PT 109 crew member Interview with Maurice Kowal about John F Kennedy - 2006
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- Опубликовано: 20 окт 2024
- In this video I created, interviewer Frank J. Andruss, Sr., interviews Maurice Kowal, the last survivor of JFK’s original PT 109 crew (as of 2006). Discussions include his experiences as a PT boater from training to war activities. In addition, he discusses John F. Kennedy as well as others. Mr. Maurice Kowal was not on board the PT 109 at the time of the sinking of the boat. He and two other crew members had been hospitalized from injuries suffered when a Japanese float plane dropped bombs near the aft end of the boat. This incident occurred weeks before the 109 ramming and sinking.
After Kennedy had recouped from the loss of PT 109, he was assigned to an older Elco 77’ boat, PT 59, that was being reconfigured as a gunboat. This boat was very heavily armed with a multitude of weapons in place of torpedoes. He requested his previous crew member be re-assigned to his new command and Mr. Maurice Kowal was one of them. After a short time as a skipper, Kennedy was returned to the States, working in Navy intelligence. Mr. Kowal continued his PT boat service until the end of the war.
This is a Richard J. Washichek production created from an excellent audio interview that my good friend Frank Andruss Sr., conducted with Maurice Kowal, and includes photos provided by Frank as well as many from around the vast internet.
Thank you for watching,
Richard J. Washichek
I feel honored to have come across this interview. I suppose only in times of war could man like this get thrown in with a man like Jack Kennedy. It is obvious that Kennedy had a great respect for everyone.
I've never experienced more meaningful filmmaking. First-hand, modest, courageous and as real as Mr. Kowal's WWII life can possibly be for us. Only a profound love for this material and these people could create such crucial communication between then and now. Thanks so much, can't wait to explore more of your channel.
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One thing a person should take away from this interview is how little training many of these young men had, and how little experience they had in life in general. He was thrown into the middle of a war as a weapons person and had no experience in weapons and he did his job the best he could, on the job training as it were.
So true the early PT program was quick and the cross training was much too fast for the two month program. A third month was added and more thought given to training for ones own rate
No amount of training can prepare you for combat.
@@64MDW That's true. That's why they try to teach discipline to try to compensate even a little bit.
An absolutely amazing presentation and extremely moving! It's the camaraderie, dedication and unselfish sacrifice of men like these that kept the world free. We all owe a huge debt of gratitude to the allies from all nations who fought and died on our behalf.
well said Jim
Tell that to the democrats who are trying to give this country to the communist.
Ten thumbs up. A touching tale of a humble crew member. Well done.
Thank you Sir.
Treasure of an interview to be able to step inside that historic group. Thank you!
Your so welcome
I love how JFK shoved them in the grocery store. That's how guys should be nowadays. We always gave hard handshakes, shoved each other a little bit. That's how you would show that you liked and cared about somebody
Very interesting. Grandpa served on PT-107 and was nice to see some pictures of it.
This man’s experience’s are priceless. Every serviceman has a lifetimes worth of memories, if they choose to share them……
These interviews are crucial to history. They're first hand accounts. More accurate than any history book.
Your so right Rich and Mr. Kowal had such a great memory
there all white
@@onlythewise1 boohoo
I'm just stating fact/truth.
@@onlythewise1 Really, have you ever heard of Christmas Attics?
The photo at 6:46 shows the bow and radar mast of PT180. My wife's late uncle was gunner's mate on that boat from 43-44. That part about not knowing how the guns worked matches Uncle Don's description. He learned how to maintain and operate them on the job. As the GM, he got to pick which weapon he operated and his preference was the stern mounted 40mm Bofors. I'm sending this link to the family.
Dam! I am so blessed to run into this. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! Both to Mr. Kowal and Mr. Washichek for putting this where I saw it. Huge fan here of PT service.
Glad you enjoyed it!
This was a great interview and the pictures are priceless! Thank you for making this!
When I was in elementary school back in the mid-to-late '60s in Sandy Springs, GA I went to school with a girl who was a relative of Andrew Kirksey (she was his niece as I recall). One day she brought a letter to school from JKF to Kirksey's family regarding his death when PT 109 was cut in two by the Japanese destroyer.
Terry I became good friends with Andrews son jack. He passed on last year but he told me of the letter that Kennedy had sent his Mom. I have a great photo that Jack sent to me of him and his Mom meeting Kennedy on the campaign trail
I deeply appreciate this interview. All these brave men are hero’s to me. Thank you
Yes! Me too, Buddy! These men are some of my biggest heroes. What a generation of men and women they were, and they laid the foundation for all of us.
The Greatest Generation
Great interview! I've seen the movie many times, so its nice to get the real perspectives from Mr. Kowal on all the background! Photos were amazing!
Thank you so much. Dick Washichek did a great job adding the photos to the piece
Thank you for this.
I still hurt hearing about the assassination.
I remember JFK reviewing us at FT Bragg (82nd Abn) and seeing him at the lake watching the "Rocket man fly"
He had an energy that could be felt from a distance.
I can only try to imagine how it hit the men who served with him.
JFK.Touched a lot of Americans deeply.
His killing changes this nation.
My grandmother ran jfks headquarters in Santa Maria and met him ! One of our best presidents by far ! 👏 great show sir .
Great interview! Good questions and the answers tell us a lot about life of a crewman from beginning to front lines!
Thanks Bridge for watching, hope you caught the photos of PT 157 as well as the skipper and crew.
@@rjwgdi you bet! Glad they got included!!
@@rjwgdi plus Ron 9 Commander Kelly in those 157 shots… who was an XCO with the PTs that extracted MacArthur from Corregidor
Always liked President Kennedy and the PT 109 incident. He was a good PT Skipper. He cared about his Men and later
our great nation. God 🙏. bless him.
Karl Botkin USN, USNR Ret. 1976-2007. Cold War and Iraq Veteran.
Great story about great brave men. Highlighting what a decent man Kennedy was. Thankyou for sharing.
Nice job Richard. Brings the story a little closer to home. Those navy guys were new to everything. They get assigned to a job without any knowledge or training. Just go for it.
Mr Kowal was from Ware, MA. A small town I grew up near and eventually lived in.
Just a great piece. Thanks Dick so much for all your work in making this production that much better
Stacia, no thanks needed, I just love this topic, of course I mean PT BOATS!
Frank told me how much you love the boats, and he speaks very highly of you. As his wife I am proud of his efforts
Excellent interview! Some photo's I've never seen before. Thank you!
Thanks Scott
Well worth listening to.
With respect.
Still remember that awful Friday.
What A Great Interview! All Things Considered, The Movie Was Fairly Accurate. I Remember Watching It At Around Five Or Six & Later Building A Model Of The PT-212. Thank You.
Thanks so much. I was so blessed that he gave me this interview as at that time he was not granting them anymore
My Dad was CMOMM, plank owner, Sqd. 9, 156 boat, Cowboy under Kelly. Forth or fifth on the first deck log. I have some of Mr. Washichek's drawings and such. Excellent work. Thank you.
My pleasure god bless your dad
Thanks for posting this.
Excellent to hear it from someone who was there.
History of ww2.
Always a pleasure Virgil
wonderful.......Salute Maurice Kowal
Paul he was a joy to visit that day
I'm 70
I grew up two blocks from the Atlantic Ocean and I'm a very experienced open water swimmer
Any 3 mile open water swim is difficult But JFK's swim while towing a shipmate with his teeth is truly heroic
I think that the NAVY Seals should include the JFK Swim in their basic training program
Thank you this fascinating interview! The Greatest Generation indeed!
Your so welcome
I always wonder about the interaction between the crew and jack Kennedy after the war. Very good interview answered a lot of questions.
I went through the Navy's Senior Enlisted Academy at Newport, RI in 1985 in the winter and boy it was cold. The wind off Narragansett Bay would cut right through you!
To Maurice Koval thank you for your service to our country and yeah oh Kennedy he was a pretty good guy. Anyway, I remember where I was at when he got shot I was sitting on the floor of our kitchen in Dormont, outside of Pittsburgh, and I remember Meisel Canaan came down from upstairs, and she was a retired English teacher, and she spoke every word perfectly never ever heard a slang word out of her, and she just stopped halfway down the stairs that goes to the basement and she said Nancy and I can’t remember what number president he was our president John Fitzgerald Kennedy has just been assassinated and then she just turned and walked right back up the stairs again and then I remember my mom turning on the TV nervous Walter Cronkite, crying and justifiably so that was a sad day. This is Jim mungai from Kennerdell Pennsylvania.
What a treat for an old goober like me. We were blessed to have known some of these courageous people.
Wow. What a piece of history. I never got to hear a first hand account of Kennedy as a man.
Maurice was lucky to miss the sinking of the PT-109. Notice that he actually out-lived all of the others too.
The fact is that although they were touted to have a high speed, one like the 109, especially being a used one and heavily "up-gunned" (to add to their weight problem, the '109 had an Army artillery 37mm field gun lashed to its' fore-deck for all the good it did) and with worn engines, would do well to make half of their advertised speed, and as Kennedy found out the hard way, not as fast as the Japanese destroyers, especially the one that rammed his craft, breaking it in half.
For all the glamor he got, Kennedy's never sank an single enemy ship (or even damaged any) before getting sunk.
The movie shows him getting another PT boat, but it seems like it "fell off the grid" instead of improving his war record. Ironically the rescue of the Marines shown in the movie of the '109 was actually done in his second boat, which was not the same type as his first one.
A good historical reference without the hype is the book "The Mosquito Fleet" By Bern Keating.
As I recall, the PT-109 was at idle, just trying to hold station, when the Japanese destroyer came out of the pitch black night and cleaved the 109 in two and kept on going. The Japanese destroyer was on a tight schedule as a part of the Tokyo Express and had to reach Guadalcanal, unload troops, ammunition and supplies and be well on the way back to Rabaul before daybreak in order to avoid the attentions of the Cactus Air Force patrols.
Mark from Melbourne Australia
@@markfryer9880 There is more then one story as to why he couldn't get out of the way, including the Navy Log episode where he was traveling on one of three engines to keep their wake down to avoid being spotted by Japanese aircraft at night.
The fact is that the PT-109 was a patched up old boat with worn motors that had been abandoned that Kennedy thought would make himself a hero.
It sounds noble, but in fact he had no business taking a risk like that with the lives of the other men.
So take your pick as to which version worked best to keep Kennedy from being demoted for his impetuosity.
Could The 37mm Cannon Have Come Out Of A P-39 Airacobra & I Don't Think The 109 Was Trying To Outrun A Destroyer When It Was Rammed. Didn't Kowal State That The PT-59 Saw Action After Kennedy Took Command?
@@tomt373 When you're ordered you follow those orders--or like Nixon-you play poker!
JFK's dad was a rich politician and ambassador who pushed for his son to receive the Medal of Honor for parking his boat in the path of an oncoming Japanese Destroyer. I'm not saying he didn't do heroic deeds after his boat was destroyed but Hollywood and all the hero worshipers wouldn't have given Richard Nixon or say a George W Bush or Donald Trump the same treatment. They would be pointing out everything they did wrong. The liberals called George W Bush a lightweight who had to rely on his rich daddy.
Absolutely fascinating. I never heard a crew member who served on Kennedy's boat. As a child I thought of Kennedy as a great man. Later not so much. After listening to this I feel my initial feelings were validated.
Great job with this interview Frank! Thanks Dick for doing an awesome job of supplying photos to match the story. In another comment, I think that Mr Kowal was discussing the Squadron Commander Al Cluster (who is shown in the movie) when Frank asked if there was an inspection by the imaginary Commander JR Ritchie. He was just a character added to the movie by the screenwriters, he isnt based on any real persons AFAIK!
Hey Jerry! Small World.
@@nikimcbee Wazzzzup! Do you remember when we visited Frank? What an awesome guy!
@@allaboutboats my husband said thanks for the kind words Jerry.
Actually, Com. Ritchie was Thomas Warfield, ie: "The biggest shit in the Pacific".
@@bruceking2068 Hi Bruce, how did you come to that conclusion? Do you have anything I can read that provides more details as to who the fictional movie character was based on? I am very interested for historic reasons. Thanks!
What a WONDERFUL, FIRSTHAND story. So MUCH enjoyed it. There are not many WWII veterans still left. As a country, I really think we need to embrace these veterans and hear their stories if they're willing to talk about them.
I always thought that getting a family member that served in WWII to record experiences was crucial
@@Elcoptboat I couldn't agree more. The few I had have all long since passed. My Dad is a Korean War veteran. Also now long passed. I VERY firmly believe the title that's been given the men and women of that era. They ARE our BEST generation.
one pt associated with kennedy was just rediscovered sunk in the east river nyc
Many thanks for your wonderful interview.
Really surprising and kind of tragic that some of these guys have never gotten laid in their life or even had a drink which doesn't make you a man but you have to go out and fight for your country and you haven't even had these basic life experiences that we all take for granted. God bless these men.
Some of the photos starting at 11:40 showing the boats up into some inlets or rivers are just fascinating.
Imagine getting that kind of experience halfway around the world in the 1940s in a souped-up gunboat.
That was great, thank you so much.
Your welcome Russell
I am Ex NAVY myself from 79 to 82, JFK has always been one of my heroes, I am the same age as Jr. and felt admiration for who he is in history that picture in that little suite saluting just makes me well up with emotion, the American Camelot, our version of a first royal family means a great deal. I knew about JFK's WW2 NAVAL career and the fondness I felt myself having served there is a basic appreciation with this gentleman's story I understand I myself ended on drill rifle team while waiting for my ship then when we went to Africa we got together a team one of our guys got into trouble he was on the presidential team got sent to the fleet, he was from Boston a golden glove boxer also a very impressive guy could spin a rifle unbelievably well, he use to tap on your head 1 to 20 without blocking him he was extremely fast that's how he practiced his speed when he could use bags, we would try our hardest to block this cat, he would beat every guy in our division it was the best thing I ever did going in the NAVY, our second Captain was Smitty a fly boy from Vietnam that guy was the most amazing individual I ever personally met. A regular guy, he would say to me real men help each other they dont hurt each other in anyway, he did do that for me, he proved this was the correct understanding of being our brothers keeper, he had no respect for those who didn't live by this rule for life, uplift your brother help him if he is in trouble guide him to the correct course of he got off the correct course in life I have lived by this my entire life, help others serve human kind properly lead the way be just fair equal with everyone give chances to people when no one else sees worthiness in them. That's Smity
Thank you for your service
Great interview Frank, first time seeing this thanks for posting!
Thanks John.
Great video...thank you for posting.
We owe our vets so much...
My uncle crossed paths with Kennedy and he had heard that Kennedy was negligent for the incident concerning PT-109 , but his old man Joe pulled some strings to turn a negative into a positive . Said Kennedy was a good guy , but had it been someone else , heads would have rolled .
JFK himself admitted that he was partly responsible for the wreck. His commendation was for the extreme efforts and sacrifice he made in response to the collision - which was nothing less than heroic.
That is hearsay ,clothesline conversation.
Thank God JFK could save an injured man while swimming with an injured back. He went on to try and get help with little food or water--he was a hero while some never heard a shot--until Dallas, 1963. He was a hero who cared about all people!
@@mikehallman6129 And nixon and lbj did what during the war?? Oh, that's right-we know what they did to win the war! We were reminded in Dallas, 1963!
Exactly how was Kennedy negligent? Just because Kennedy said he was partially responsible doesn’t men shit. If has verifiable evidence that the wreck was his fault, let’s see it. The destroyer didn’t have any illumination. How was anyone supposed to see it?
Thanks for sharing the interview, and the drawings are fantastic. Great photo choices too.
I was on a PT boat out of San Diego, CA (Coronado Island, silver stran). My training was for a Zippo boat. Thats the Navy.
Very interesting thank you for sharing
I'm happy you stopped by and watched this video of Frank Andruss interviewing Mr. Kowal. Thanks again
Those big guns on the foredeck shown on many of these boats where typically 37mm cannons salvaged from P-39 Airacobra fighters that were no longer flyable. Gave them a heavy punch against heavily armed Japanese barges.
History like this is priceless!!! --- Semper Fi!!!!
My dad was on PT 354 and 355 in the south pacific ,it had more armament than a battleship square foot wise, 50 caliber, 30 ,depth charges, 2 torpedoes, 2 1500 hp Packard engines, maybe twin 50s like he said
PT Boats pound for pound were the most heavily armed at that time in the Navy a fact that was really felt when they added rockets
Those Packard’s must have really sounded good with that 100 octane fuel!
A sound not soon forgotten
Three engines.
My father was on PT’s in the Pacific. He was on an Elco but I don’t recall which on he was on though.
When someone gets shot or catches shrapnel n combat, it's called being wounded, not injured.
I have a special interest in the 109 and and a crew member that served aboard Andrew Kirksey
How are you related to Jack, Andrew. He was a very good friend over the years
AWESOME STORY. THANK YOU.
Your so welcome
Great job Frank & Richard!
Thanks Bruce
@@Elcoptboat You're welcome Stacia. Say hi to Frank for me please.
@5:32 - USS Lexington (CV-2) and USS Saratoga (CV-3) in the background. It might be the USS Langley (CV-1) in the top right corner(?) The two Pennsylvania class Battleships would be USS Pennsylvania (BB-38) and USS Arizona (BB-39) as there were only two ships in the class. The three cruisers (between the carriers and the battleships) look to be from the post-Washington Naval Treaty era - Pensacola, Northhampton, New Orleans, Portland classes - cannot see them well enough to tell. Left foreground looks like a Nevada class battleship after refit / removal of the pagoda masts.
@5:48 - Transportation to New Caledonia would not have been on a ship of the class shown (USS Gage APA-168, Haskell Class Attack Transport) as they did not come into the fleet until 1944.
Nice interview, thank you...
Heard the captain and 2nd in command were almost entirely from New England. They were yacht guys from yacht clubs who ran to PT boats Is this somewhat true
Great interview!!!
Thanks Roman it was a blast, sorry using my Wife's account
My dad , a USNR Seabee Chief, was tasked to the Tulagi base, or possibly a base on Woodlark ( Muyua) Island to assist in the repair of a PT . What specific boats he worked on is unknown, but he said when on a shakedown cruise in the harbor during repairs the boat would throw a " rooster tail" of water. They were powerful engines on those boats
growing up i had a neighbor mr john corbett. he was a nyc police officer. his wife and my mother were friends. i spent alot of time in their apartment. they would still get christmas cards from the kennedy's. this was in the very early 70's mr corbett was in the navy and had some association.
Golden interview
Thank you so much
What a good man, that's the America I remember.
Brought Tears,An Amazing American Hero.
Why does it show a photo of Charles Harris at Kennedy's Inaugural Parade in 1961, but also earlier shows his photo as being KIA on the 109?
JFK, prince Philip. Guys who put their butts, in harm's way.
Absolutely awesome.
In fact, JFK requested to be transferred out of intelligence (a safe duty station) and into a combat role!
@@RaoulThomas007 he also had yacht and boat experience. I read " The mosquito fleet ", several times.
WHERE CAN YOU GET THE PLANS FOR THE 109?
What, rich guy with no bone spurs. JFK was a class act.
This was a great video and you had to bring politics into it. Grow up.
Supposedly my Ex - Wife's father was on one of the PT boats with JFK .
First hand history! Never forget.
Hey, that was pretty good and moving. I spent most of my life in Massachusetts, so I do know the Kennedys.
My Dad was on the 356 Ron 27 squadron stationed in Balkapan. Said he knew Kennedy as a skinny Lt. Naval records say my Dads boat was 1 of 2 P.T.s that were the 1st Allied vessels to re-enter the Bay of Batan. Dad's Name was Roy Flynn in case someone served with him. PT 356 The Honeysuckle Rose.
I have such love all those guys I grew up with them such tough honorable men class act . Too bad we dont have men like this anymore. They truly are the greatest generation
Did he say shooting at "Vals @10:30" ? Referencing procedure and practice on the .50 cal. against Aichi D3A "Val" dive bombers I presume. Vals sank more Allied shipping than any other axis aircraft and thru '42 were still piloted by well practiced combat veterans since the start of the Sino-Japanese War. So that would be goddamned terrifying in a little PT boat.
.
So they were targeted by a floatplane apparently with one of those flares they used to illuminate targets during night-time surface ship battles which the Japanese excelled in and were still winning on occasion up to nearly a year after Midway. If the flare hadn't hit Mr Kowal in the head it might've caused a fire on the marine plywood constructed PT 109 which was probably the Reconnaissance pilot's intention.
.
I think getting rammed and chopped in half by a Japanese Destroyer would've been about as much fun as being dive bombed by a VAL and even less fun had the surviving crew been either machine gunned in the water or captured and interned in a Japanese POW camp. So credit to Kennedy for his outstanding efforts to save his crew from that . . . the Great Generation right there. The whole crew.
They were made of cross plank mahogany.
Outstanding interview.
Luv these kind of interviews where the reporter doesn't lead answers
What a great program. I was near 20 years old when the scum of the earth murdered John F Kennedy. I have followed his life and that great Kennedy family...as I came across them in the news, etc. Here was/is this very wealthy Kennedy family who looked on the poor and under privileged & loved them. I believe in providence but never can stop wondering how it is that JFK and Bobby Kennedy & all that family has done their whole lives were not given (& kept more years) the leadership of our nation.
In the Psalms it mentions how the good suffer and the wicked, the evil ones live on as they do. The Kennedy's were rich in the world materially but very rich too in caring for those who needed help. Thank you Lord for such people.
I was born a few months before President Kennedy’s assassination and I also built a model PT-109 boat when I was a kid.
Great interview.
What a pleasure listening to this story.
The guys from that generation were the greatest
Excellent insight 😊😊
Semper Fi sir
my dad got picked up by PT boat after his ship sink in ww2
Excellent !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thank you! Cheers!
The interviewer had his work cut out for him. That was like pulling teeth. The interviewer really knows the story better than Kowal
I have dealt with these wonderful guys for so long. I have to guide them a bit to make their memories pop into place. By helping them a bit they really start to remember. Maurice did a great job Mike
The PT boat Squadron Kennedy was with , sent out multiple boats on patrol in the sane area at once. There are many other statements from others, who were on Patrol from that Squadron the night Kennedy's PT boat was ran over by a Japanese warship. One such statement was that: the nights had been warm and humid. Which induced sleep on many of the PT boats crews. He surmised, that is what happened to Kennedy's crew. They were asleep, and that is how they were unaware of. the approach of a warship, at night on a foggy night. I personally witnessed in the 80's the entire bridge watch, All completely asleep, on a hot humid Day in very calm waters in the Arabian Gulf of a US Destroyer.
What a nice job.
Great stuff... Thanks...!
thank you
Thank you so much
The episode with the food sounds more like the navy I serve in during the 80s
Me too!
So, C R Richie was a real person?
I had thought he might have been an amalgamation of people from the Squadron put together for the movie.
It's a good question, I'll have to dive into it and find out.
@@rjwgdi after talking with Jerry Gilmartin Frank said the character in the movie was made up
Thank you.
I remember when he died i was 13, i was 44 when Jacqueline his wife died. i was driving home from work and had to pull my car to the side of the highway cause i was so upset. at that time my wife was 9 1/2 months pregnant and had no name chosen for her, so i named her Jacqueline. at first i feared that many newborn children would also be named Jacqueline, but that didn't happen, When i feel like crying i will listen to that song by Dion, Abraham Martin and John.
It’s hard to believe that the boat was in that bad of shape. It was launched in July 1942 and did not arrive in the South Pacific until late 1942. It was Sunk in August of 1943. So 7 to 9 months old basically. And it was sunk 13 months after first being launched from the ship builders.