9 Friends: The Same and Different

Neither Jack nor Alice had traveled outside of California. Their friends and family centered around Sonoma County where Alice was born and Jack had moved as a child. The trip to Dallas was a big one for both of them, both in distance and in exposure to new people and ways of life.

Alice and Jack on their first anniversary
5 April 1943, Dallas

Bonnie and Joe Carson

Jack’s fellow students came from all corners of the U.S., the majority from California, New York, and Michigan.[1] Some brought their wives, and soon Jack and Alice had a “gang” of compatible folks of the same age and in the same circumstances. Some would become lifelong friends.[2]

One of the wives remembered, “Before the men would report back to classes, five or six couples would gather in front of the cafeteria, sit on the iron railing surrounding it, soaking up the sun most of the time, and this is how we really became acquainted.”[3]

Rocky and Margaret Mitchell, Nick and June Radsky, Alice

Bonnie Carson, Betty Hahn, June Radsky
A sunbathing day in early spring

Newlyweds Ike and Marion Kurland

The wives enjoyed practical jokes, too, and joined their husbands in a wedding night prank.

Marion and Abe [Ike] were getting married and came [where the wives were living] for a room. Mrs. Taylor told them the only room vacant was very small and a very small bed. They told her, “That’s all we need.” We fixed the bed up with rice and hung the cow bell under the bed. You [Alice] and Jack, June and Nick, Betty and Ralph, Bonnie and Joe and Pat and I [Betty] gathered in one of the rooms closest to theirs and waited half the night for them to come in. When they finally came in we didn’t hear a thing! The bed was pretty saggy, and with their weight in it the cow bell must have hit the floor. The joke was on us![4]

Living in Texas brought unexpected cultural differences. Jack and Alice had had little contact with people of other races and ethnicities. Their Dallas experience opened their eyes. They enjoyed going to the show together and took advantage whenever they could. Once they arrived at the theater to find two lines, so naturally they stood in the shorter one. They soon became aware that people were laughing at them. But why? They learned that they were in the “Colored” line, so they quickly moved to the correct line for them, the one for whites.[5] Alice and her friends made the personal acquaintance of the U.S.O. janitor Maas, an older black man who commented that they were the nicest white folks he knew.[6] He was probably the only black person they knew.

Marion Kurland, Maas, June Radsky

One of Jack’s closest buddies, Leo “Ike” Kurland, joined Jack in teasing instructors, and he and his new bride Marion were part of “the gang.” As school ended and members of the group were readying to go their separate ways, Jack made a thoughtless joke that struck Ike at his core. It was a simple rhyme, meant to be funny, but Ike’s response must have been unexpected, as Jack noted it in his journal.

The last day we gave Ike a royal send-off by giving a squadron 3 boos for Ike the kike. This made him quite angry.[7]

Ike was Jewish, and kike is an extremely offensive term for Jew. It’s generally used in a hostile, contemptuous manner.[8] Jack probably didn’t realize the actual meaning and power of the word. He used it lightly, unwittingly hurtful and disrespectful to his friend. His diary doesn’t say what happened next, but given Jack’s sensitive nature, he probably apologized to Ike.

Bob Azevedo, Jack, Vasil Voikides

We turned in our books and school in Ds. A. S. was over. We were promoted to Private First Class now & we drew four dollars a month more Ha. After several days of laying around we left for Indianapolis. It was terribly hard to leave Alice again, but I knew she would be with me again soon. Voikides and Bob & Ike & I were split up now. Ike was going to Gunners & Voikides went to his home town [Detroit] to school. Bob & I were on our way to Allison Engine School at Indianapolis.[9]

Jack and Alice enjoyed their Dallas stay immensely. At the same time, they were certainly aware of U.S. involvement in war. American forces, ships, and planes fought in Germany, Italy, China, North Africa, the Solomon Islands (northeast of Australia), the Aleutian Islands (Alaska Territory), and the Philippines.[10] Jack’s enlistment in the Air Corps meant he might go anywhere. His next assignment would narrow the options.

Top row: 1 Willard Gilmer, c/o Jackson City Police, Jackson, Michigan; 2 Ray Haller, 3746 17^th Street, Detroit, Michigan; 3 Jim Standefer, 2563 Ulric St., San Diego, California; 4 James A. Kissock, Salem, Mo., Route I; 5 W. Ray Long, 2926 S. Smedley St., Phila., Pa.; 6 Jack J. Kellar, Santa Rosa, California; 7 Rocco J. Mitchell, 253 Mascy St., Duryea, Pa.; 8 [blank]; 9 Leo I. Kurland, 54 Peacevale Rd., Dorchester, Mass.

Middle row: 1 Nick Radsky, 65 Central St., Hallowell, Maine; 2 Ralph J. Freeman, 16 Apple Grove St., Ecorse, Michigan; “Eddie” Ten Eyck, 149 So. Second St., Mechanicville, N.Y.; 4 Marvin L. Cox, Plush, Oregon; 5 Charles P. Simmons, 115 Patchen Ave., Brooklyn, N.Y.; 6 John T. OBrien, 45 So. So. Carolina Ave., Atlantic City, N.J.; 7 Wm. A. Tisserand, 765 N. Raymond Ave., Pasadena, Calif.; 8 Ugo Alfaro, Route 2, Box 11, Mt. Airy, N.C.

Lower row: 1 Barney Katzman, 289 East 95^th St., Brooklyn, New York; 2 Elmer E. Cox, Rt. 4, Box 339, Hanford, Calif.; 3 Robert J. Azevedo, 1004 Irwin Street, San Rafael, Calif.; 4 Vasil T. Voikides, 13565 Hasse St., Detroit, Mich.; 5 Jack H. Larson, 126 Jefferson St., Helena, Mont.; 6 Robert W. Rehbein, Post Engineers, Camp Cooke, California; 7 Aaron Binderoff, 544 Williams Avenue, Brooklyn, N.Y.

Not pictured: F. B. Fieseler, 17 Belleview Ave., Ossining, New York.

“Class A-2—’43,”class photo, Dallas Aviation School, Artcraft for U.S. Army Air Corps, spring 1943, verso

Many thanks to friends and family who graciously helped shape this post: LaBrenda Garrett-Nelson, CG®, Miriam Weiner, CG®, Joanne Kellar, and Larry Fox.

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[1] “Class A-2—’43,”class photo, Dallas Aviation School, Artcraft for U.S. Army Air Corps, spring 1943; held by the author. Jack’s classmates inscribed their names and addresses on the back of the photo. See photo above.

[2] Personal recollections of the author, who accompanied her parents on visits to visit buddies in Maine and Indiana in 1962.

[3] June Radsky (Hallowell, Maine), letter to Alice Streeter Kellar, March 1982, on the occasion of Jack and Alice’s fortieth wedding anniversary.

[4] Betty Hahn (Evansville, Indiana), “Happy Number 40,” letter to Jack and Alice Kellar, 25 March 1982.

[5] Personal recollection of the author, who heard this story several times during her lifetime.

[6] Alice Streeter Kellar, comment to the author when talking about a photo of Maas, 1990s.

[7] Jack J. Kellar, “My Life in the Service,” diary, 22 October 1942–July 1943; held and transcribed by the author.

[8] Dictionary.com (http://www.dictionary.com/browse/kike). Also, Merriam-Webster (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/kike). Also, Collins Dictionary (https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/kike). All dictionaries were accessed 6 February 2018.

[9] Jack J. Kellar, “My Life in the Service.”

[10] “Timeline of World War II (1943),” Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_World_War_II_(1943) : accessed 8 February 2018), February 1943–May 1943.