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Autumn, 2003 Oct 6, 03
Ahoy Shipmates! Once again, Bill DeMarco is arranging a mini-reunion of all FULLAM shipmates and their guests on Cape Cod for October 31 - November 2. You can contact Bill via phone at (781)-289-1596 or E-mail at billdem99@aol.com for all the details. Sure would be great if a good number of could get together and relive those glory days aboard the "Mighty F". I am sorry to report the loss of another fine shipmate - Eddie Johnson - who passed away on May 30 after a lengthy two-year illness. You recall that Ed was a plankowner and Gunner's Mate aboard the ship. Our deepest sympathy to his family. Recently, the History Channel ran an hour-long feature of the Fletcher-class destroyers. A substantial portion of it was filmed aboard the USS KIDD in Baton Rouge, and, one of our shipmates, Garrett Lynch, was interviewed during the program. Suggest you watch for it as it will surely be shown again; it's part of the channel's "Modern Marvels" series. This production had some great action wartime scenes of the Fletchers; every time I noted a "round bridge "Fletcher, just assumed it was us. A few weeks ago I noticed thiS article in our local paper; By the way, Honiara is located on Guadalcanal. Did you ever wonder how much junk must be on the bottom of good ol' Purvis Bay; I'll bet some of that lunch meat hasn't deterioated yet!
HONIARA, Solomon Islands The government had said it could not control amned militants and criminals. The deployment of the 2,000 troops and 300 police is the largest military operation in the tropical region since World War II. In my last letter I requested you to send me any thoughts you may have about certain "characters: aboard ship. Also, what was your favorite, or, unfavorite GQ station. Here's one from Mike Plessl: "I remember Ben Barret, RM3c, on the Flag - I don't think he ever took a shower when we were underway during an operation - and he would take all his pay in cash and walk around with it - I recall on one watch he laid out all his money on the small desk in the radio shack - had over $2,400 in $20 dollar bills - I told him he was nuts - I'd be afraid to walk aft after a late watch with all that cash on me - he and his father (only relative) didn't get along he told me - I told him to leave it on the books and take only what he needed each payday - don't know if he ever did it -he sure was a weird one!"
Price King sent me the following and have a hunch that
many of you can relate to this:
I didn't think I'd ever get out of there but eventually was moved up to the upper room then later into the mount as the hot caseman. "Red" Malette, Chief Storekeeper, was the charge person in the upper handling room as it was located in the Chief's quarters. During Condition 1 Easy, we could sack out in the bunks there. I used Chief Modrell's as it was close by. Eventually, I, too, wound-up on the bridge but prior to that there was Secondary Conn located on the #2 Stack. While there my duties included that of range setter on the port side 40 mm director of the mid-ship 40's."
After my remarks regarding Nick Angotti, Jerry Ciancia added
the following:
Being from New Jersey, Nick from Paterson, and me from Cliffside Park, just 10 miles away, gave, us a common bond so we gravitated toward each other and became friends. Looking through memories haze, I remember as a fine young man with especially white teeth! Strange how some trivial details stick in the psyche! In any event, he was 'privileged' to share my anchovies which I received from home on occasion. Anchovies? After some of the less than gourmet food served on the "Mighty F", Anchovies were an answer to a prayer and were served in secret up in Angotti's hideaway - the flag bags. Seems so very long ago." Please add after "served" above, "with saltine crackers". Where did these guys find the saltine crackers? On the following pages I have included an article from a recent Naval Proceedings magazine titled; "Crossing the Line is as eternal as the Sea". At first, I thought the Navy is really getting soft compared to all we went through to become "Shellbacks". Then, I checked the name of the author which pretty well explained it all!
Note: This was interested reading but part of the article
was missing from the News Letter. Even though we met several women, both commissioned and enlisted, aboard our visits to the USS BRISCOE at our '98 reunion in Norfolk, it's still hard to imagine women on warships. Why should I change as I approach four score years?
By Ensign Danielle Leppo, U.S. Naval Reserve Crossing the equator for the first time used to be a harrowing experience for those who endured the Royal Baby and the rest of the.' Royal Court. Today, shellbacks still initiate pollywogs with many of the old traditions-but with a little less mess. Crawling through a 50-foot-Iong canvas tube fIlled with three-day-old garbage while suffering blows from a wet, rice-filled canvas bags might be considered punishment befitting only criminals in a prison camp. Regtions on prisoners rights, however, would eliminate even the most unruly convicts from such practices. Who then would subject themselves to such an outrageous indignity? Only an inferior "pollywog" determined to become a distinguished "shellback" during a "crossing: the line" ceremony. Over the years, many sailors have documented these kinds of stories about their crossing-the-line experiences. The ceremonial aspects of crossing the line are similar across time and region, but every ship's crew developed its own unique rituals. As time progressed and the Navy revolutionized its standards and policies, the ceremony changed. The shellback indoctrination I experienced on board the Essex (LHD-2) in the summer of 2001 varied greatly from the indoctrinations experienced by pollywogs four decades ago. Today, the purpose of the crossing-the-line ceremony is for sailors to pay their respects to the mythological god of the seas, King Neptune: Sailors of old used to fear the seas, so they wanted to prove to Neptune they were worthy to pass through his domain, and this time-honored tradition remains. Pollywogs, those sailors who have not yet crossed the equator, become Sons of Neptune, or shellbacks, once the indoctrination is over. The shell backs then become responsible for initiating the next crop of pollywogs into the Royal Kingdom of King Neptune.
Caption under the photo
The crossing-the-line ceremony is a naval tradition that occurs
when a ship crosses the equator. Ancient mariners chose the
equator as the site for the ceremony because they did not think
the waters in the Southern Hemisphere were navigable. Though
its true origin is unknown, reports date the ceremony back to
the time of the VIkings from 800 to 1050 A.D. These earliest
indoctrinations were held to determine whether the novices
among the crew could handle the challenging life at sea, so
they were serious in purpose and very likely the most harsh
and ruthless on record. Once the new sailors proved their
seafaring abilities to the satisfaction of the crew, they
celebrated with a party on board the ship (the foundation of
the "steel beach picnic"). Historians believe the VIkings then
passed the tradition onto the Anglo-Saxons and Normans, both of
whom shaped the ceremony into its modem form.
Male midshipmen and I sang "Tweedledee and Tweedledum," and
we wore t-shirts designating use as Tweedledumb, Tweedledumber,
and Tweedledumbest. It was fun for entertainers and those
being entertained alike.
The Essex also had a gauntlet
for the ceremony. The shellbacks spread a greased black tarp
on the flight deck and placed hoses, which provided steady
streams of seawater, at one end of the tarp. We pollywogs
had to crawl on our elbows and knees through the streams
of water, and at the other end of the tarp shellbacks
attempted to drive us back with hoses. We had it easy
compared to pollywogs of the past, who had to crawl
underneath a cargo net strung a foot above the tarp.
In addition, they had shellbacks paddling them during their
entire struggle.
The only indoctrination ritual that has
remained constant is the pollywog breakfast. The breakfast
traditionally consisted of fried sea horse roe; sliced
jellyfish, fish eye soup, and grouper sauteed in kelp Juice.
In actuality, the meal was simply fried potatoes, sliced
bread or'pancakes, runny scrambled eggs, and greasy bacon or
sausage. Everything was doused with green food coloring and
Tabasco sauce. While the pollywogs of 40 years ago had to
finish their "wog" breakfast, we only had to taste everything
on our plates. Of course, the leftovers offered the perfect
fodder for numerous food fights between pollywogs and shellbacks.
The physical and psychological stress shellbacks inflicted on
pollywogs several decades ago would be illegal today. In 1997,
after NBC's Dateline documentary on the Marine Corps' blood
pinning ceremony for jump-qualified Marines, Defense Secretary
William Cohen requested that each service secretary institute
a zero-tolerance policy for hazing. On 1 October of that year,
Secretary of the Navy John Dalton introduced SecNav instruction
1610.2. With regard to shellback initiations, it stated,
"'crossing-the-line ceremonies' . . . are only meant to
celebrate and recognize the achievements of individual
Sailors or Marines or those of entire units." The instruction
stated further that service members must support their
shipmates, and it declared any type of degrading or humiliating
behavior to be illegal. It defined different forms of hazing,
such as shaving, greasing, forcing the consumption of food,
playing tricks, or inflicting bodily harm on another service
member, all of which were part of the shellback initiation
ceremonies of the past.
Since then, ship commanders have made strides in removing
involuntary forms of hazing from crossing-the-line ceremonies.
In addition, participation in the ceremony now is completely
voluntary. Despite the restrictions, several of the
crossing-the-line rituals from decades ago still persist.
They include the Royal Bath, singing and dancing for the
Royal Court, the gauntlet, and the pollywog breakfast.
On board the Essex, the making of the Royal Bath was
transformed from the 1940s' four-foot-deep pool full of sea
water and diesel oil to two-foot-deep pans filled with
seawater, but the concept behind the event remained the
same. Pollywogs are supposed to shout "shellback" three
times while being immersed in the water. In the 1940s,
shellbacks dunked pollywogs in the pool, so wrestling to
the surface to say "shellback" was quite a challenge. On
the Essex, the pollywogs dunked themselves, then rose to
the surface and screamed "shellback" three times in quick
succession.
The tradition of singing and dancing for the Royal Court is .
a harmless, entertaining event that gives pollywogs an
opportunity to dress in costumes and make fools of
themselves. When I went through the shellback initiation
ceremony, two other fe
Crossing-the-line ceremonies have
become less strenuous and violent and more entertaining
and rewarding as a result of the Navy's antihazing policy.
On board the New Jersey (BB-62), shellbacks used to hold a
boxing smoker for the pollywogs on the night before
crossing the equator. Today, a talent show commences
the night before the crossing that includes such acts as
karaoke, stand-up comedy, singing, and dancing." The Juneau
(LPD-IO) has used the ceremony as an opportunity to run a
Navy and Marine Corps Relief Society fundraiser. In January
1998, shellbacks on board the Juneau hosted a bingo game
for pollywogs, raising more than $5,000 for the relief
fund.
Even though the crossing-the-line ceremony has
changed greatly since its creation, it has changed for
the better; No longer is it a test of a sea apprentice
to determine whether he has what it takes to endure the
hardships on the high seas. Today, it is a fun celebration
that enhances camaraderie. It is a tradition that will
remain as eternal as the sea.
'Destroyer Escort Sailors Association,
"Life Aboard a DE: Pollywog to Shellback-A Tradition,"
www.desausa.org/pollywoli-to.-shellback.htm/.
Henley E. Coombs, Shellbacks: Sons of Neptune
(New York: Pageant, 1951), p.12.
Bluejackets.com, "Sea Service Traditions, Terms and customs: Crossing the Line," www.bluejackets.com/tradition.htm#crossing/.
Joseph J. Pessato, "Shellback Tradition Is Alive and Well on USS Juneau," www.c7f.navy.mil/newsnfreI097.html/.
Coombs, Shellbacks, p. 19.
SecNavInst 1610.2, neds.nebt.daps.mil/directives/sI61O%5F2.pdf/.
SecNavInst 1610.2.
Life Aboard a DE. "Life Aboard a DE."
Pezzato, "Shellback Tradition Is Alive and Well on USS Juneau."
Equator '68IU"SS New Jersey (BB-62), Firepower for Freedom (San Francisco:
USS New Jersey, 1968), D-II-A-!.
Pezzato, "Shellback Tradition Is Alive and Well on USS Juneau."
Pezzato, "Shellback Tradition Is Alive and Well on USS Juneau."
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Now for the good news and the bad news. The good news is
that so long as I am able I will continue to publish this
letter as I must admit that I enjoy it. The bad news is
that although I would like to do so I am unable to subsidize
its cost, and, the fund is down to the point where there is
just enough to cover this and one more letter; each letter
has averaged $96.07 since the last postal increase. I really
appreciate the support I have received from a number of you
and hope you can continue; needless to say, death has taken
some of our givers. Anyway, any. amount will be appreciated
so thank you in advance!
Since the next letter will arrive in 2004, here's wishing
each of you and your family a Great Thanksgiving, a Merry
Christmas, and a most Prosperous New Year!
Your old shipmate, |
