August 2, 1943, 70 years ago: PT-109 is rammed by the Japanese destroyer Amigiri near the Solomon Islands. Two men are killed instantly: Harold Marney of Springfield, Massachusetts; and Andrew Kirksey of Reynolds, Georgia. Incredibly, 11 men survived, including the commanding officer, Lt. J.G. John F. Kennedy of Boston. Three years later, running for Congress, he was asked, "How did you become a war hero?" With the kind of impromptu, unscripted moment most politicians only wish they could have, he said, "It was involuntary. They sank my boat." Raymond Albert of Akron, Ohio survived, but was killed in action later in the year. First officer Leonard Thom of Sandusky, Ohio survived the war, only to be killed in a hometown car crash in 1946. The other survivors were: George Ross of Highland Park, Illinois; Charles Harris of Watertown, Massachusetts; William Johnston of Boston; John E. Maguire of Dobbs Ferry, New York; Edgar Mauer of St. Louis; Patrick McMahon of Wyanet, Illinois; Ray Starkey of Garden Grove, California; and the last survivor, Gerard Zinser of Belleville, Illinois, who lived until 2001. Jimmy Dean sang the theme song to the film that starred Cliff Robertson as JFK.
Posted on: Sat, 03 Aug 2013 01:18:08 +0000
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