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6 Degrees of Separation and the Power of Movies and the Internet

Fred Weiss

Fred Weiss

Merchant Member
A couple of weeks ago I watched the premiere of the HBO mini-series The Pacific. One of its main characters is a Congressional Medal of Honor winner named John Basilone. He ended up having a US Navy destroyer escort named in his honor when she was commissioned in 1947. I served in her crew from 1961 to 1963 and had some amazing experiences.

So after watching the first episode of The Pacific, I headed for my computer and did some Googling. Immediately, I became aware that a forum exists for those who served on the Basilone to find old friends and share some sea stories ... so I registered.

To my surprise and frustration, after 12 days my registration has not been approved. It turns out the Admin there has been away on vacation and he has no backup. Then yesterday, out of the blue, I get a letter from the organization behind the website asking if I am the same Fred Weiss who served blah, blah, blah and that they are having a reunion in a few months just a few hours drive away from where I live.

So I call the guy up and we got acquainted and he explains the situation with the website and that his letter was totally unrelated to my attempt to register. He also says that a bunch of guys made contact after the premiere of The Pacific.

I've been walking around in Nostalgiaville since yesterday, remembering our cruises and old friends and when we almost started World War III.
 
Bigdawg

Bigdawg

Just Me
How exciting for you Fred! I bet you can't wait to hook up with some old buddies and share stories :smile:
 
Fred Weiss

Fred Weiss

Merchant Member
So I finally got on the Basilone forum and checked over the roster. Who's there ... who's not ... who's died. Our captain passed in 2008. The buddy I most wanted to find ... registered but hasn't posted in several years. But he has an email listed!

So I drop him a line and half an hour later the reply arrives and it's like 47 years disappeared. Butch was the guy that never had a bad word to say. He turned me onto reading and we devoured the works of John Steinbeck, Salinger, Updike, Hemingway, Fitzgerald ... trading our stash of books between us and playing so much chess that I was seeing chessboards in my sleep. On our North Atlantic cruise in 1962 he set a goal of having a prostitute, a ham sandwich and a beer in every port we hit, which to the best of my knowledge he accomplished.

Funny, the things that stick with you.

We talked for about an hour on the phone. Catching up on other shipmates, our lives since 1963. Lots of similarities ... some differences. He, also ended up in Florida, albeit up in OP's neck of the woods, too far to visit easily. But he may make the reunion in Sarasota.

Gawd!!! I miss that time, I miss those days. Coming of age, serving a purpose, being part of something, knowing who you were.
 
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