Veterans-in-law…

So this is one of those earliest family stories that probably still counts in the double digits, if not single.

Above, my Mom, Palma, in her kid brother Fiore’s US Navy WWII Uniform

Fiore Latini, youngest son of Giuseppe and Maria, was itching to get into WWII.  His older brother John was of age to sign up right after Pearl Harbor and joined the army, serving in Patton’s tank brigade.  His sister Palma’s fiancé John Leicht did the same, choosing the Navy instead.  Fiore, likewise, wanted to get in ASAP, but when the US entered the war he was only 16. 

There was no way his parents would sign for him — they already had one son in combat; besides that, Giuseppe has served in the  Royal Italian Army in 1911, a service so disillusioning that it compelled him to resist la patria’s call to serve in WWI and remain in America, where he had come temporarily to earn some wages.  And as if to further confirm her husband’s good sense, Maria had lost two brothers in that war  – the older Giuseppe in the first year of fighting and her younger brother Angelo in the last year of fighting.  There was no way she was going to willfully risk losing two sons.

 

Later in life, Fiore recalled his youthful embarrassment to me. “I would be riding the subway, and any time somebody looked at me, I was sure they were thinking, ‘why isn’t he serving?’ The moment he turned 18 he enlisted on his own, against his parents objections.

 

With European victory secured and Asia nearly done, Fiore was sent to Japan to help clean up.  The atom bombs fell before he reached Tokyo, so he was immediately assigned to port control to help guide the victorious Allied vessels into the serpentine Sasebo Harbor. 

Lo and behold, one of the ships in need of guidance was the USS Hambleton, on which was stationed his beloved sorella Palma’s beau, John Leicht, radioman first class.

 

Fiore rode out to greet and direct the Hambleton, a Destroyer/Mine Sweeper that was to be the second combatant warship to enter Tokyo Bay, sweeping a path and leading in supply ships, tenders, cruisers, battleships and transports containing the eighth army occupation troops. After delivering the requisite maps and directions, Fiore inquired if there was a John Leicht aboard.  Confirmed, he requested permission to visit the ship later to greet said sailor and future brother-in-law.

John was busy in the radio shack while all this was going on, but his buddy Jerome “Red” Sutton was on deck to witness the action.  “Johnnie, there was some guy asking for you,” he told his mate. “I don’t know who he was, but he looks like the male version of that beautiful girlfriend of yours, Palma, whose picture you’ve been sharing with us.”  

 

Above, siblings Fiore and Palma: as the Italians (and Greeks) would say, ‘una razza, una faccia’ – one race, one face.

And so, later that evening, Fiore’s launch again approached the Hambleton.  Turns out that Fiore’s detachment had earlier been responsible for rescuing the goods of a sunken freighter, including a cargo net full of beer cans.  Fiore lined his sleeves and waist with as many cans as he could fit.  As he climbed the rope “Jacob’s” ladder, he performed his unique acrobatics to salute the captain, first mate and other officers, much to their chagrin, without losing a single can.  His future brother-in-law was duly summoned, unaware of what to expect from this visit from his crush’s kid brother.

“John, do you have someplace we can speak in private,” Fiore asked.  “Sure, said John, the radio shack, it’s just me and Red there.” So off they went, to spray the United States finest state of the art equipment with warm, sudsy, shaken beer foam. And enjoyed the first of many toast, potentially their finest ever.

 

It was a glorious and unforgettable moment for two of the finest generation, who became family and friends for a lifetime.

From left: L-R; brothers and brother-in-law; newly minted NYPD officers and WWII vets John Latini (USArmy), Fiore Latini (US Navy) and John Leicht (USN); top right: John Leicht and Fiore Latini at a 1950s “roaring ’20s” costume party; bottom right: L’R Doris Latini, Fiore Latini, Palma Leicht and John Leicht on their visit to Fiore and Palma’s ancestral home in Anagni, Italy, 1985.

Equal Time: Mom in Uncle John’s US Army dress uniform, with her big brother!