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Jearl Ballow - Korean War

Jearl 'Buck' Ballow was a member of Douglas MacArthur's GHQ staff in Tokyo from 1950 through 1953. Completing high school, he then returned to the Army in 1955, eventually becoming a Warrant Officer and CID agent in the mid-1960s. He was on the floor of the 1968 Democratic Convention, then was shipped to Okinawa, spending several years there fighting the island's drug epidemic.

Interview Links

Feature Excerpt

Woman Smuggling Drugs

Abstract

Interview Session 01 (Audio)

Early career & service in Tokyo during Korean War

Interview Session 02 (Audio)

From service as enlisted clerk to CID agent

Interview Session 03 (Audio)

Ballow's military career from 1970 to retirement

Transcript


Photos

Caption:
Buck Ballow 1951/1952-taken at residence in Tokyo (wearing prohibited civilian attire (?)) (Narrator’s Photo).

Where:
Tokyo

When:
1951/1952

Ownership:
Narrator’s Photo

Caption
Buck Ballow -1951- Orderly room, COB, Staff BN, GHQ. Duty as Asst NGO (Asst Co. Clerk).

Where:
Unknown

When:
1951

Ownership:
Narrator’s Photo

Caption
Buck and Cookie –Jan 1953- Cannelton, Indiana.

Where:
Cannelton, Indiana

When:
Jan 1953

Ownership:
Narrator’s Photo

Caption
Cookie works on a batch of fried rice in Cannelton, Indiana.

Where:
Cannelton, Indiana

When:
Unknown

Ownership:
Narrator’s Photo

Caption
Cookie -1953-at my brother’s house.

Where:
Unknown

When:
1953

Ownership:
Narrator’s Photo

Caption
GHQ Shoulder Insignia.

Where:
Tokyo

When:
Unknown

Ownership:
Narrator’s Photo

Caption
General Headquarters Company Parade in Tokyo in the Spring 1950. As a member of GHQ, where MacArthur called home, the men had to meet stringent appearance standards and keep their uniforms in tip-top condition.

Where:
Tokyo

When:
1950

Ownership:
Narrator’s Photo


Caption
RRA Beer Hall-1951- Left to Right: Cpl George D. Wiley, Ballow, PO3 James A. VanFlee, Aussie Soldier-unknown, PO3 Greery Stanton.

Where:
Unknown

When:
1951

Ownership:
Narrator’s Photo



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