On the TunneySide of Sports December 7, 2020 #825 Up next… Sacrifices – too much to ask?
After further review… Seventy-nine (79) years ago today, December 7, 1941, I was an altar-boy serving the 11:00 am mass at St. Therese Catholic Church in Alhambra, California. At one point during that mass, Father Patrick walked to the microphone and announced, “The Japanese have just bombed Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.” It was, of course, a total shock to those parishioners attending mass.
While some U.S. citizens knew of a “possible” Japanese attack on America, most were surprised at the “sneak attack” (as some called it) although U.S. troops were in Europe fighting the attacks that Nazi’s Adolf Hitler had launched there. Our life changed dramatically that day.
Our family home was in San Gabriel, just some 25 miles from the Pacific Ocean where we were told Japanese boats and airplanes may be located to attack California. We were not allowed out at night and even had to cover our windows so no light could be seen. Our gasoline was rationed and our family car – we only had one – was issued a sticker for the amount of gasoline we could purchase. We had an “A” sticker since dad was a schoolteacher.
Food was rationed and dutifully cared for. “Duty” was a keyword since we had to conserve and cut-back on our normal lifestyle. Housewives were called out-of-the-kitchen to replace the men eligible for military service. Thus, “Rosie-the-Riveter” became an often-used phrase. Some of the collateral damage was that all people of Japanese ancestry were interned in “camps” with our government believing them to be of a threat. We were mistaken.
The usual January 1st, 1942 Rose Bowl game scheduled to be played in Pasadena, California (some 25 miles from the coastline) had to be moved. Since Oregon State was scheduled to play Duke, the game was relocated to Durham, North Carolina, home of the Duke Blue Devils. Their stadium seating capacity was only 35,000 so bleachers were brought-in from nearby sources. The Oregon State Beavers squad of 31 left Corvallis by train on December 16th with the 32nd T*E*A*M member, Chiaki “Jack” Yoshihara, waiving from the platform since, being of Japanese descent, he was not permitted to travel with the team. Oregon State won 20-16.
As we deal with our current “war” of COVID-19, we, too, must endure sports schedule changes and non-attendance. Fortunately, more than adequate TV, internet streaming, not in existence in 1941, keeps us informed about our sports teams and players. In WWII 291,000 (approx.) U.S. military were killed in the years of that war. As of today, 245,000 have died of the virus in less than one year in the U.S. Is it too much to ask to follow the CDCs suggested guidelines?
Will you make every effort to wear a mask and maintain social distancing when required?
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Stories from Jim’s adventures and people he has met can be found in “On the TunneySide of Sports” books now on sale just in time for Christmas giving. See the website for products.
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Thank you!
Jim Tunney
