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The E-Mail Newsletter for SIS, ASA and INSCOM Veterans who served in Germany or Austria
Army Security Agency/Signal Intelligence Service
Forces in Germany and Austria
Volume 4 - Number 6
July 1, 2008
Ralph R. Thadeus - Editor
E-mail
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ASMN
Well the note about Maier Gustl‟s sure got some responses but don‟t know how good they are. The first problem was to get the correct spelling and that‟s as it is in the first sentence as copied from the photograph at the right. Google “Maier Gustl‟s” and you will get pictures of the old place. (This one is about as good as I could reproduce). It now seems that it has moved from the old location near the Bahnhof to Münchner Str. 56 where it is now called Maier Gustl‟s Bayrisch Zell. The next guy visiting back in Frankfurt check it out and report back to us.
Getting old is verschissen. I could have sworn that Maier Gustl‟s was the place with the telephones on the tables but feedback from you guys pretty much shot that down. I don‟t think it was the Odeon either. Both Peter Strauss (Salzburg 53-54) and Jim Landmann (Giessen 52-54) think it was the Trocadero and that kind of rings an old bell in my head.
Chuck Bowen (BA/Hof/Bindlach/Coburg/Bamberg 52-54) and Ray Lash (Scheyern 53-57) also think it was Gustl‟s that had the phones while Jamie Johnson (Scheyern 53-55) thinks it was the Moulin Rouge.
Speaking of Ray Lash and verschissenen memories, Ray had to remind me that he was the “poor schmuck” that had to ride shotgun with me up to Frankfurt. I can‟t remember if it was Lash that accompanied me on my tour of the better Frankfurt drinking spots but it was a night to be remembered - if only I could remember it. I think that was the trip to Frankfurt where I tried out my German on some young Freulein in the Bahnhof with the salutation Wie geht's?, which garnered the reply “in zie bushes.” (Bad joke)
Ed Cleary (Herzo 68-69) added a little info to the Adidas story by relating that he was told that Adidas was started by two brothers in Herzo but later got into an argument. One brother bought the other out and then went across the street from the Adidas plant and started the Puma plant. Ed was just there in May and says that the base is now gone and Adidas has pretty much taken over the location.
Carl “Big Z” Zelich (Bad Aibling 59-63) confirmed this story adding that the brothers were experts in designing shoes for runners and they were used in the 1938 Olympics.
Speaking of going back to Germany, Chuck Bowen in his Meier Gustl‟s info said he will not be able to make the reunion since he will be busy going back to Germany for his annual visit. Tough work Chuck.
Al Poland (Bad Aibling 54-56) said that the Meier Gustl‟s comment opened up his memories about arriving in Frankfurt for the first time. Al said that after a full day or orientation, one of the “old timers”, who had been there for 2 or 3 days, offered to take us out and show us a “great place to drink beer and have fun.” Naturally it was Meier Gustl's. He continued, I ain't never seen a place like this. This was Frankfurt's version of the Hofbrauhaus and it rocked. Al knew at that point that he was going to love Germany.
After getting a couple of requests regarding how Colonel Quentin L. Zell was, I gave a call to his home in Naples, Florida. The Colonel wasn‟t in but I did talk to his wife Dorothy. It seems that the Colonel was out riding his bike – not bad for being 88 and all. (Hey Colonel, start wearing a helmet on those bike rides.) The Colonel has slowed down a bit in his tennis playing, because of back problems, but, according to his wife Dorothy, hopes to resume tennis in the not to distant future. To those of you not familiar with Col. Zell, he was our Commanding Officer at Scheyern from 1953-56 and one heck of a fine man.
Small world isn‟t it? William R. “Bill” MacDonald (Scheyern 48-52/53-5) writes, in regards to the previous month‟s Herzo article, that he was called for jury duty a couple of weeks ago but was ultimately rejected. Since he is retired he decided to stick around and watch the trial. Bill continued “The plaintiff's attorney was a woman who had a slight German accent. At the lunch break I approached her and asked if she were German. She said that she was and I asked where she came from. She said: 'Ach, a little town in Bayern, you never heard of it.' On a whim I said 'Herzogenaurach?' and her mouth dropped about a foot. It was her home town. Later I shared a lunch table with her and she asked me to observe the jury while she made her presentations and to let her know how I thought they were reacting. I did that, and later, darned if the opposing side's lawyer didn't ask me to do the same thing. Small town jury trials are something else.” Bill concluded his note saying he hopes to see us all in Saint Louis this October.
REUNION 2008
The Planning Profiles have been compiled and the reunion logistics are in their final stages. Don‟t forget to get your hotel reservations in by the end of July. Go to our web site, by clicking on it in our Masthead, if you need information.
FACTS AND FIGURES ON THE BERLIN AIRLIFT
- The Berlin Airlift began on June 26. 1948 and ended 14 months later on August 27, 1949.
- It was carried out by the Western Allies in response to the Soviet-initiated blockade of West Berlin.
- On June 24, 1948 the Soviets cut all road, rail and water links through communist East Germany to the western part of the divided city. This was in retaliation for the inclusion of West Berlin in West Germany‟s monetary reform program.
- The airlift delivered 2.34 million tons of food, coal, fuel and other vital supplies to Berlin‟s 2.2 million inhabitants.
- More than 277,000 flights involving 300 aircraft took part in the operation, the biggest of its kind. At the height of the airlift planes were taking off and landing at 90-second intervals.
- On a single day, April 16, 1949, some 12,940 tons of heating fuel and food were flown to Tempelhof and West Berlin‟s two other airports, Tegel and Gatow, an achievement that made it into the Guiness Book of Records.
- Another notable achievement was the work of 19,000 Berliners, many of them women, who worked day and night for 85 days to build the 2,400-meter runway at Tegel – the longest in Europe at that time.
- The Soviets ended their blockade on May 12, but the Allies continued the airlift until August 27 in order to build up a sufficient supply of goods.
- Some 78 persons lost their lives during the airlift – 31 Americans, 39 Britons and eight Germans.
Germany honored the former flyers, now in their 80‟s, at several special commemorative events held this past June 26th and 27th in Frankfurt and Berlin
TAPS
Myron W. “Bill” Weber (Scheyern 55-57) passed away on March 30th as reported by Supporting Member Charles Rand (Scheyern 55-57.) Bill had been living in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and when Joe called to see how the flood waters were affecting them, he learned of Bill‟s death.
Supporting Member Gerald C. “Gerry” Philport (Scheyern/Wels 53-54) passed away on June 16th as reported by his long time companion Evelyn Kachadoorian to Supporting Member Joe Evans (Scheyern 52-54).
Peter R. “Pete” Chase (Scheyern 55-57) passed away on December 29, 2007 as reported by his wife Sheila. Pete passed away at home, surrounded by family, after a lengthy illness. Besides his wife, Pete is survived by five children and six grandchildren.