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50 years ago - Walter Reed - Celeb Visitors
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50 years ago - Walter Reed - Celeb Visitors


Jan 12, 2021, 9:28 PM

Just saw Spud's post about Johnny Unitas being his childhood idol. The hospital always had visitors at night and had several celebrities show up - Johnny U was the most memorable one . He stopped by my bed for a chat and I was amazed by the size of his hand as it completely engulfed mine when we shook hands - no wonder he could grip the ball and throw it so well. Another big name to come by was General William Westmoreland himself - we talked quite a while after he found out my hometown was just a few miles from where he grew up. He seemed very sad to see all the amputees on the ward (I guess knowing they were all under his command when they were injured had to affect him some).

Message was edited by: clover65®


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Re: 50 years ago - Walter Reed - Visitors


Jan 12, 2021, 9:50 PM

When Jerry Richardson was trying to get a pro football team for the Carolinas, He was having rallys to show all the support the future team would have. They had a big one in Spartanburg and Johnny Unitas and Tony Dorsett were there to help. Johnny U. threw a short pass across the stage to Jerry R. to re-enact a pass in one of their championship games. It was cool being at that big rally and seeing Johnny U. and Dorsett.
Also I remember going to a parade in Spartanburg when General Westmoreland came home and they were honoring him.

Thanks again for your service and sacrifice.

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Re: 50 years ago - Walter Reed - Visitors


Jan 12, 2021, 10:33 PM

surprised jimmy orr wasn't there.i was a die-hard colt fan until they left baltimore.remeber the'58 nfl championship game like it was yesterday.unitas to berry.alan ameche sores in ot.good times.

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Re: 50 years ago - Walter Reed - Visitors


Jan 12, 2021, 10:35 PM

sorry.remember and ameche scores.

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Re: 50 years ago - Walter Reed - Visitors


Jan 12, 2021, 11:01 PM [ in reply to Re: 50 years ago - Walter Reed - Visitors ]

think you mean willie richardson,a wr.jerry hill was a rb.ps:jimmy orr's sister or cousin lived in the CU area.her daughter dated a friend of mine.

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Re: 50 years ago - Walter Reed - Visitors


Jan 13, 2021, 4:58 PM

Jerry Richardson was a receiver for the Colts and pretty good one, but I suspect thought he could do better in business than playing football (which I think proved true). Wasn't Jimmy Orr from Seneca?

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Re: 50 years ago - Walter Reed - Visitors


Jan 13, 2021, 10:04 PM

i believe so.

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Re: 50 years ago - Walter Reed - Visitors


Jan 12, 2021, 10:45 PM

Dad saw General Westmoreland walking around Charleston a couple of decades back. Dad recognized him and they spoke for a bit.

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Re: 50 years ago - Walter Reed - Celeb Visitors


Jan 13, 2021, 4:55 PM

Clover .... I had the opportunity to have lunch with General Westmoreland several years before he died. Two other friends were with me and after lunch they had to be somewhere so I sat at the table another half hour one on one with him. I had met him a couple of years before in 2000 playing golf in Charleston. His memory was still very good although he repeated several things, so he was starting to get a little senile. I told him that I thought the young men that fought in Viet Nam were as brave and as good of soldiers that we had ever had. He said he thought so too, but that "the American people just never got behind the war" ..... which of course was an understatement.

We talked about his hometown of Spartanburg at length. He said that his father was the superintendent of a textile mill outside of town and that his father wanted him to go to one of the better schools in town, so at age 12 he said he drove eight or ten miles to town every day to school! He said his father was also a "Citadel Man" and wanted him to go there, which he did for a year before transferring to West Point.

He also told me a story that in the early 60's (1960, I think) that he was invited by President Eisenhour to the White House. After sitting in the oval office just chatting with Ike for about a half hour, Westmoreland was thinking "what is the world did he want me here for" when the President said "I guess you are wondering why I asked you to come to the White House". He said, "yes sir, I was wondering why I was invited". Then the President said "Do you think you can go up to West Point and do something about that #### football team"? Westmoreland said "yer sir" and thus he was appointed as Superintendent at the US Military Academy. He said he promptly hired Paul Dietzel, and according to him, he turned the program around. I am not sure Dietzel was that successful there.

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