Famous Marines:

[bearcat1252]

I am a Greatful man, having served.

[jetdoc]

Jason and Dave, I am still playing devils advocate on Robert Wagner...So far I have posted 3 sites that say he is a Marine:

http://www.usmarinesbirthplace.com/P...t-Marines.html

http://www.kidsthankavet.com/?path=famous

http://www.answers.com/topic/list-of-famous-u-s-marines

I was going to give it up and leave it as is...some places list him, and some do not. I went to one final website, www.HQMC.net I'm not saying its an offical USMC site, but it is a Marine site....and yup, Robert Wagner is listed about 21 down on there, second page..check it out, lol.

http://www.hqmc.net/index.php?option...&limitstart=50

[davblay]

Dave, I think I remember that Rather didn't make it through bootcamp, good one. Do you know what got Rather kicked out?

I wonder if pro boxer Riddick Bowe made it to the photo phase, as he didn't make it either..and yes I agree on Robert Wagner, he is being a hard nut to crack for some reason....Lets see if we can clear up the Wagner thing.

Expert: Dan Rather Exaggerates Military Record Wes Vernon, NewsMax.com Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2002 One of the nation’s top military researchers is angry that CBS News anchorman Dan Rather continues to exaggerate and make misleading statements about his military record. The researcher, B.G. Burkett, says that Rather’s inaccaurate statements about his military service can be found in the new hit book "Bias,” written by veteran CBS reporter Bernard Goldberg. Burkett, co-author of the book "Stolen Valor,” a history of the media’s portrayal of the Vietnam conflict, says he’s tired of Rather’s double-talk and hypocrisy. Case in point are Rather’s claims in "Bias.” Goldberg's book details a confrontation he had with Rather over the anchorman's compulsive liberal bias. Goldberg recounts that when he told the network star in 1996 of his upcoming Wall Street Journal op-ed piece citing a specific CBS News report as an example of left-wing bias, Rather replied he was "getting viscerally angry about this.” "Angry I was expecting,” Goldberg tell his readers. "What came next, I wasn’t. "Rather’s voice started quivering, and he told me how in his young days, he had signed up with the Marines – not once, but twice!” This is not the first time Rather has hid behind the flag and his own military service claims to deflect criticism of his reporting, Burkett said. Burkett added that Rather is greatly exaggerating his record. First, Burkett says, Rather "misspoke” when he claimed he signed up for the Marines twice. He didn’t. And Burkett is flabbergasted that Rather continues to proudly describe himself as a "Marine.” "What he did, he signed up for the military twice, not the Marines,” Burkett said after thoroughly reviewing Rather’s military records. But Burkett notes that Rather "never got through Marine recruit training because he couldn’t do the physical activity.” Rather 'Unfit' As Burkett explains in "Stolen Valor," Rather "was discharged less than four months later on May 11, 1954 for being medically unfit.” As a boy, Rather had suffered from rheumatic fever. "This is like a guy who flunks out of Harvard running around saying he went to Harvard,” Burkett said. Burkett also believes that, far from being a gung-ho military enlistee, Rather’s record shows he deftly avoiding entering the military during the Korean War. Burkett says that Rather was a student at Sam Houston University at a time during the Korean War when "you could be drafted right out of college,” with deferments available only short term, for a semester. "The way he got around being eligible for the draft was he joined a reserve unit – Army reserve but not the Marines.” Rather stayed in the reserve for the entire war. "The second the Korean War was over, and he wasn’t in jeopardy anymore, he dropped out of the Army Reserve. He later graduated from college, and then went into the Marine Corps. So he signed up for the Marine Corps once,” Burkett said, not twice. Rather knows he is skirting the truth about his record, Burkett believes. "He’s made such a big deal out of this ‘I’m a Marine’ thing. I mean, to a real Marine, you’re not a Marine – I mean even though you swore an oath and you’re technically on the payroll, you’re not a real Marine until you get out of basic training. And he never got out of recruit training.” During Rather’s angry confrontation with Goldberg, the author of "Bias” says that "to his credit,” the anchorman emphasized that his Marine service was during "peacetime” so that "he was trying not to sound like some kind of war hero.” Still, Rather never disclosed that his Marine service never got him past basic training. Meanwhile, Burkett is miffed that Rather led media criticism of former Vice President Dan Quayle’s military record during his White House campaign. "This is the same national broadcaster who, night after night during the 1988 presidential campaign, hammered Republican presidential candidate Dan Quayle for avoiding Vietnam by joining the National Guard,” he said. "CBS was particularly heavy on Dan Quayle and his Guard experience. … It’s exactly the same thing Dan Rather did during the Korean War. "If I had been in Rather’s position,” added Burkett, "I wouldn’t even have ever brought up the Marine Corps.” Burkett has tracked Rather’s claims for years. In "Stolen Valor,” Burkett investigated a CBS TV documentary, "The Wall Within,” hosted by Rather. The thrust of Rather’s report was that hordes of Vietnam veterans were dysfunctional, mentally disturbed or harbored guilt because their superiors had forced them to kill Vietnamese civilians. Burkett did his own investigation and found that this was all hype. And while he was at it, he looked up Rather’s own military history. So determined was he that the story be put in perspective that Burkett ended up collaborating with ABC on a "counter documentary” on that network’s "20/20.” This attempt to set the record straight won "20/20” a Cine Award, a significant honor within the industry. "We attacked Rather’s documentary as being a bogus piece of work,” Burkett recalled to NewsMax. Get Bernard Goldberg’s "Bias: A CBS Insider Exposes How the Media Distort the News" and B.G. Burkett & Glenna Whitley’s "Stolen Valor" at a discount from NewsMax. A product that might interest you: Shop NewsMax.com`s store for the best deals on books, tapes, videos and more! Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics: B.G. Burkett - Stolen Valor Dan Rather/CBS Media Bias

[davblay]

Jetdoc, I will concede that there is no definative evidence for Robet Wagoner, however I am willing to concede his service in the Corps, based on the number of threads that say he is a Marine! I am sure it's there, some where, I just haven't found it yet.

Sepmer Fi Jetdoc, thank for giving me something to do for a while, this old cancer patient appreciates it!

[jetdoc]

Hey Dave, no problem brother...I know we both are looking out for the best interest of the Corps and just trying to clear it up...but I'm not 100% sure Robert Wagner, (the actor from the Austin Power movies and Hart to Hart), is the one that was in the USMC. It still doesn't feel quite right. I almost think it could be another actor, and older one, that is the Robert Wagner the websites are talking about?

Semper Fi Dave and whenever I can help you during your day just let me know brother.

[loumueller]

I spent 7 in the Corps and 20 with Army CID (Reserve) Retired unit 1st Sgt.

[MillRatUSMC]

http://www.leatherneck.com/forums/ar...hp/t-9688.html
My two centos on Robert Wagner, the actor.
In his youth, he attended several military academies for his education.
He did some acting in several Marine movies during or just after the war, where he played a Marine.
One being Halls of Montezuma, so some might assume that he had served in the Corps.
Maybe those early experiences in those mititary academies soured him on anything military.
There a Marine officer by the name of Robert Wagner, the link about, was something Ellie posted a few years back.
I think that Marine officer might be a General, but I'm not too sure.
I hope this clears things up on Robert Wagner, the actor.

[jetdoc]

Ricardo, you may have uncovered the mystery sir.

[jetdoc]

Lou, gotcha on being in the USMC for 7 years, IMHO making Gunny in 7 is pretty good.

[LCPLE3]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super-Rabbit

Bugs then turns to the camera and says "This looks like a job for a REAL superman!" He ducks into a phone booth, and both Smith and the horse are ready to attack - until the booth opens and they both snap to attention and salute. Bugs marches out in a Marine uniform, singing The Marines Hymn, pausing to say, "Sorry, fellas, I can't play with you anymore. I got some important work to do," before marching off to 'Berlin, Tokyo and all parts East' while finishing the Hymn.

The U.S. Marine Corps was so flattered that Bugs Bunny decides to become a Marine in this film that they insisted that the character be officially inducted into the force as a private, which was done, complete with dogtags. The character was regularly promoted until Bugs was officially "discharged" at the end of World War II as a Master Sergeant.

I did!

http://www.leatherneck.com/forums/sh...t=49541&page=2

[jetdoc]

Dave, just got around to reading the entire post about Rather..what a tool.

[LCPLE3]

Dave, just got around to reading the entire post about Rather..what a tool.

Look what I found...



Dan Rathers bootcamp photo!

[yellowwing]

That still don't answer the allegations that he made it to Photogs but not the last mile.

[jetdoc]

Kenny, thanks but Rathers pic was posted in the www.kidsthankavet.com links on this page and other pages in this thread.

As what yellowwing said, he didn't make it through bootcamp.

[Dave Coup]

Anyone can get a picture taken wearing Dress Blues. I've never seen a smiling recruit in a real Boot Camp Blues Pic. Sorry.

SF

Dave