Yesterday I Went Rummaging Through The Basement Of A Korean War Veteran: I Found Some Amazing Things
Yesterday I was in my great uncle’s basement sorting through his vast selection of Marine Corps clippings & memorabilia and wound up dribbling down the lane of sports/March Madness history. If you stop reading here based off that pun alone, I understand.
John served in the Korean War with a machine gun platoon from Charlie Company, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division. These men used hooks and ladders to climb 16ft. seawalls at Incheon under the command of Col. Chesty Puller, fighting their way to Seoul in a series of bloody skirmishes.
Ever since, he’s been Chesty’s #1 fan & a proud Marine who’s kept an incredible collection of historical records, partially in hope that people remember the sacrifices of brave men in “the Forgotten War”.
A Marine myself, I was nerding out & took some boxes back to my apartment for further research. Among my favorite items, a ‘Sound of Marine Corps Boot Camp’ record from 1960 featuring cadences from Drill Instructors at San Diego & Parris Island.
What lucky soul will be invited back to my place for a post-bars-nite-cap only to have me put the needle down on that sucker as I slip into something more comfortable? (ZBT T-shirt, hastily Febreezed sweatpants.)
Here are a few others that I found amazing as well.
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Next was a folder with John’s collection of vintage Marine Corps bumper stickers. If you see a dented 2003 Honda CR-V with all of these on the back window, please give me a double-beep & a wave.
There were binders full of postcards, war sketches and notes from all different branches and time periods. As I was getting ready to stop flipping through them for the night, I came across a weathered newsletter from the ship ‘U.S.S. President Adams’ dated Thursday, March 14th, 1946. It was the year after WWII’s end, and the vessel was still bringing troops home from overseas.
There were blurbs of news from major cities, a little bit of Hollywood gossip, and a large portion on sports at the end. I pictured these men in their bunks reading the paper; war over, finally safe, almost home and excited to see family, friends and their favorite teams play.
Anyways, get to the point already, Kate. Damn.
A few things struck me from March 1946 sports news:
1. The 1st baseman of the St. Louis Cardinals was named Dick Sisler, which I read as Dick Sizzler & laughed because how could you not. #DickSizzler AKA #BigDickieSizzlez AKA #DickSizzUpInYourBizzWithTheJi… #ImSorry
2. The New York Football Yankees of the All America Football Conference (AAFC) was in its first year & played at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. Can you imagine those fans? Sweet Jesus Lord above. The Cleveland Browns actually beat them for the championship two years in a row so that makes me feel a little better.
3. The OG March Madness did not originate from the NCAA. It was the NAIB, and it turns out that does not stand for “North Americans, It’s Basketball!” And it’s actually still a thing in 2018. And most of you are aware of that. But I didn’t. So get off my flapz about it & read on. Please.
4. The NAIB (National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball) is comparable to NCAA DII schools. Alums include Dennis Rodman & Scottie Pippen. #NameDroppingToShowIKnowThingsEvenThoughIHadToGoogleThat.
The tourney was the idea of Dr. James Naismith, the creator of basketball, and it’s the longest running championship tournament in U.S. college history. In 1948 the NAIB was also the first org to open college postseason play to African American student athletes.
Hard to imagine these days but when the Cal U Golden Bears won a spot in the tournament that year, university officials WERE UPSET BECAUSE IT WOULD TAKE THE BASKETBALL TEAM AWAY FROM THEIR STUDIES. UNC’s big ‘ol light-blue head would explode at the concept.
Bringing it back to modern day, if you have a friend or family member serving in the military who you haven’t spoken to in a while, use March Madness as an excuse to reach out. Rip on them for their shitty bracket or with a quick note asking if they’ve seen the latest on their favorite team. Toss some clippings or links in there. Even if they’ve already seen it or they’re a Browns fan and would prefer ignorance, knowing they’re not forgotten by you goes a long way.
Going through John’s files was a good reminder of that for me, and I hope to sit down with him again soon.
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It’s important to remember & learn about these conflicts of the past, and that there are men & women who have given their all so we can enjoy our freedoms (and things like watching Duke lose to Kansas) today.