statistics

Dennis Jones Located

After 10 years of searching for Dennis Jones we finally located him.  After we posted the story about Dennis during Tet in Kontum when he pulled an NVA soldier through a window, Bud Roach suggested we contact the local newspaper in Pocatello, ID where Dennis was from.  We sent the “Ivy Leaf” article to the newspaper and after a telephone conversation with the reporter a news item ran in the Idaho Standard Journal recently as follows:

Heroic Vietnam veteran sought

Poky native served from 1967 to 1968

BY JIMMY HANCOCK

jhancock@journalnet.com

Since members of his outfit in Vietnam began holding annual reunions about 10 years ago, Fred Childs says attendance has grown more than 10-fold.  But there’s one person the group is still trying to track down. He’s the solider who braved a hail of bullets and knocked a Viet Cong solider cold with one punch.

 “We haven’t had any contact with Dennis (Jones) since Vietnam,” said Childs via telephone from his Pasadena, Calif., home. “We just have not been able to locate Dennis.”   The only thing Childs really knows about Jones is that he was originally from Pocatello.

That first reunion of men from the 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry, 4th Division who served in Vietnam from July of 1967 to August of 1968, consisted of five guys, Childs said. This year, at the reunion planned for June in San Antonio, Texas, he’s expecting 60 to show up.  Each year, Jones is a topic of conversation. And each year, no one knows anything new about where he is.   Childs says there weren’t many ways that Jones stood out. In fact, he says most of the men in the outfit, which was in a forward area much of the time, were pretty much all about business.

But there was one thing about Jones that made him legendary — something he did that even caught the attention of the U.S. Army’s journalists.

According to the story, Jones rushed an armed member of the North Vietnamese Army who was continuously firing at his outfit.   “It was during the Tet Offensive in February of 1968,” Childs said. “We were in a compound in Kontum where there used to be an old language school.”   The NVA had overrun Kontum and Childs and his comrades were sent there to clear the opposing forces out of the area. They were dropped into Kontum on Feb. 1, 1968, and the following day were trying to make a sweep through the old language school.

Childs said there was a sniper in the steeple of a nearby church who was shooting at them, another NVA soldier in a building shooting at them through a window and several others in a nearby field.   Although they had managed to kill the sniper, and were taking fire from those men in the field, Childs says it was the NVA soldier in the building who was pinning them down.

“He just kept firing at us through a window. No matter if we fired back, he just kept firing,” Childs said.

 At some point, Jones decided enough was enough. He decided someone had to do something.   “All of a sudden he just took off,” Childs said of Jones. “He just got up and ran across the compound.”   It was about 50 meters, or 165 feet that Jones ran to reach the NVA soldier, and when he did, there was no hesitation.   “He pulled this guy out of the window and hit him,” Childs said.

In a story forwarded via email by Childs that was written about the incident at the time it happened, a fellow soldier Roger Ziegler, is quoted as saying that Jones, “pulled this North Vietnamese Army soldier right through the window and bagged him with a good hard right.”   Looking back on the incident, and remembering Jones, Childs said it was something you could see Jones doing, but not something he ever did with the exception of that single incident.

Also quoted in the story is a J.R. Farmer, another member of what is known as “Charlie Company.” Both Farmer and Ziegler, Childs said, died three days later during another battle in Kontum.  [Farmer is still living, Roger Ziegler KIA  4/27/1968 and Gary Campen quoted in the story KIA 2/5/1968]

Childs is hoping Jones himself, or someone who knows him, or knows of his whereabouts, will reach out to him. He has a website dedicated to Charlie Company, which he says served continuously in Vietnam from 1966 to 1972.   The website, charliecompany.org, is filled with pictures of and stories about some of Charlie Company’s Vietnam veterans. Childs can be reached through that site.

Now for the rest of the story…

We received 5-6 responses from this article which I forwarded to Bud.  One of them was from Dennis’s daughter.  Bud contacted her and obtained the telephone number to contact him.  After talking to Dennis, Bud invited him to our reunion.  Dennis will be there.

Mission Accomplished.  Hoorah.

Good Morning Vietnam

Memorable quotes from Good Morning, Vietnam (1987) starring Robin Williams as Adrian Cronauer.

Dickerson: This is not military issue, airman. What sort of uniform is that?

Adrian Cronauer: Cretan camouflage sir. If you want to blend in with a bunch of drunken Greeks there’s nothing better.

Dickerson: That is humor. I recognize that. I also recognize your brand of soldier.

——————————————————————————–

Richard Nixon: [Adrian has inserted his voice onto the press conference with Nixon] As I leave Vietnam today there will be no doubt in my mind that the Viet Cong will be defeated. And this war will be won. It does involve as you have suggested give and take.

Adrian Cronauer: Well I really didn’t make that suggestion, sir, I’m sorry.

Lt. Steven Hauk: Why would Cronauer’s voice be on this tape?

Private Abersold: I don’t know, sir.

Adrian Cronauer: Mr. Nixon, thank you for that concise political commentary, but I think I’d rather delve into a more personal for the men in the field. How would you describe your testicles?

Richard Nixon: [Hauk turns to the radio in horror] That they’re soft and they’re very shallow and they serve no purpose.

Adrian Cronauer: So what are you saying, sir?

Richard Nixon: They lack the physical strength.

Lt. Steven Hauk: Oh, my God. Please don’t do this to me.

Adrian Cronauer: How would you describe your sex life with your wife Pat?

Richard Nixon: It is unexciting sometimes.

Adrian Cronauer: Well, you can consider a sex change. There is an operation that can transform you into a female white dane or a very hell wung chihuaua. Mr. Nixon it is rumored that you have smoked marijuana. Are you planning to take some of the marijuana home back to the United States? How would you do that?

Richard Nixon: By plane. By helicopter and also by automobile.

——————————————————————————–

Censor #1: [Adrian sees the story about the bombing that he witnessed and he starts taking it to the control room, going past the two censors] What do you think you’re doing? You know you’re forbidden to read anything not checked by this office.

Adrian Cronauer: What was there to check? I was there.

Censor #1: You know the rules, airman. If this is a legitimate news story, it must go through proper channels.

Adrian Cronauer: Look, tweedledee, it’s an actual event.

[referring to the blood on his shirt]

Adrian Cronauer: What do you think this came from? Shaving? It’s the truth. I just want to report the truth. It’ll be a nice change of pace.

Sgt. Major Dickerson: What’s going on here?

Adrian Cronauer: Sir, will you listen to me?

Sgt. Major Dickerson: [reads the story] This is not official news, airman. As far as I’m concerned, it didn’t happen.

Adrian Cronauer: It did happen.

Sgt. Major Dickerson: You shut your mouth!

Adrian Cronauer: What are you afraid of Dickerson? People might find out there’s a war going on?

Sgt. Major Dickerson: This news is not official.

Adrian Cronauer: You wanna know the assumption is perfectly safe around here? Well, it’s not. The fighting’s not in the hills, it’s downtown. It’s a

[shouts]

Adrian Cronauer: couple of fucking blocks!

Sgt. Major Dickerson: I said it’s none of your goddamn business!

Adrian Cronauer: I see your point. I’m sorry. Once I get inside and hit these air conditioners I get a little dizzy. Thanks for setting me straight.

——————————————————————————–

Lt. Steven Hauk: And where you do imagine you’re going?

Adrian Cronauer: I’m going to get something to eat.

Lt. Steven Hauk: You ain’t got time. You’ll stay here and drink instant beverages or something. We promised our viewing audience Nixon highlights by 4:00 PM.

Adrian Cronauer: I’ve been on the air for four hours. I’m a little hungry.

Lt. Steven Hauk: That’s a joke right? I get it.

Adrian Cronauer: No. I’m actually hungry

Lt. Steven Hauk: Well I’m actually giving you an order.

Adrian Cronauer: Oh it’s an order. In that case gentlemen. Let’s edit.

——————————————————————————–

Lt. Steven Hauk: First of all, don’t make fun of the weather here, and don’t say the weather is the same all the time here. Because it’s not. In fact, it’s two degrees colder today than yesterday.

Adrian Cronauer: Two degrees colder, me without my muff.

——————————————————————————–

[imitating Walter Cronkite]

Adrian Cronauer: I just want to begin by saying to Roosevelt E. Roosevelt, what it is, what it shall be, what it was. The weather out there today is hot and shitty with continued hot and shitty in the afternoon. Tomorrow a chance of continued crappy with a pissy weather front coming down from the north. Basically, it’s hotter than a snake’s ass in a wagon rut.

——————————————————————————–

Adrian Cronauer: Mantovani? They feed Mantovani to insomniacs who don’t respond to strong drugs!

——————————————————————————–

Adrian Cronauer: Goooooooood morning, Vietnam! Hey, this is not a test! This is rock and roll! Time to rock it from the Delta to the D.M.Z.!

——————————————————————————–

Lt. Steven Hauk: Furthermore, you are to stick to playing normal modes of music, not weird stuff. Those who we’d find acceptable here would include Lawrence Welk, Jim Nabors, Mantovani…

Adrian Cronauer: …Percy Faith…

Lt. Steven Hauk: Percy Faith… good!… Andy Williams, Perry Como, and certain ballads by Mr. Frank Sinatra.

Adrian Cronauer: Would Bob Dylan be outta line?

——————————————————————————–

[Lt. Steven Hauk uses Army jargon to refer to a press conference to be given by former Vice-President Nixon]

Adrian Cronauer: Excuse me, sir. Seeing as how the V.P. is such a V.I.P., shouldn’t we keep the P.C. on the Q.T.? ‘Cause if it leaks to the V.C. he could end up M.I.A., and then we’d all be put out in K.P.

——————————————————————————–

Adrian Cronauer: You are in more dire need of a blowjob than any white man in history.

——————————————————————————–

General Taylor: Woah, Dick, put the brakes on. I wanted to wait until airman left to talk with you. Dick, I’m transferring you.

Sgt. Major Dickerson: Transferring me? Where to sir?

General Taylor: You’re going to Guam.

Sgt. Major Dickerson: Guam sir? There’s nothing going on in Guam. Why Guam?

General Taylor: Dick, I’ve covered for you a lot of times cause I thought you were a little crazy. But you’re not crazy, you’re mean. And this is just radio.

[goes to the elevator and laughs]

General Taylor: “More dire need of a blowjob than any white man in history.” That’s funny.

——————————————————————————–

Adrian Cronauer: If I don’t get to my English class, they’ll be a lot of people speaking in short choppy sentences.

Edward Garlick: Look, we’ve got to talk and talk now!

Adrian Cronauer: Not now man come on.

Edward Garlick: I can’t believe you. What? That’s it? You’re going to leave the whole fucking thing behind and leave everything fucking hanging! People are depending on you!

Adrian Cronauer: Edward, please! That’s two nasty words in one year. Forgive me.

——————————————————————————–

Sgt. Major Dickerson: [Pointing to his rank insignia] What does three up and three down mean to you, airman?

Adrian Cronauer: End of an inning?

——————————————————————————–

Adrian Cronauer: The Mississippi River broke through a protective dike today. What is a protective dike? Is it a large woman that says “Don’t go near there! But Betty- Don’t go near there! Don’t go down by the river!”… No, we can’t say “dyke” on the air, we can’t even say “lesbian” anymore, it’s “women in comfortable shoes. Thank You.”

——————————————————————————–

[Listening to Cronauer]

Private Abersold: You know, he’s funny, he’s like a Marx Brother.

Lieutenant Steven Hauk: And which Marx Brother would that be, Private? Zeppo? I don’t find him funny at all.

Private Abersold: Zeppo? Wasn’t he the one with the hat?

——————————————————————————–

Adrian Cronauer: You know, you’re very beautiful. You’re also very quiet. And I’m not used to girls being that quiet unless they’re medicated. Normally I go out with girls who talk so much you could hook them up to a wind turbine and they could power a small New Hampshire town.

——————————————————————————–

Sgt. Major Dickerson: You’re not gonna last long here, pal.

Adrian Cronauer: You can always send me back to Crete.

Sgt. Major Dickerson: Oh, you think this is a joke. I can come up with alternatives other than Crete and I’m real good at stuff like that. I got people stuck in places they haven’t even considered how to get out of yet. You don’t think I can come up with something good? Can you envision some fairly unattractive alternatives?

Adrian Cronauer: Not without slides.

——————————————————————————–

Adrian Cronauer: Hey, we’re back. That last two seconds of silence was Marcel Marceau’s newest hit single, “Walkin In The Wind.” And now, here are the headlines. Here they come right now. Pope actually found to be Jewish. Liberace is Anastasia and Ethel Merman jams Russian radar. The East Germans, today, claimed the Berlin Wall was a fraternity prank. Also the Pope decided today to release Vatican-related bath products. An incredible thing, yes, it’s the new Pope On A Rope. That’s right. Pope On A Rope. Wash with it, go straight to heaven. Thank you.

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Adrian Cronauer: Here’s a news flash: Today President Lyndon Johnson passed a highway beautification bill. The bill basically said that his daughters could not drive in a convertible on public highways.

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Adrian Cronauer: Mayday! Mayday! Dragon-Lady with incredible figure at 11 o’clock! Stop the car.

Edward Garlick: I can’t do that, sir.

Adrian Cronauer: Aw, Edward, you don’t understand. I’ve been on a small Greek island with a lot of women who look like Zorba, I never thought I’d find women attractive ever again. And now that I do, you won’t even turn the car around? Thanks a lot.

Edward Garlick: You have a very important meeting with the top brass…

Adrian Cronauer: -Oh, there she is again! How did she get ahead of us?

Edward Garlick: That’s another person, sir.

Adrian Cronauer: She’s beautiful and quick. Speed up, check her stamina. Oh my God, they’re quick, they’re fast, and small. Ha, ha, ha, ha! I feel like a fox in a chicken coop!

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Lieutenant Steven Hauk: I understand you’re pretty funny as a dee-jay and, well, comedy is kind of a hobby of mine. Well, actually, it’s a little more than just a hobby, Reader’s Digest is considering publishing two of my jokes.

Adrian Cronauer: Really.

Lieutenant Steven Hauk: Yeah. And perhaps some night we could maybe get together and swap humorous stories, for fun.

Adrian Cronauer: Oh, why not? Maybe play a couple of Tennessee Ernie Ford records, that’d be a hoot.

Lieutenant Steven Hauk: That’s a joke, right?

Adrian Cronauer: Maybe.

Lieutenant Steven Hauk: I get it.

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Adrian Cronauer: What’s the demilitarized zone? It sounds like something from the Wizard of Oz “Oh no don’t go in there!” “Ohhh wee ohh. Ho Chi Minh.” “Oh look you’ve landed in Saigon. You’re amongst the little people now.” “We represent the ARVN army, the ARVN army. Oh no! Follow the Ho Chi Minh trail! Follow the Ho Chi Minh trail!”

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Adrian Cronauer: [On Lt. Hauk] In the dictionary under “asshole” it says “See him.”

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Adrian Cronauer: [impersonating an Intelligence Officer] We’ve realized that we’re having a very difficult time finding the enemy. It isn’t easy to find a Vietnamese man named “Charlie.” They’re all named Nguyen, or Tran, or…

Adrian Cronauer: [as himself] Well, how are you going about it?

Adrian Cronauer: [as Intel Officer] Well, we walk up to someone and say, ‘Are you the enemy? And, if they say yes, then we shoot them.”

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Edward Garlick: What will you do, sir? What will you do? What will you do with your time?

Adrian Cronauer: Oh, I don’t know. There are plenty of things I can think of. Maybe go downtown and try to find a Vietnamese man named “Phil.”

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Lt. Steven Hauk: Sir, the man has got an irreverent tendency. He did a very off-color parody of former VP Nixon.

General Taylor: I thought it was hilarious.

Lt. Steven Hauk: Respectfully, sir, the former VP is a good man and a decent man.

General Taylor: Bullshit! I know Nixon personally. He lugs a trainload of shit behind him that could fertilize the Sinai. Why, I wouldn’t buy an apple from the son of a bitch and I consider him a good, close, personal friend.

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Adrian Cronauer: Five months in Vietnam, and my best friend is a V.C. THIS WILL NOT LOOK GOOD ON A RESUMÈ!

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Adrian Cronauer: Goooooooood morning Vietnam! It’s 0600 hours. What does the “O” stand for? O my God, it’s early! Speaking of early, let’s hear it for that Marty Lee Drywitz. Silky smooth sounds, making me sound like Peggy Lee…

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Adrian Cronauer: Here’s a little advice: Never eat in a Vietnamese restaurant next to a pound.

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[imitating Lawrence Welk]

Adrian Cronauer: Thank you for the lovely tune, that funky music will drive us till the dawn. Let’s go, let’s bugaloo till we puke!

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Adrian Cronauer: What is the difference between the Cub Scouts and the military? Bzzzzzt! Cub Scouts don’t have heavy artillery!

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Adrian Cronauer: [after eating a spicy Vietnamese dish] Shit! This stuff is burning the hair off my feet!

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Adrian Cronauer: I can’t even make fun of Richard Nixon, and there’s a man who’s screaming out to be made fun of.

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Adrian Cronauer: How can you fight a war in this shit? I don’t know where they are, I don’t even know where I am. I can’t see dick. Like hunting with Ray Charles.

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Adrian Cronauer: I’m sayin’ I’m through, Ed. I’m tired of people tellin’ me what I can’t say. “This news isn’t official.” “That comment is too sarcastic.” I can’t even make fun of Richard Nixon and there’s a man who’s screaming out to be made fun of!

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Adrian Cronauer: [an Army sergeant demands to know who allowed Tuan in the bar] That’s all right. I did. Hey, come on now. If you kick out the gooks, the next thing, you have to kick out the chinks, the spicks, the spooks and kikes. All that’s gonna be left in here are a couple of brain-dead rednecks, and what fun would that be?

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Adrian Cronauer: Real homey, in an opium kinda way.

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Adrian Cronauer: Good morning, Vietnam! Hey, this is not a test. This is rock and roll. Time to rock it from the delta to the DMZ! Is that me, or does that sound like an Elvis Presley movie? Viva Da Nang. Oh, viva, Da Nang. Da Nang me, Da Nang me. Why don’t they get a rope and hang me? Hey, is it a little too early for being that loud? Hey, too late. It’s 0600 What’s the “0” stand for? Oh, my God, it’s early. Speaking of early, how about that Cro-Magnon, Marty Dreiwitz? Thank you, Marty, for “silky-smooth sound.” Make me sound like Peggy Lee. Freddy and the Dreamers! Wrong speed. We’ve got it on the wrong speed. For those of you recovering from a hangover, that’s gonna sound just right. Let’s put her right back down. Let’s try it a little faster, see if that picks it up a little bit. Those pilots are going, “I really like the music. I really like the music. I really like the music.” Oh, it’s still a bad song. Hey, wait a minute. Let’s try something. Let’s play this backwards and see if it gets any better. Freddy is a devil. Freddy is a devil. Picture a man going on a journey beyond sight and sound. He’s left Crete. He’s entered the demilitarized zone. All right. Hey, what is this “demilitarized zone”? What do they mean, “police action”? Sounds like a couple of cops in Brooklyn going, “You know, she looks pretty to me.” Hey, whatever it is, I like it because it gets you on your toes better than a strong cup of cappuccino. What is a demilitarized zone? Sounds like something out of The Wizard of Oz, Oh, no, don’t go in there. Oh-we-oh Ho Chi’Minh Oh, look, you’ve landed in Saigon. You’re among the little people now. We represent the ARVN Army The ARVN Army Oh, no! Follow the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Follow the Ho Chi Minh Trail. “Oh, I’ll get you, my pretty!” Oh, my God. It’s the wicked witch of the north. It’s Hanoi Hanna! “Now, little GI, you and your little ‘tune-ooh’ too!” “Oh, Adrian. Adrian. What are you doing, Adrian?” Oh, Hanna, you slut. You’ve been down on everything but the Titanic. Stop it right now. Hey, uh, hi. Can you help me? What’s your name? “My name’s Roosevelt E. Roosevelt.” Roosevelt, what town are you stationed in?. “I’m stationed in Poontang.” Well, thank you, Roosevelt. What’s the weather like out there? “It’s hot. Damn hot! Real hot! Hottest things is my shorts. I could cook things in it. A little crotch pot cooking.” Well, can you tell me what it feels like. “Fool, it’s hot! I told you again! Were you born on the sun? It’s damn hot! I saw – It’s so damn hot, I saw little guys, their orange robes burst into flames. It’s that hot! Do you know what I’m talking about.” What do you think it’s going to be like tonight? “It’s gonna be hot and wet! That’s nice if you’re with a lady, but it ain’t no good if you’re in the jungle.” Thank you, Roosevelt. Here’s a song coming your way right now. “Nowhere To Run To” by Martha and the Vandellas. Yes! Hey, you know what I mean! Too much?