The VD Hat

I watched the movie Annapolis last night and it brought back memories of my Midshipman days. I won an NROTC scholarship as did several other '49ers. I chose to go to the University of Southern California.

While on a summer training period at Corpus Christy, Texas, There was a drill competition between schools (the Junior class of all 52 schools in the NROTC program). Drill at USC, and I assume at the other schools, was plain vanilla. I told the other USC guys that I had attended Hargrave and knew some fancy drill steps.

We had about an hour to practice. I had been in the Best Drilled Platoon in 1946 and remembered how to do Double to the Rear, Oblique and To The Winds steps. These USC guys picked it all up in that hour of practice and we wowed them at the competition.

As I was the one barking out the commands, I was rewarded with being made Battalion Commander for the next phase of training. When you watch Annapolis, notice the rank stripes. The senior co-star company commander had two. I had SIX. Notice the blue rims on the sailor hats the midshipmen wear.

When on a summer cruise to Europe, we noticed that the local girls would not have anything to do with us. We found out later that the sailors told the girls that the blue rim on the hat meant that we had venereal disease.

Leon Rue
leonrue@adelphia.net
Band Company '49