Kearney, US Navy Experiences circa:1958-1961

Cruise Book cartoon map from 1960.

Deck-hand Kearney aboard the USS Southerland, comes along side another Destroyer for a "high-line" drill, out in the Pacific.

"Tin-Can" sailor Kearney holding on during a storm at sea!




US Navy days!





Hamamatsu, Japan. I went to this village to visit a friend Saburo Ito, and these folks showed up too. Shot with a plastic Kodak Brownie camera. circa:1959

Studio photography of Seaman Kearney, shot in Yokosuka, Japan.circa:1959


Join the Navy and see the world! Well, what's a guy to do after he gets out of High School? Maybe head down to San Diego,CA and go to USN boot camp. It gives a young guy a new out-look on life. Because I could draw cartoons, that did get me into some interesting projects. My first assignment out of boot camp was working on training aids at the US Navy Training Center, San Diego. Then after a year of shore duty it was out into the Pacific for three years on varies ships. Japan, Hong Kong, Philippines, Hawaii...were some of the ports. I also went through the stormy seas of "Cape Horn" around South America, just like my ancestors, only they were coming from Ireland. They were on small wooden sailing ships, I was on an Aircraft Carrier.
Kearney the old salt! In Kobe,Japan. I knew how to put that curl on my sailor hat and wear it low to the eyebrows! At this time I was aboard the USS Dixie, a Destroyer Tender. Our home port was Yokouska, Japan a very wild town! Being 6'2" meant remembering to keep your noggin down when going through one of those many solid iron hatches!This was one of my water color impressions of a beautiful Hawaiian Island scene.This was from one of my illustrated letters to home, when I was aboard the Aircraft Carrier FDR. Note: my nick-name was Spike.Kearney hits the port of Rio de Janeiro here in front of world famous "Sugar Loaf".
Post card of Rio, showing Sugar Loaf.The Disney movie "Saludos Amigos" featured a terrific song: "Brazil". That film and song along with "The Three Cabelleros" made a big impression on me as a kid. They had wild and wacky animation. Little did I know I would later visit "Sugar Loaf" and also work with Bob Carlson,Lee Blair,Larry Kilty, Disney animators who worked on those films. I even worked as an "in-betweener" with Bob on national TV commercials.

No comments: