Claim to Fame: Steve McQueen's Dogs Barked at me

The SUNDAY MORNING CBS NEWS SHOW had something on their show yesterday about Steve McQueen.   I confess I did not actually see what they had, but when they said it was coming up It brought back memories of the time I was looking at the two big barking dogs in Steve McQueen’s back yard. 

1967.  The Naval Reserve Squadron I was in went to NAS Yuma, Arizona, for two weeks of training.   The weekend was no duty.  We were free to do whatever we wanted, or could afford.  To made a long story short, or save for another blog, I will fast forward to downtown Las Angeles  that Saturday morning  I rented a hotel room.   At one point on Saturday I was sitting in the hotel’s huge lobby, near a window hoping to see a movie star walk by.

Then I saw my immediate boss for these two weeks, Chief Sprung, stroll by.  He was carrying a small suitcase.  I did not wave my arms or anything to get his attention.  I was looking forward of being alone.

He walked out of view of the window.  Whew!

Then he backed up back in the window’s view and waved.  Shit!

He rushed in waving and asked where was I staying.  “Here” I said.

“Great!” he said, he was having a hard time finding a room, he will just move in with me.  I said, “Great!” and secretly rolled my eyes.

The next morning, Sunday morning, he got on the phone.  He called an old Navy friend of his that worked as a technician for Disney Studios.

His friend came and picked us up and carried us back to his home in Hollywood Hills.  His wife was Asian.  They lived in a very nice modern house.  They were both very nice and congenial.  Chief Spung and his old Navy friend had a lot of catching up to do.  “What ever happen to blab bla la la”

The wife saw that I was left out of their conversation so she moved over towards me and started talking.  Then there was two conversations going on at the same time.  The wife guided me out of the room to show me around and have a more one on one conversation.  She showed me the rooms of the house, which I don’t remember and showed me the landscaping in the back yard. 

Two big dogs in a fence, adjacent to their side yard were barking at us.  She told me that was Steve McQueen’s dogs.  They knew her and wagged their tails when she talked to them but kept a guarded eye on me.

Steve’s house looked like a normal brick house, it was not a mansion.  The dogs were big, but I don’t remember what kind.