re: World War 2 soldiers who went on to be famous

Almost every major young sports star in the early-mid 50s was a vet. You know when you meet these guys there's just a different aura to them. I met Bob Feller at an autograph signing and he pissed off his Gen Z show handlers because instead of the standard 10 seconds of diving and a quick selfie, he gave just about everyone what felt like forever. The guy in front of me had one of his old hats and they talked for a good 2 minutes. We talked and I learned how much he loathed the people wanting to get rid of the Indians name/logo.

A couple years ago at the NRA convention there was a little old man at a table selling a book. I passed by twice before going back on the last day. The book was about those on Tinian Island before and after the bombings. I always shake hands, look then in the eye, and say TYFYS whenever I meet that generation of vets. The guy at the table was one of the guys on the ground who made sure the planes were full of fuel and maintained well. I got home and the front page of the book was just full of signatures. It's sad that they were our last great generation who still commanded respect but also returned the favor. I get that boomers got jaded by Vietnam but they started the "snowball" which has brought us to the current degenerate generation who don't even comprehend respect for those who came before them.