# Any US soldiers that served in WWI, WWII, Korea, and Vietnam? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 26, 2011, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-us-soldiers-that-served-in-wwi-wwii-korea-and-vietnam/579744 "2011-04-26T05:05:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Donnerwetter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Donnerwetter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donnerwetter)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-us-soldiers-that-served-in-wwi-wwii-korea-and-vietnam/579744/41 "2016-02-17T17:04:08Z")
Absolutely not what the original question was about, but remarkable nonetheless: > [@](#): > > Vietnam veteran continues service in Afghanistan > October 21, 2012 > > LOGAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan (Oct. 21, 2012) – Ask Chief Warrant Officer 4 Walter Jones why he serves and he will tell you, “It’s all about flying and Soldiers.” > > Jones, born in Mountain Home, Idaho, is serving in Afghanistan as an aviation maintenance officer with D Company, 5th Battalion, 101st Combat Aviation Brigade. Jones enlisted in the Army at the age of eighteen and after completing basic training in 1969, went on to Fort Rucker, Ala., to become a UH-1 “Huey” crew chief. Soon after that he found himself assigned to the 162nd Assault Helicopter Company in Can Tu, Vietnam. > > […] > **[Vietnam veteran continues service in Afghanistan](https://www.army.mil/article/89633/Vietnam_veteran_continues_service_in_Afghanistan/)** > > Ask Chief Warrant Officer 4 Walter Jones why he continues to serve 43 years after he first joined the Army and he will tell you, ---
**Author:** ![Damfino](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Damfino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Damfino)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-us-soldiers-that-served-in-wwi-wwii-korea-and-vietnam/579744/42 "2016-02-17T20:12:20Z")
> [@Fleetwood](#): > > That was in WW1. After being forced out of that position, he served in the infantry in France. He was Prime Minister in WW2. Before becoming Prime Minister Churchill was indeed re-appointed as First Lord of the Admiralty , prompting a general message to the Royal Navy , “Winston is back!” Even as Prime Minister he was in harm’s way, flying unescorted a number of times across the Atlantic and from North Africa. There is a theory that the civilian aircraft carrying actor Leslie Howard home from Gibraltar was shot down by the Germans in the mistaken belief that Churchill was aboard ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-us-soldiers-that-served-in-wwi-wwii-korea-and-vietnam/579744/43 "2016-02-17T20:21:46Z")
> [@Donnerwetter](#): > > Absolutely not what the original question was about, but remarkable nonetheless: Not that remarkable in the National Guard. I’ve had several soldiers stay in until mandatory retirement age. Some had long breaks in service others just kept doing it part time for decades. One of our trucks had a 60 year old gunner who was a Marine veteran of Tet and his vehicle commander had been a Navy swift boater. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-us-soldiers-that-served-in-wwi-wwii-korea-and-vietnam/579744/44 "2016-02-17T20:26:13Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Not that remarkable in the National Guard. I’ve had several soldiers stay in until mandatory retirement age. Some had long breaks in service others just kept doing it part time for decades. One of our trucks had a 60 year old gunner who was a Marine veteran of Tet and his vehicle commander had been a Navy swift boater. In fact [here is Andy.](http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-265043) ---
**Author:** ![drewder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/57b2e6/32.png) [@drewder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewder)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2016, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-us-soldiers-that-served-in-wwi-wwii-korea-and-vietnam/579744/45 "2016-02-18T00:36:48Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Not exactly it, but Omar Bradley (1893-1981) retired from the military after Korea but was an important advisor to JFK and LBJ and did visit Vietnam and meet with brass. ([Picture](http://www.stripes.com/polopoly_fs/1.160647.1321143014!/image/3861012114.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_490/3861012114.jpg) of him in Vietnam.) My understanding is that a five star is never actually retired so that would count. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2017, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-us-soldiers-that-served-in-wwi-wwii-korea-and-vietnam/579744/46 "2017-09-19T12:48:54Z")
I was visiting a senior living place last month and they had a wall with pics and info about residents who served in the military. One of them served in WWII, Korea, Vietnam and “Dessert”\* Storm. Wow. - At least spell it right if you’re honoring someone like this. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2017, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-us-soldiers-that-served-in-wwi-wwii-korea-and-vietnam/579744/47 "2017-09-19T13:53:17Z")
I served with a Master Chief who got into the Navy at the end of WWII. (at age 16) He may have made it to Desert Storm but I am not sure. So he was in over 40 years already when I knew him but was only around 58. I know he got bumped up from our Cmd Master Chief to Fleet Cmd Master Chief. I checked, he never made the final step to [Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Master_Chief_Petty_Officer_of_the_Navy#Master_Chief_Petty_Officers_of_the_Navy). He joked his wife was a light weight and retired a Sr Chief after only 30 years. All that said, WWI to Vietnam would be quite the long stretch. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2017, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-us-soldiers-that-served-in-wwi-wwii-korea-and-vietnam/579744/48 "2017-09-19T14:58:34Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > An 18 year old in 1918 would have been 65 in 1965, too old to be even a senior commander, who are usually late fifties. From my (limited) experience in the US Army, and my understanding of its 20th Century history, no one is going to be allowed to stay in the service for 50 years or until age 65, unless they are a high-clout general or admiral, and even then it’s a stretch. So I think Bradley, Rickover and Eisenhower are as close as we’re going to get. No sergeant or field officer could qualify. Though to nitpick, you could have been younger than 18 in 1918 to qualify. Plenty of kids lied about their age to enlist. > [@Otara](#): > > Rickover had 63 years service, but started in 1922. > > [Hyman G. Rickover - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyman_G._Rickover) > > So fair chance someone did it somewhere. > > Otara I don’t know if it was there 6 years ago, but his wiki page today says: > [@](#): > > Rickover’s active duty naval career began in 1918, during a time when attending military academies was considered active duty service, due in part to World War I. So he was technically on “active duty” in 1918 when he was a freshman at Annapolis. I don’t know if that counts for the OP’s purposes. ---
**Author:** ![Mhensley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@Mhensley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mhensley)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2017, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-us-soldiers-that-served-in-wwi-wwii-korea-and-vietnam/579744/49 "2017-10-03T23:00:05Z")
I can’t remember his name but he was the General in charge of the selective service system during the Vietnam War. His service began in the national guard in something like 1912 and he didn’t retire from active duty til around 1972. If anyone can find his name please post it. ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2017, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-us-soldiers-that-served-in-wwi-wwii-korea-and-vietnam/579744/50 "2017-10-03T23:55:41Z")
> [@Mhensley](#): > > I can’t remember his name but he was the General in charge of the selective service system during the Vietnam War. His service began in the national guard in something like 1912 and he didn’t retire from active duty til around 1972. If anyone can find his name please post it. [Lewis Blaine Hershey](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Blaine_Hershey) ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2017, 7:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-us-soldiers-that-served-in-wwi-wwii-korea-and-vietnam/579744/51 "2017-10-04T07:20:41Z")
> [@Jim\_s\_Son](#): > > In the 19th century Winfield Scott served in the War of 1812, Mexican War and Civil War. Ol’ Fuss and Feathers also served in the [Aroostook War](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aroostook_War) _and_ the [Pig War](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pig_War_(1859)). It seems that they just couldn’t have a war without him. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2017, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-us-soldiers-that-served-in-wwi-wwii-korea-and-vietnam/579744/52 "2017-10-04T10:11:01Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > One of them served in WWII, Korea, Vietnam and “Dessert”\* Storm. Clearly he was in the Catering Corps. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-us-soldiers-that-served-in-wwi-wwii-korea-and-vietnam/579744.md?page=2)