Dan Rather
Dan Rather has had a long-standing career in American journalism and was the news anchor for the CBS Evening News. Rather claims to have served in the US Marine Corps, but it seems this claim may have been used to serve his ego. Bernard Goldberg did some digging to find out the truth for his book, Bias. Coauthor, BG Burkett, says that during a conversation he had with Rather about a Wall Street Journal op-ed piece claiming Rather has a left-wing bias, he became noticeably angry. “Rather’s voice started quivering, and he told me how in his young days, he had signed up with the Marines – not once, but twice!” he stated. According to Burkett, this is greatly exaggerated. Rather did serve, but he did not join the Marines twice. He was in the Army Reserve during the Korean War. When the Korean War ended Rather finished college and then signed up for the Marines, but never even made it to basic training.
Henry Fonda
Henry Fonda enlisted in the U.S. Navy as a seaman during World War II. He worked in operations and air combat intelligence, and earned a Bronze Star and a presidential citation for his bravery. He achieved the rank of lieutenant before his discharge in 1945.
Don Rickles
Don Rickles, the insult comedian extraordinaire known as “The Merchant of Venom,” was in the Navy at the end of World War II, from 1944 through his honorable discharge in 1946. A Seaman First Class on the USS Cyrene, he sailed from Norfolk, Virginia to Papua New Guinea as the ship escorted torpedo boats, followed by convoy duty in the Philippines. Rickles would later describe one deployment, “It was so hot and humid, the crew rotted.”