American Celebrities in the Armed Forces - 6 Quiz

Answer: Harvey Korman

Records for Harvey Korman's service in the military are rather scarce, but according to his obituary, he left college to join the Navy during WWII. He served in active duty for the remainder of the war before moving to the Naval Reserve in 1945. He remained in the Naval Reserve from 1945-46 after the war before studying drama and entering show business. Vicki Lawrence never served in the US military. Both Tim Conway and Lyle Waggoner served in the US Army.

Answer: 2

Sid Caesar was trying to make it as a musician in the late 1930s when he decided to join the US Coast Guard in 1939. He was first posted to Brooklyn, NY, to serve as part of the unit that was responsible for entertaining the troops. Later in his military career, he was stationed in Palm Beach, FL, where he once again entertained troops with comedy sketches and music.

After his service ended in 1945, he and his wife moved to California so he could pursue his career in entertainment.

Answer: Dependency discharge

Robert Mitchum was drafted into the US Army during WWII. He served from April 12-October 11, 1945. According to one biographer, Mitchum worked as a medic in the Army, checking recruits for venereal disease at their initial medicals. His "Washington Post" obituary states that he was given a dependency discharge. That occurs when someone in the soldier's immediate family relies on them for support because of a death, or sudden onset of a disease. No mention is made of who he was being released to support.

He was a Private First Class when he was discharged.

Answer: Cesar Romero

Romero joined the US Coast Guard in October, 1942. He was posted aboard the USS Cavalier in November, 1943. That ship was in the Pacific where it is reported that Romeo was involved in the invasions of both Tinian and Saipan. Romero served in the military for three years before he was discharged and returned to the US where he had begun his career in entertainment before the war broke out.

He was able to pick up where he left off, starring in movies and television through to his final television role in 1993.

Answer: The death of Carole Lombard

Carole Lombard and Clark Gable were married in 1939. They apparently made one another extremely happy. She was traveling home in a plane after she had completed a movie and a tour where she promoted war bonds in 1942. Unfortunately, the plane crashed, killing all on board. Apparently, Gable was despondent and felt the need to enlist to take his mind off the tragedy and do something for his country.

He joined the United States Army, under the Army Air Forces, in August, 1942. He finished the officer training program, and was commissioned as a second lieutenant.

He was sent to Europe where he was engaged in five combat missions as an observer-gunner. He was promoted to major before being discharged in June, 1944. As a side trivia note - his discharge papers were signed by Captain Ronald Reagan, the same man who would be inaugurated as President of the United States in 1981.

Answer: Telly Savalas

Telly Savalas was drafted into the US Army in 1941 in the early stages of WWII. He did not see active duty in the war. Instead, he was stationed in a Medical Training Regiment at Camp Pickett, Virginia. He remained there until 1943, when he was discharged because he suffered a broken pelvis and other injuries in an automobile accident.

He attained the rank of corporal before his medical discharge.

Answer: No

At the age of seventeen in 1943, Winters left high school and joined the US Marines. He was deployed to the Pacific until his discharge in 1946. He did not serve in an entertainment corps. Rather, he was stationed aboard the aircraft carrier Bon Homme Richard. The ship was part of the occupation force at Yokosuka. He had reached the rank of corporal when he left the Marines in 1946.

Answer: Yes

When Elvis was drafted into the US Army in 1958, he was given the opportunity to choose between serving in the Special Services unit where he would recruit new troops through entertainment and play concerts for existing troops, or serving active duty as a regular soldier.

He stated that he wanted to be treated as a regular soldier, so he went through basic training, and was stationed in Germany. He recorded some songs while on leave, and, despite serving as a regular soldier, he had a number of top ten hits while he was in the military.

He was discharged from the Army in 1960 at the rank of Sergeant.

Answer: The US Army branch that manages information

Asner served in the US Army Signal Corps in the early 1950s. The Signal Corps was first developed in 1860, and came to have an important role in the US Civil War and every conflict thereafter. The Signal Corps is responsible for managing all communications and information that is shared within the US Army and with coalition forces around the world.

Besides serving in the Signal Corps, Asner also acted in plays to entertain the troops while he was stationed in Europe.

Answer: US Navy

Rod Steiger dropped out of school and ran away from home to join the US Navy when he was 16 years old in 1942. After basic training, he was stationed aboard the USS Taussig (DD-746). He saw action in the Pacific as a soldier manning the torpedoes. He was in the Battle of Iwo Jima, during which a number of other destroyers were sunk, but his ship survived.

He also survived a severe typhoon, during which he had to lash himself to the deck to prevent himself from being washed overboard by the 80-foot waves. Steiger took a drama class when he was discharged from the Navy, developed his career as an actor, and went on to many starring roles including in the film "In the Heat of the Night" (1967), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor.