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| Looped Hose Refueling During Lucky Lady II's Global Flight 1949 |
21FEB58 - USS Gudgeon SS-567 World Cruise - Here is one for the Navy Submariner Vets that follow this blog. Continuing with the "First" theme that presented itself this week, I have for you, a World Cruise first. USS Gudgeon SS-567 (2nd SS named Gudgeon) completed an around the world cruise, the first submarine to do so. Taking 8-months and cruising 25,000 miles. Quite an accomplishment. Gudgeon proved to be a true Cold Warrior in the late 1970s-1980s, she was re-designated an AGSS for research and then an SSAG to test sea launched cruise missiles. Gudgeon finished her distinguished career as a museum ship after service in the Turkish Navy as TCG Hizirreis S342. A note of interest for you Bubbleheads - the previous sub named Gudgeon SS-211 was the first submarine to sink a Japanese ship (submarine I-73) at the start of WW2.
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| USS Gudgeon SS-567 World Cruise Completion Arrival at Pearl Harbor |
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| Patch Commemorating the World Cruise Accomplishment |
24FEB 69 - Airman Awarded Medal of Honor - Vietnam - Airman First Class John L. Levitow. Loadmaster on an AC-47 gunship placed his own life in danger to save the aircraft and it's crew when an onboard flare threatened the flight after the plane was hit by enemy fire. He was awarded the Medal Of Honor for shielding the flare with his already severely wounded body and successfully exiting it outside before it ignited, thereby saving the crew and aircraft. He is one of two Airmen First Class who won the MOH in Vietnam. You can learn more here. You can read the Citation here. The other Airman to receive the award (posthumously) is Airman First Class William H. Pitsenbarger, a Pararescueman. for action on April 11, 1966. You can read his Citation here.
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| A1c John L. Levitow |
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| A1c William H. Pitsenbarger |
21FEB72 - Nixon Goes to China - I had absolutely no idea why the quote - "Only Nixon Could Go To China" became part of the USA lexicon so I looked it up. The explanation I found makes sense in that President Nixon was so well known as a devote anti-communist, his trip to a communist country was not seen as him weakening his position. The trip surely opened up the eyes of the world to both the horror of the communist regime in China (look up famine in China during Mao's leadership) as well as the potential that establishing relations with China would provide. Of all the things I found on the web on this topic, I thought this would be cool to share. Learn more about why Nixon chose to visit China in President Nixon's own words here. You probably know he taped everything so the Nixon Presidential Library website makes the tape excerpts available as well as the transcripts.
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| Mao - Nixon 1972 |
22FEB80 & 27FEB60 - USA beats USSR! - Almost everyone that follows ice hockey knows of the 1980 "Miracle On Ice" in Olympic Games history. Did you know that it wasn't the first time that Team USA beat the USSR at this game? And then go on to win Gold?!
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| 1980 "Miracle on Ice" Win against USSR |
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| 1960 "Miracle on Ice" Win against USSR |
Check out this story on the 1960 Olympic Team USA hockey team!
Video of the 1980 win against USSR is available here.
The video is not very good, hey it was 1960, but you can see USA defeat USSR in 1960 here.
21FEB94 - Aldrich Ames arrested - I decided to use the Ames spy story for the 90s even though his arrest happened after the fall of the USSR because the investigation started in earnest in 1990. He had been an employee of the CIA since 1957 as a summer part time worker (his father worked at CIA). He went full time in 1962. His CIA employment was rocky at times (drinking related) but he eventually became a career employee. Fellow CIA employees became suspicious of his lavish lifestyle and the investigation began. He was on Moscow's payroll and was arrested with his wife on this date in 1994. Numerous field sources were revealed to the Soviets, top secret information was compromised, and the CIA director, James Woolsey, resigned. Ames is still in federal prison serving a life sentence and his wife was released after her 5-year sentence.
Special Report - 22FEB46 - Keenan's Long Telegram - George F. Keenan was assigned to the Moscow Embassy in 1946. The so-called "Long Telegram" is his response to questions about the Soviet Union's intensions after WW2. Keenan decided to answer all of the questions in one response and dictated what is now one of the most valuable historical documents of the Cold War. The responses in this 8,000 word telegram, and the follow on X-Article, helped shape President Truman's Doctrine in regards to "Containment" of the USSR's expansion. The entire telegram can be read here (Truman Presidential Library).
Entertainment -
25FEB64 - Sports - Clay Defeats Liston - Caseous Clay, later known as Mohammad Ali, defeats Sonny Liston for the world heavyweight championship! Clay is also significant in the Cold War, in that he refused to honor his draft notice and was convicted in 1967. It cost him the title but the Supreme Court overturned his conviction in 1971. The final process of how it was overturned is quite suspect, they ruled against (8-0 with 1 recusal) and then for overturning in a decision reversal, in my opinion it was politically motivated, but that was the times we lived in back then.
25FEB71 - Movies - Interviews with My Lai Veterans documentary movie released. Wins Oscar for Best Documentary, short subject. This anti-war movie is based on interviews the film maker performed with several My Lai massacre veterans who testified. As I stated above in Sports, the early 1970s were full of political turmoil and a movie sharing the truth of what happened at My Lai was readily accepted.
26FEB66 - "Music - # 1 Billboard hit - "These Boots Are Made For Walking" - Nancy Sinatra. Any male my age will remember this song. Not so much for the lyrics, or tempo, of how much of a hit it became; we remember it for the visual of Nancy Sinatra in the short skirt and boots dancing and singing. What a sight to behold in 1966. Here is the publicity video for the song and a second one where she performs it for the troops in Vietnam. This fashion look, and the type of "Go Go" dancing was all the rage in the 1960s and 1970s.
A personal note: My sister, Rosemary, was a "Go Go" dancer back then and came to my Navy Boot Camp graduation dressed in a mini-skirt and wearing high boots similar to the photo below. We lost Rosemary a few years ago and I was in her car for the funeral. I did not change her radio station, it was on SiriusXM's 60s station as usual. Her husband and daughter were in the limo and we were right behind them. As I drove through the cemetery gate to her burial plot, this song came on. My wife, my other sister, my brother, all gasped. I said - "Ro is with us right now". They all knew it was her favorite since Rosemary's Go Go dancer days. We did not leave the car until the song was over. No one believed us when we told them why we held up the service. Strange but true. And yes guys, Rosemary looked just like that on my Boot Camp Graduation day. Drove the guys crazy!
Books - George F. Keenan: An American Life by John Lewis Gaddis, Pulitzer Prize winning biography of the sender of "The Long Telegram" discussed above in the Special Report feature. I have read a few of John Gaddis' books and am quite impressed with his ability to plainly present facts and conclusions in his study of the Cold War. I highly recommend any of his writings to people interested in learning more about the Cold War. His writings are available everywhere books are sold and most libraries.
Citations -
Google Images, YouTube, Time Magazine, Air Mobility Command Museum Website, This Day In Aviation Website, Aviation Safety Network Website, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum Website, Truman Presidential Library Website.
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