Are You Lonesome Tonight?

January 5, 1952

Sat. night

"Home On Leave," Jim's Family, 1953, photographed by Norma Cornett
(Standing: John Moses Parker (1920-1971), Walter Wayne Parker (1922-2008), Polly Ann Parker Sparks (1925-2015), James Connie Parker (1930-2000), Jo Ann Parker Oxford (1937-2012), Larry Ray Parker (1943-2004)
Sitting: John Wyly Parker (1883-1961), Bertha Ruth Sterling Parker (1901-1999)

Hello Norma,

How're things with the best gal I know?

I'm O.K., in fact, full of fire.  We only worked from 5:00 this morning until around 5:00 this afternoon.  Usually we work "til" 7:30 or 8:30, but the weather over Korea was too bad for our planes to fly, so we knocked off.  The weather where we are isn't too bad, it snowed a little today, otherwise it's been nice.  Quite a big warmer than last week.

Norma, I don't know why you haven't been getting my letters, but nobody has gotten any from me. My mother said in her last letter she hadn't heard from me in five weeks and I've been writing to her almost every week.

I don't know what red ink is supposed to mean to Sailors.  I never heard of the connection.

So, those "draft-dodgers" from Gilead got beat again, "eh."  Well, it's good enough for them.  Maybe pretty soon they will get on a winning team ("you know what"). HA

You asked about news from this place.  There isn't much. We get in sight of the Korean Coastline about every day that visibility is good.  All it looks like from where we are is a broken, frozen waste. It doesn't look like it's worth fighting for, frankly. I don't know what we're fighting for, anyway. I wish I did, then maybe I could put my heart into what we're doing.

One of our guys almost "snuffed out" a couple of weeks ago. When something like that happens, it makes me wonder just what the "hell" we're doing over here in the first place.

I heard that Reva G________ has a new Plymouth, but I don't think I want a new car.

So, you want to know something about me.  Well, most of it isn't good, so I'll leave most of it out. HA! 

I have 3 brothers, one lives at 1__ S. Cavalry in Detroit, the rest are in Tennessee. I also have two sisters, and "oh yes" a mother & father.

I lived in Tennessee until I was 17 years old, then I quit school, but couldn't get a job there. So to keep from starving to death, I went to Detroit.  I lived there until I came in the Navy last year.  In ten days I'll have one year in.  Just think, only 3 years to go.

You got pretty close to my age.  I was 20 last March 31st.

In between sentences I'm singing hillbilly songs with the guys. One of them is sitting beside me playing guitar.  Some of them are pretty good.  [Editor's note: the color of ink changes from blue to black and there are smudges on the page.] Excuse the change of ink. 

Well, kid, I've got to sign off now.

Answer soon.

Your homesick Sailor,

Jim 

[Editor's Note: On the back of this envelope, Norma jotted "Are you lonesome tonight?" by Johnny & Jack but she may have confused the recording of the song by the Blue Barron Orchestra with "I Get So Lonely" by the country duo, Johnnie and Jack.  She also noted a song "Did you forget so easily" by Lila Myers and performed by Sammy Kaye on his program, Sunday Serenade, but I can't find any recording with that title performed on Kaye's show.]

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Jim Uses The "L" Word. As Only A Southern Boy Can

Dec. 31, 1951

Monday Evening

Photo courtesy of the National Archives

Hi Norma,

How's the cutest girl I know?

I'm fine, except this pen is driving me nuts.  It writes for awhile and then stops for a rest, I reckon. I called it all the bad names I know and some I didn't know and it still won't write.

When your last letter came I was on topside and after I read it, I started to put it in my pocket but a jet plane pilot started racing his motor and the blast blew it out of my hand over the side and I can't answer all of it.

It was cold last week over here, but the wind is what hurts.  When it is 20° above zero over here, the wind makes it as bad as 20° below back home.

Look, kid, I got a different pen, same difference, "eh?"  I think I sent you a picture.  It should get there around Christmas and don't get the idea that I don't love you, because you know I do.

I'll be glad when we go into port again.  I'm getting tired of water.  We've been out almost a month now.

Today is New Year's Eve, if I was home, I would probably throw a big "bender," even if we were in Japan I would, but out here, there isn't anything to drink.

I got a letter from my brother today.  He said he was sending me a bottle of wine for Christmas, but it didn't get here yet.  It might be a good thing for me if it didn't come because when it does I'll probably be too drunk to work for a day at least HA! 

"Yeah," I remember Ken C_____ but I would like to forget him.  I never did like him very much.  If he isn't playing for Gilead anymore, I would call it good riddance. He's another "pog" that should be in the service.  How those "damn" guys stay out is beyond me.  Excuse the language, but I'm a little disgusted that some of us have to fight a war and some others stay home and make out with all the women and good jobs.   

Do you remember Dick Contino, he used to play an accordion on the Horace Heidt Show?  Well, he dodged the draft and was sentenced to 6 months in jail.  He served 4 1/2 months and now he is out and, so far as I know, he won't be called up again.  I wouldn't mind spending 4 1/2 months in the "jug" rather than stay just 6 months over here.  It isn't just the cold and the long hours that bother us. There are other things, such as crack-ups and lots of time they start fires and there are always live bombs and ammo lying around.  If some of the fire ever got to those bombs, we're through.  And it almost did last week.  We had to throw about 4 tons of bombs over side to them away from the fire.

"Boy," I was already seeing visions of abandoning ship. HA Only I would have been around to abandon ship.  I would have been playing a harp.

Well, kid, I've got to sign off now.  I want to write my buddy on the East Coast.

Answer soon.  

Your pal,

Jim

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