Volume 9, Number 2
USS MANLEY (DD-940) ASSOCIATION
May 1, 2007
The “White Hat” Goes AWOL
The American Bluejacket’s White Hat goes
AWOL, goes overboard, deserts, is flushed
down the toilet. This news is of interest only
to you who have worn the fabled “White Hat”
or were around those who did. For those of
you who have not had any recent contact with
the Navy you may have some confusion arise
when seeing a picture or actual Sailor, identi-
fied as an American who is not wearing a
uniform you recognize.
Sometime in 2008, a total of seven uniforms
will be deleted and two totally new designs
will replace them. The work uniform will be a
digital camouflage deal resembling the
Army/Air Force/Marine/Seal/Seebee ground
pounding look including bloused boots for all
hands from Seaman to Admiral in a blue-gray
color scheme. The hat, or cover, will be the
Marine six point visor cap. Keep reading, it
ain’t over.
To take the place of what we once called un-
dress blues or service dress blue -- salt and
pepper -- aviation greens -- whites of all kinds
-- will be a khaki shirt and black trousers for
all seasons and a fore and aft cap for all
troops E-6 and below. Rank will be pined on
the collar and maybe the hat. The belt may be
khaki or black, who knows?
Navy Times has had extensive coverage on the
uniform issue. Anyone wanting to get the full
story can log onto their site for more info. One
final item: the Navy dress blue uniform will
remain in the sea bag for “ceremonial
events,” white hat and all.
Maybe the silk lining in my dress blues with
the dragons on the inside of the cuffs and the
“dixie cup” perfectly rounded tipped forward
on my head was un-regulation, old-fashioned
and not twenty-first century Navy, but it was
the hallmark of a once cocky, lighthearted
American Bluejacket, a worldwide symbol of
the sea slayers of iron monsters and evil naval
power pretenders.
It was the insignia of my
pride when I strutted down the gangway of
aircraft carriers, sub tenders, and destroyers
on my way to ratchet up the pace of life in the
world’s sleepy seaports.
I recall decades ago, Admiral Bill Flannigan
asking me for my thoughts on the (at the time)
new uniform. My response was terse and
caustic perhaps. He then directed my atten-
tion to the signature page in Uniform Regs.
We didn’t talk much after that. Goodbye “old
Navy.” Hello, er, sailor!
Homecoming Reunion Awesome!
“On a scale of 1 to 10, I give it a 12!”
Reunion planners did not disappoint; the promise of the most exciting
reunion ever was fulfilled in Norfolk, Virginia April 19 - 23, 2007 when
The Homecoming Reunion dropped into port. At the moment the
lights were dimmed for the opening ceremonies on Thursday evening
to the tearful farewell breakfast four days later, two hundred plus
attendees put the years aside and became a singular crew of ship-
mates and friends. It was, to borrow the words of one, “...the most
outstanding, most memorable event in my life. I will never forget this
time.”
Tattoo pageantry wows reunion group
Eighteen months of planning seemed to vanish in a blink of an eye as
time passed quickly with one spectacular cast of performers following
the other on a stages of teak, metal, water, and asphalt.
A video show opened the festivities on Thursday mesmerizing the
crew of the early sixties dressed in their briefs as they paraded
through the hazing lines that initiated them into the realm as shell-
backs.
A memorial service with the backdrop on the USS Wisconsin (BB-64),
uniformed color guards and pipers was highlighted when Mr. Carlos
Clanton of the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce sang of the
Star Spangled Banner. The Association President, Joe Dennison,
delivered a very stirring eulogy to an audience sitting motionless as
they absorbed each and every word praising shipmates, memories,
adventures, and character. The eulogy can be found at
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