The Zephyr of Camp Pendleton
September 8th, 2009 by Jack Orth | FLASHBACKS | | 0 Comments
The Gunny
NCO Sword Vest
All dogs love to ride in cars, trucks, whatever. My great dog, Trigger, is no exception. There may be only one thing he likes better than getting in the car with me, and that’s a bowl of S.O.S.! After we finished our patrol of the area the other morning at 0600, I asked if he wanted to go in the car with me in an hour or so. Well, he immediately stood at attention, and marched over to the front hatch to wait for departure time!
Threw on my NCO Sword Vest, and we headed for the car. The lightweight vest is sort of in the style of an old-time flack jacket, but not as heavy. Since we didn’t expect small arms fire or incoming, it was perfect for the mission of going to get an oil change in “Tank” .. yeah, we call our car “Tank”! Oh, the Leatherneck Square USMC logo on the chest incorporates an NCO sword with Marines & Semper Fidelis on it. Very cool, as my grandson says!
The guy who owns the repair shop and always changes my oil, was a Jarhead, so of course, we exchange a “Semper Fi”, and I sit down with Trigger to wait for the car. A guy walks in and says he’s having a problem with the clutch slipping on his pickup truck. Quick as a wink, I have a “flashback”!
I’m back at Camp Pendleton with orders to head for Korea after cold weather training, etc. .. and
we had just bought a 1939 Lincoln Zepher with a stick shift for 50 bucks from a Marine who was headed to Korea on the draft before we were. Three Jarheads chipped in for the car, and for a few wild weeks, it was ours!
Only one problem .. you could push the clutch in, but it wouldn’t come back out without the help of a rope tied to it! However, just pull the rope and you were on your way! What a car! Never a maintenance problem, and six or 8 Marines headed for Hollywood most every weekend!
Upon reaching the first objective, we each would down one or two “zombies” in large glasses, and that set the tone for the weekend! Before we headed off to the next watering hole, a guy at the bar set up the second round of “zombies” for us. Come to find out he was Jack McGrath, the great race car driver who won many national races, and was always near the top at the “Indy 500″.
Well, Jack took us all to Jack Teagarten’s bar, which was one of the hot spots in Hollywood then. Teagarten was one of the best trombone players ever, and a close friend of Jack McGrath. We spent the entire evening and early morning at Jack Teagarten’s, and all the drinks and food were on the house! Then, “Jack Mac” had us all over to his house for breakfast with his wife. She must have been real happy to see six loaded Jarheads come in, with her husband in the same condition .. but, she treated us like kings, as Jack did. When we sold the car six or eight weeks later for 50 bucks to another Marine who was headed for Korea, it was with great sorrow. The Lincoln had treated us well!
A few years back, I was invited to a past champions dinner in Daytona Beach, FL. When I asked about Jack McGrath, I was told he had been killed on a dirt track in Indiana in the late 1950’s or early 1960. I shall never forget the way he and his wife treated six Marines in 1952 in Hollywood!
When you fall out tomorrow morning, wear a smile .. for we’re all able to be around to do just that!
Semper Fi ….. The Gunny
