Johnny Carson
Military service: MOS:JOBTITLES
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Once in drydock, Carson, assigned to damage control, was given the task of supervising the removal of the bodies of 20 servicemen and their effects. He recounted the experience in an unpublished 1967 ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' interview, stating "Jesus, that was an awful experience. They'd been down there for 18 days by the time, and I want to tell you, that was a terrible job." Carson returned stateside with the ''Pennsylvania'' to [[Seattle]] and was assigned to command a troop train for returning servicemen. He finished his service in Guam, decoding encrypted messages.Bill Zehme. ''Carson The Magnificent.'' New York: Simon & Schuster, 2024, {{ISBN|978-1-451-64527-9}}, pp. 130–132. |
Once in drydock, Carson, assigned to damage control, was given the task of supervising the removal of the bodies of 20 servicemen and their effects. He recounted the experience in an unpublished 1967 ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' interview, stating "Jesus, that was an awful experience. They'd been down there for 18 days by the time, and I want to tell you, that was a terrible job." Carson returned stateside with the ''Pennsylvania'' to [[Seattle]] and was assigned to command a troop train for returning servicemen. He finished his service in Guam, decoding encrypted messages.Bill Zehme. ''Carson The Magnificent.'' New York: Simon & Schuster, 2024, {{ISBN|978-1-451-64527-9}}, pp. 130–132. |
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Carson later said that the high point of his military career was performing a magic trick for [[United States Secretary of the Navy|U.S. |
Carson later said that the high point of his military career was performing a magic trick for [[United States Secretary of the Navy|U.S. secretary of the Navy]] [[James V. Forrestal]]. In a conversation with Forrestal, the secretary asked Carson if he planned to stay in the Navy after the war.{{cite book |last1=Corkery |first1=Paul |date=August 1, 1987 |title=Carson: The Unauthorized Biography |publisher=New York, Kampmann & Co. |isbn=978-0-942101-00-3 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/carsonunauthoriz0000cork }} In response, Carson said no and told him he wanted to be a magician. Forrestal asked him to perform, and Carson responded with a card trick. Carson discovered that he could entertain and amuse someone as cranky and sophisticated as Forrestal. |
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While in the Navy, Carson was an amateur [[boxing|boxer]], with most of his bouts fought on board ''Pennsylvania''.{{cite web|url=http://www.boxing-scoop.com/show_boxer.php?boxer_ID=12192 |title=Johnny Carson Amateur Boxing Record |publisher=Boxing-Scoop.com |access-date=May 22, 2012|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111042637/http://www.boxing-scoop.com/show_boxer.php?boxer_ID=12192|archive-date=November 11, 2012|url-status=dead}} |
While in the Navy, Carson was an amateur [[boxing|boxer]], with most of his bouts fought on board ''Pennsylvania''.{{cite web|url=http://www.boxing-scoop.com/show_boxer.php?boxer_ID=12192 |title=Johnny Carson Amateur Boxing Record |publisher=Boxing-Scoop.com |access-date=May 22, 2012|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111042637/http://www.boxing-scoop.com/show_boxer.php?boxer_ID=12192|archive-date=November 11, 2012|url-status=dead}} |
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