SS-267 in the news (link)

[15_the_circle]

[OT from cottage renovations]

after all these years, suddenly a flurry of news activity about artefacts from my late father's WW II submarine the USS Pompon (SS-267).  it was cut up for scrap in 1960 and only after he passed away did I discover that one of its propellors is on display in a riverfront park in Alexandria VA. 

just last week I learned that its bell has turned up and has been donated to the maritime museum in Manitowoc WI where the sub was built. 

a couple of days later I then heard from Washington Post reporter John "Answer Man" Kelly who has come to the aid of surviving crew members who have been trying for some time to get some sort of commemorative plaque added to the display.  in an email he adds a tantalising note: the Naval Historical Centre also has the Pompon's other propellor in its inventory.  somewhere. 

Comments

[peach-salsa.livejournal.com]

Intriguing story.

What was your father's assignment aboard the sub?

[15-the-circle.livejournal.com]

he served as Engineering Officer of the USS Pompon and as Executive Officer (http://www.pacerfarm.org/i-400) of the US Navy prize crew of the HIJMS I-400. 

[peach-salsa.livejournal.com]

I ended up linking to NASA's biography of your father. He left quite a legacy.

[(Anonymous)]

NASA? Where?

[15-the-circle.livejournal.com]

it's on the NASA history site (http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/Biographies/paine.html), also linked to from the I-400 page (http://www.pacerfarm.org/i-400). 

[peach-salsa.livejournal.com]

Hope you don't mind that I mentioned it.

[15-the-circle.livejournal.com]

not at all.  it is, after all, freely available to anybody with an internet connection and a browser. 

[peach-salsa.livejournal.com]

So are a lot of other things that people shouldn't be sharing.

[15-the-circle.livejournal.com]

touché, he replied. 
and to think that my day job is in infosec.

[peach-salsa.livejournal.com]

Your day job could be in a plethora of things. Much like my hero du jour, David Hasselhoff, you own many talents.

[15-the-circle.livejournal.com]

so that's the person whose face graces your defailt icon?  I had been wondering. 

good thing the name was searchable in Google. 
oh, never mind :) 

[15-the-circle.livejournal.com]

point of clarification: when these were posted they were tagged with

but then they all magically changed to

and by the time you see this, well, anything could be there.  teh internets can be like that. 

[peach-salsa.livejournal.com]

I'm...uh...hesitant to say. Mama told me to never give out info to strangers.

[15-the-circle.livejournal.com]

I would never ask you to disregard any maternal directive. 

presumably she didn't raise no fools. 
but wait, she might not want you to disclose that! 
oh, never mind. 

[(Anonymous)]

I've got a picture of Robert playing on that very same propeller. I never saw any name in it. About time it was recognized.

[15-the-circle.livejournal.com]

what an odd world this is, in which I know more than one person whose kid named Robert could have had their picture taken while playing on that propellor. 

next time you're there, take a closer look. 

[peach-salsa.livejournal.com]

I have to leave a new comment since my threads are exceeding my window space.

I love any actor/singer/dancer/80s icon who just won't let celebritydom die naturally. Next week: Gary Cole(man).