Bob Hope: Christmas 1970, Camp Eagle

Camp Eagle Christmas Show

by Byron Edgington

Here's another vet’s recollection of Christmas in Vietnam, and the Bob Hope USO Show.

Bob Hope and his troupe came to Camp Eagle/Hue’ Phu-Bai at Christmastime in 1970. (I forget the exact date but it was pretty close to Christmas Day). 

Hope brought with him:

The Gold Diggers, a Hollywood manufactured gathering of singers, Lola Falana, Ursula Andress, Les Brown and his Band of Renown, of course, and a 22 year-old ballplayer my colleagues may remember, the 1970 National League MVP, a fellow by the name of Johnny Bench.

Johnny Bench with Bob Hope

 I remember Hope and Bench did a funny routine:

Bench: “I’m surprised you asked me to come with you on the tour, Bob.” 

Hope:  “Why are you surprised, Johnny?” 

Bench:  “’Cause I’m not a girl.”

Hope continued bantering with Bench for awhile, and then he introduced Lola Falana, a sexy, movie star and Las Vegas performer who had also done a Playboy spread.

The Gold Diggers sang and danced next as I recall, and then Hope did more of his schtick.  As I remember, the show lasted about an hour.

Lola Falana and Bob Hope

It concluded with all of us singing Silent Night, which made a bunch of tough, hard as nails military men get all sloppy and tear up, or maybe it was just the humidity?  (At least this guy teared up, I admit).

Being 12,000 miles from home at Christmas and hearing that familiar tune wash over me, sent me back over all those miles and made the war go away, if only for a few minutes.

The balm of its message was the opposite of what we all experienced day after day in Vietnam.

The Hope show gave me another war story, a kind of closure, that some may call coincidence, but I’m not sure it was.

A few years later, I was back home in Ohio and flying a Huey for the Ohio National Guard out of Columbus. 

The Ohio State Fair takes place in August, just north of downtown Columbus.  That particular fair, the director had requested a Huey and crew to be posted at the fairgrounds, out in the infield, to be used for medical evacuation -- if that became necessary. 

I was assigned the mission one day, so I flew the bird to the fairgrounds, shut it down in the grass directly opposite the grandstand and stood by.

The Gold Diggers

An hour or so after I landed, a group of young women wandered over to the aircraft and introduced themselves. There were four of them, and they were to be the day’s entertainment at the fair ...

They called themselves The Gold Diggers ... 

Yes, they had been at Camp Eagle in December 1970. 

Yes they did remember the show at which I was in attendance. 

Yes, they said, they would like to take a ride in my Huey. So, I took them for a quick helicopter tour of Columbus, and thanked them for their efforts. 

I can still see their smiles, as we cruised around above the Ohio State Fair, and I was finally able to return a gift those young women gave me one Christmas a long time ago, so far from home, at least in part.

Happy Holidays to my fellow vets, and to CJ for putting this blog together. Thank you.

Byron Edgington

Byron Edgington

The SkyWriter

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Blog
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Other Articles by Byron Edgington:

History/Archival Sites for Vietnam Vets
Vietnam: Arriving at the Truth
Do Guns Equal Safety?
Laotian Rescue Mission
Ho Chi Minh
Terror and Hilarity
A Return to Vietnam
The War That Will Not Let Us Rest
War: A Waste of Youth
The Right Seat is the Wrong Seat
Jim, Frank, and The Snake
Smokey, The Alcoholic Pup

“I am only one, but I am one. I can't do everything, but I can do something. The something I ought to do, I can do, and by the grace of God, I will.” ~Everett Hale


Feel free to comment on this post. You are also invited to write about anything you want to share. Memoirs From Nam is YOUR blog. You are writing America's history.

Send it to me in an e-mail and I will be proud to post it for you.

1967 Bob Hope Christmas Show: by Robert L. Bellville

Robert L. Bellville

Well CJ, the Bob Hope Show I saw was held on the 24th of December 1967 in Lai Khe, Vietnam.

 
It was a real treat for us to see Bob Hope along with all the other entertainers he brought with him.

I remember one of the first things that came to my mind was memories of watching this great American on television as a kid, as he put on Christmas shows for our troops all around the world.

Now here I was, a part of one of those shows.

Bob Hope - Raquel Welch

Some of the guests he had with him were:

Raquel Welch
Miss World
Phil Crosby
Les Brown with his Band of Renown

I know there were many more, (especially a lot of good looking girls), but I don't remember who else now. I do know that myself and all the troops just loved them.

As always, Bob made many jokes, one of them being: 

“I hope Charlie knows there is a cease fire on and he doesn't send any rockets our way.”

I sat there remembering all the Christmases past and thinking, “Now here I am, 12,000 miles from home.” It was different, but Bob brought part of the world with him that day for the 1st Infantry and the show was great.

To me Bob Hope was and will always be one of the greatest Americans ever.

Robert L. Bellville

U.S. Army - ’66 - ‘67
Vietnam

“I am only one, but I am one. I can't do everything, but I can do something. The something I ought to do, I can do, and by the grace of God, I will.” ~Everett Hale


Feel free to comment on this post. You are also invited to write about anything you want to share with other vets.  Memoirs From Nam is YOUR blog. You are writing America's history ...