Hist - Rem LaMar-11

Well, as long as I've found the picture, would someone explain to me why they moved AFVN there? When I left in '68, we were in the Plaza, the Ky Son and a bunch of other hotels. What happened? By the way, I'm still on line off the network.

Roger: Too bad I never had the pleasure. Wish I had.... Pat Sajak published a newsletter for the longest and I remember him mentioning you. We'd have gotten along famously. You sound just nuts enough to have been fun to work with. Sgt Banks.... Sgt Banks? Nah, don't remember him. And that's strange because I never forget talent...he must not have been very talented.

Did they still the AFVN short-wave transmitter on the coast when you were there? Anybody remember the short-wave we had for the Squids in the gulf? ("Squids" is my new word for the week thanks to Ken K. I used to call them sailors. Go figure.)

And what's this about moving out of the Plaza. We were also in the Rex and the Ky Son. Barracks? Nobody ever told me about AFVN staff being in a barracks! When did that happen?

Paul and the others who worked in Saigon can correct me if my memory has faded...as I get older, I get better in retrospect ...but-as PD-I do not recall "banning" or being ordered to ban any records that were sent to us by AFRTS-LA. Even the controversial Star Spangled Banner played at a baseball game by Jimmy Hendricks was off-lined off the videotape (it might have been a kinescope) but we got a tape of it and with an "on air" explanation of the furor it had caused when Walt Munson refused to air it over AF Thailand TV, we played it one Sunday afternoon on Panorama. We did play "Ruby," though and we had most of the Hair soundtrack from the AFRTS weekly program "Footlights and Soundtracks". The Ah ha, though comes from some of the songs were not aired over AFRTS. Some of you guys may not know this but there were any number of artists during the Vietnam conflict that refused to give AFRTS-LA permission to press it on our disks and send it out to the field. Go figure. We got blamed for not playing ...damn, what was the name..."Universal Soldier!? And we couldn't-not because we banned it but because the record company or artist refused us broadcast rights. I used to know a dozen songs like that. Perhaps one of the AFRTS-LA folks can enlighten us.

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Cal LaMartiniere, TSgt, USAF (1966-1968) - 11