During the first week of November 1944, we got an overload of returnees. So the Captain sent a Lieutenant, me, as head of Supply and Recreation, a cook and six other fellows down to Santa Monica to service them until they had room for them in Santa Barbara.

In Santa Monica, the Service Command Unit, 1916 (SCU1916), was a very small unit set up to house about 600 enlisted personnel who were very talented actors and musicians. They would go around to different posts and entertain the troops. They also had two girls doing all their clerical work.

Officially, I had nothing to do with them. We were only concerned with the Returnees well being. We'd have Roll Call, feed them, give them a 24-hour pass and send them on their way. Sometimes I'd take a group on a studio tour. I'd also post activities that they might be interested in such as movies, dances, museums, sporting events etc.

By noontime, I was free to do whatever I wished to do. Most of the time I'd go swimming at the beach, and in the evening, I'd go down to Santa Monica pier and take in a dance. I met a gal who really enjoyed dancing. Phyllis lived in San Bernadino. She would come into Santa Monica on Saturday, rent a motel for the night, and go back on Sunday. Her husband was in the service overseas. The following week, she invited me over for dinner before we went out to the dance. She really prepared a fine meal along with a bottle of wine. While she was cleaning up, I fell asleep on the couch. I wasn't used to wine I guess, but I woke up just in time to go dancing. I really got attached to her. She really taught me how to "french kiss" though. I'd hitch hike to San Bernadino during the week just to get some more of those french kisses.

Around the 1st of November 1944, The University of Southern California was going to play football against St. Mary's College, so I talked Sgt. Andy Phinos and a mormon friend of ours into going to the game that afternoon. That morning though, Andy had invited one of the young gals, who worked for the SCU1916 and who wasn't married, to have lunch with him in our mess hall. Man we really had a good cook; he could order from his suppliers anything he wanted to prepare. The young gal was always doing favors for Andy such as typing up reports etc. This was his way of saying "Thank you." So, when we were all sitting down eating, I asked her if she would also like to go to the game with us. She said she would ask Major Matthews, her boss, if she could. He okayed it, so we hopped a street car and headed for the Coliseum in LA.

At the end of the third quarter, our mormon friend said he had to meet someone in LA, so he took off. And just before the end of the game, Andy said he had to visit someone in LA. I felt funny because I figured she was his date. So after the game, I asked her if she had to go home right away. She said no, so I suggested that we go to Hollywood to eat and then go dancing at the Palladium. Woody Herman's Band was the main attraction.

I enjoyed the evening and we got along fine. Her name was Rochelle Markowitz; she lived with her parents about five blocks from where we worked. She had given up her job as a dental assistant and gone to work under Civil Service so she could meet more boys. She was thin, about 5ft-4in with beautiful black hair, and weighed 98 pounds. You couldn't help but look when she wore a sweater; there was more than a mouthful and she knew how to dress.

The following day, she asked me to go with her to visit her girlfriend, Harriet Feldman. As we were walking along, I told her that personally, I was looking for an older woman, one that would be looking out for me, that was mature, and ready to settle down. Rochelle said that she was also looking for an older man, one that was through chasing around. She was 23, I was 25. Well I didn't give it much thought, but on the way home, I asked her to go to a movie the following night. The movie was "Going My Way" with Bing Crosby.

We went to the movie. About half way through, it got very sentimental and she, yes I said she, she reached over and held my hand. Oh boy, have you ever been near someone and wanted to touch her? Well I sure did, and was extremely pleased that she did. During our walk home after the movie, we sat on a bench in the park, still holding hands. I asked her how much she liked me, and she said well enough to kiss me. The door was open, so I planted a goodie on her. Oh me, I was in seventh heaven. From there on out, it was just Rochelle and I, a fairy tale romance.

I made one more trip to San Bernadino to tell Phyllis that I was committed and she wished me good luck. I made if my business to go over to Rochelle's office, and when no one was around, I'd kiss the heck out of her. We really became a hot item. It got so bad that Sergeant Simon would announce over the loudspeaker, "There goes Bing and Rochelle, walking hand in hand at the west end of the compound." Later on he'd announce, "There goes Bing and Rochelle, walking hand in hand into the office." There was no doubt about it; she had me hook, line and sinker!

On our next date, we were sitting on another bench and she took off her earrings. They were the clip-on type with a square shape. She put one on my finger, and one on her finger. We were officially engaged. Happy? You'd better believe it.

We talked about kids; she wanted four; that was great with me as long as they looked like her. I told her that I was definitely going back to school and that I wanted to be a physical education teacher. Hey, we had everything mapped out; we agreed on everything.

Now was the time to tell our parents. She was Jewish and I'm a Presbyterian, I guess. I couldn't see any problems as long as we both believed in the same God. But neither of our parents saw it that way. I took over a big box of candy when Rochelle invited me over to meet her parents. Big deal, it's a wonder they ever accepted it. Her sister Mary put in a good word for us. But it was a "done deal" on her parent's part that if she married that Indian, she might as well never come back.

My dad figured that I knew what I was doing, so he mellowed out. Not so with my mom. She always felt that no woman was good enough for her boys. She disliked all of my brother's wives at first.

I asked the Lieutenant how much money I would need to get married and he said that a hundred dollars would be just fine. I was short just ninety, so I figured we'd get married January 1st (1945), right after payday.

We caught up with all the Returnees in the middle of December and our Unit was sent back to Santa Barbara. I was staying in a room at the Biltmore. I got into a crap game and won 35 dollars, so I phoned Rochelle and told her to quit her job and come to Santa Barbara and we'd get married. When she arrived a couple of days later, I met her at the Montecito Hotel where I had a room for the night. I tried to get her to jump in bed with me right then, but she said I had to wait. So we jumped on a bus, went down to the Courthouse, got our license and had a Judge marry us in his chambers. It was December 20, 1944, six weeks to the day from our first meeting! Just how long would that marriage last? As we walked out to hop a bus back to the hotel, we joked about a ten minute ceremony being all it took to make it legal to jump into bed.

Back to the hotel and it was wham, bam, thank you ma'am. What did I know about foreplay? It must have taken a month before I realized that I was the only one experiencing the thrill of sex. From there on out, it was a two-way street.

The next day, we rented the servant's quarters on a beautiful old estate about a mile away from the Biltmore. Mom got a transfer from Santa Monica to the Mar Monte Hotel, still doing clerical work. As you will recall the Mar Monte Hotel was under the jurisdiction of the Army. I'd meet her there after work and we'd go either to the beach or to the Biltmore to swim. Either place was a pleasure.

In February 1945, we invited Emily to come and visit us. One night, we were going to a stage show at the Biltmore. We missed the bus, so the only way for us to get there was for the three of us to get on a bicycle and ride down the hill. Emily sat on the seat, I was standing up on the pedals, and mom sat on the handlebars. What a sight? Both of them were dressed to kill, and laughing all the way down. We took the bus back.

Several times we hitch hiked down to Santa Monica to see her parents. It was about ninety miles away, but a piece of cake to catch a ride. We had to take a bus to see my parents.

What was I doing on May 7, 1945 when Germany surrendered? I was swimming in the Biltmore pool. I had the oddest feeling, knowing that I would soon become a civilian.

On May 17, 1945, my Commanding Officer sent me back to Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia. I was to attend a Recreation School for six weeks. On the way there, I stopped off in Chicago to meet Rochelle's younger sister, Claire, and a group of her old girlfriends. They took me to lunch at a large hotel. She sure had some good looking girlfriends.

The six weeks of school flew by. All I remember is that it sure was hot and humid. I don't think I learned anything, so I was very anxious to get back home.

Right back to my job of seeing that all the Cadre were involved in some kind of recreational activity. I took the swimming team down to Long Beach for a meet. I was called in to substitute for one of the swimmers in the last 200-meter relay. One of our fellows had pulled a hamstring, so I swam the last leg of the race. The guy I was to swim against was the Olympic Champion, Duke Paoa Kahanamoku, a member of the Hawaiian Royal Family. The big "kahuna" was past his prime. He had a four-yard head start on me; but he just beat me by a whisker.

The following month, I swam against "Tarzan," Johnny Weismuller. It was a 50-meter exhibition for all the Returnees. At age 40, Johnny was also past his prime.

On August 5, 1945, we dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. The second atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki, Japan. On August 10, 1945, Japan sued for peace.

With the war ended, the Government decided to start discharging the boys on a point system. Since I'd been in the service only two weeks short of five years, I had a lot of points. For me, the good news came on August 15, 1945. On that date, they sent me down to Fort McArthur in Long Beach for discharge.

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