MASH quote "Goddamn Army" or my dad entered the Twilight Zone

[Omaha Steve]

X post from GD.


My dad was drafted and began his service in the US Army on Oct 6, 1941. He was honorably discharged on Aug 7, 1945 on points. That info is on his discharge paper.

When dad was young his birth records were lost on a court house fire. Today we learned his US Army records were as suspected, lost in the disastrous fire at the National Personnel Records Center on July 12, 1973: http://www.archives.gov/st-louis/military-personnel/fire-1973.html

The records of almost all ARMY personnel from 1912-1959 were lost forever. Millions of files.

They don't even know his date of birth or birth place. No record of his being in the 25th Div, 35th Infantry Regiment as an anti-tank gunner in the Pacific Theater.

No record his platoon went in to clear out a cave and only only two paltoon members survived the fight on Guadalcanal. No record of hand to hand fighting on Luzon. No record of his Combat Infantryman Badge. No record...........

The only record we have is what is on his discharge paper. The last time it was officially needed was for his funeral so he could have a military honor guard at his funeral over 20 years ago. Mom always made sure we had it in a safe place even after that.

I had hoped his record would fill in some of his service to Uncle Sam. Dad very rarely ever talked about the war.

With the records lost by fire it seems it would be hard to prove dad ever existed. The Twilight Zone!

OS

And When the Sky Was Opened: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0734555/plotsummary?ref_=tt_ov_pl

The astronauts Lieutenant Colonel Clegg Forbe, Major William Gart and Colonel Ed Harrington disappear from the radar for 24 hours during an experimental flight with the model X-20. They crash on the desert when they return to Earth and Major William Gart breaks his leg and has to stay in the military hospital. However Forbes and Harrington are immediately discharged and they go to a bar to celebrate. Out of the blue, Harrington does not feel well and calls his parents that do not recognize him. On the next moment, Harrington vanishes from the booth and also from the newspaper and only Forbes recalls him. He runs to the hospital and Gart has no recollections about Harrington. When Forbes leaves the room, he disappears and then Gart and the X-20 model.