Dick Day

Above is Dick Day at a beer pavilion at the NYC World’s Fair in 1965. And also is a promo picture of Dick now, today, present times.

We were in the Navy together. In our Squadron, HU-4, Dick was the journalist. He put out a monthly squadron newsletter and also sent news about homeboys to their home town newspapers.

Once he and I (mostly he) printed, on mimeograph, a magazine of prose called ALL THERE IS. We couldn’t give it away.

Before he came in the Navy he was in the doing showbiz kind of things in NYC. Dick was quiet person, in a well-trained-voice sort of way. He had a very subdued wit about him, sort of like a time bomb… you had to think of what he said, and maybe even go to the dictionary. Then it would hit you and it was a riotous funny.

Dick introduced me to many things in the way of liberal arts, such as jazz music and literature. I wished he handed out some kind of diploma or certificate for all he taught me… but then, he might want tuition fees or something.

We got out of the Navy not too far apart, maybe a month or two. Me first.

He became a radio announcer as soon as he departed the Navy. I visited him in Harrisburg once and he and his wife took me out to eat at a lobster house.

For ten years or so we kept up our communication lines. And that was before email! We would sometimes write letters and sometimes dictate into a cassette player.

And through the years he and his wife visited us several times, which we usually took them to Atlanta. Then, there were not much in Cobb County to see in the way of dining or entertainment.

They would usually drop by coming back from a trip south to Florida. Once, while they were visiting our Schnauzer bitch Schatzi had puppies.

I often wonder what ever became of my old Navy friends. As you know, Reuben materialized, and is retired and living in Thailand. I never knew what happened to Dick (and others).

Then, yesterday Rueben emailed me and said while watching the National Geographic channel special about 9/11 one of the newscasters in D.C. was Dick Day. With a little surfing and research he discovered Dick Day was working at WTOP in Washington, DC, and sent me a link.

Thanks Reuben.

I’m glad we are still alive.

Below I and Dick Day are trying to pull out the ghostly spirits of a pot and cast them into a herd of goats – New Hope, Pennsylvania – 1964 or 5.