Show Family Weekly December it im Our GIs Gave Me trimmad a Httte Christmas tree and twryoni bung on ornament or piaea of tinsel on the tree I distributed the then waa no repetition of that incident Aboard the plane we had beautiful medala wbkh Cardinal McIntyre of Loa Angeles bad given me to praaaat u a Chriatmu rift to all the people who were living up their own holiday to entertain the home sick lonely boys Later that da I overheard Clay Daniel the aealatant director on the show any to Bob “You have the gift about what to do in can of an exand what other precautions to taka Needlesa to say we listened I haven’t said much about Non on this trip bat she continued to be a Joy White in Thailand Bob decided to play a trick on her and when he asked her to take a bow (be always Introduced his family to the men) he told her to do a few stepe of the WatuaL If he thought she wouldn't he was greatly mistaken because Non would nther dance than eat and she called out to Lea Brown "Give am a beat I" and started to dance It struck the troope so funny that Bob repeated it every show after that- - always pretending he was shocked at her uninhibited KoQy settled for a quick bow and a when be was introduced Turn Sou Nhut the heat was intense The memben of the band suffered because of the glam off their been given very specific instructions plosion j of making tha guys on every base fed that thia was the one place you'd bean waiting to play" And Bob ana wared quite aerioualy "Strangely enough whan I walk out there that’a exactly how I feel every I i j n 7 Vi -- Ti Dob made every boos Mem Kke ike one place Mi been eooftinf le play single time every single show There isn’t n place yon can Uaa off Every base mattera every man" I think that Bob’s foaling on this particular matter waa reflected by everyone in his troupe Every show was a renewal Every aaUlag face every pair of applauding hands waa a gift It was two straight weds of Christmas for us and we were the onao receiving the preeenta Tan Son Nhut waa an aipetioncs in tension The motor cavalcade from tha airport found ua la staff can with ed machine Jeeps preceding and following us It was in Saigon two years before that the Viet Cong had tried to kill Bob as a gun-mount- symbol of the resistance and the military was going to nmke sure ‘ instruments and tha direct rays of the eon Nora stayed backstage and acted as runner for icoeold towels which wmre kept in galvanised buck-et- a The musicians put the welcomed towels on the backa of their necks and not one of them passed out however hot the music I waa sitting out la the audience with the then Premier and lfrs Xy sad Gen William Westmoreland but the heat waa lessened by the huge straw hat I had been given by the troopa in Thailand FeBowlwg t’is performance Bob went to visit the patients at the Srd Field Hospital and Nora accompanied hiss It upset her greatly but aha figured if her father could do it so eould she I dont think Nora ever realised before Just bow much it gets to Boh however often ho hM made thorn painful Journeys through the wards He would laugh and Joke with the patients white he was in the ward but outside he would grit his teeth set his Jaw and get ready for the next group of men Pm sure they never knew how hia heart broke for them because he never showed the sadness he felt In front of them On Christmas Day the Army had selected for tha show two tecationa which were particular hardship and the other posts One waa n was Both worn far forward whan the men nelly needed cheering at Christmas I know I never Di-A- Cu-C- hi t felt so welcome anywhen in my life They gathered at the roadside to wave to ua as wo drove to the show ana their faeee as bright sa Christmas trees The mud was ankle deep and the security guard in strong evidence I knew that in an outlying perimeter other boys had to keep guard to insun the safety not only of the troupe but of the thoumnda of awn who would gather to see the show Then wen UNO of them at n 10000 at Beth shows wen received with delight The Armed Fereas Radio carried the sound portion of the show to troopa in outlying anas who couldn't get then for the performances Later Bob spoke to tha various outfits by walkiotalkie The only time he choked up during the trip waa when aome youngster said over that crackling field phone "Thanks for the memory Mr Hope" At the troupe was divided into twos and threes ao that — enlisted man’s mew hall would have someone from home as guests Their dinner waa absolutely wonderful It was ao marvelous that it waa obvious the Army cooks wen extending themselves to make the day a little mon bearable for these lonesome boys Although then was supposed to be a trues scattered Incidents occurred all dap-o- ne of them only thne- mile from the show a of quartan aits The group of boys to whom Bob had been sent at lunch time wen involved they killed two Viet Cong and captured two othen within 20 minutes of tha time be left them You eould hear the gunfln from when the show waa setting up Later as other Incidents occurred Cu-C- hl Di-A- would break I took a leaf from Bob’s book though and I was able to hold back the tears until I walked off Christmas night bade in Saigon beck home our phone we including one to Jerry Coionna who was missing his first trip in 14 years Dear Jerzy sick aa be had been really wanted to try to make the trip but hia docton refused flatly Conditions In An Khe and Qul Nhon where Bob and the show were scheduled to go on Doe 26 were so rugged that the presence of two more women would have been a burden or so I felt As a result Nora and I made pleas to fly ahead to Clark Field in Manila where Bob and the "t Cu-C- hi the artillery up near the Iron Triangle began to fire The tew booming accentuated the apprehension I felt - for the large audience although the ' guns wen mites' away the that afternoon at wounded men In their blue pajiunaa wen in the front few rows some of them with bottles of glucose attached to their arms othen on stntchen or in wheel ehalrs Not knowing that the cast would sing "Silent Night" at the conclusion of tha show the 'medics began removing the litter-born- e Cu-C- hl wounded too quickly Wo began to sin? as they moved thorn boys aeroM the area in front of the stage and I thought my heart The wounded eould never teU hew much Bob’s heart broke for them troupe were to arrive on Dee 29 And finally we ended our trip at Loa Angeles’ International Airport We had had our little "family Christmas" Wo had shared soma experiences which were ao deeply moving that I wanted to get up on a soap-bo- x and shout "Listen to me America do you know what you have over there? Do you hnow Juat how wonderful they are?" As I write this I’m not aura where Chriatmaa 1947 will find me Who knows perhaps beck In Saigon with Boh I can say this for certain: If any of your boys saw our bat show In Vietnam please thank them for the Hope family for their wonderful gift to ua O ' Femilf Weekly Detemker IT 1MT |