EAST FAREWELL
NEWS
Thursday, January
30, 1958 Vol. C657
LOCAL
NEWS
LOCAL HERO FINALLY GETS HOME
East Farewell – It has been a long time since Frankie Knox walked down Lake Shore Drive. Eight years
and six months to be exact. Frankie enlisted in the Marines in July, 1950 right
after he graduated from Regional High. He was acting in response to his country’s
call for recruits in response to the North Korean invasion of South Korea. He
was in Korea by December of 1950. Knox was involved in the defense of Pusan but
was captured by the North in February of 1951. There was no word of his
situation for over two years, many thought he had been killed. When the
armistice was signed in 1953 his grieving father was told that he was still
alive, being held in a Communist prison camp. His mother had tragically passed
away in 1952, most said from a broken heart. Frankie was finally released in
July 1954 but had to remain in Korea due to medical needs and was finally
cleared to come home in August 1956. He was shipped back to the US in September
1958. His father went down to meet him in Philadelphia, where his ship docked
after a long trip through the Panama Canal and up to the Philadelphia Naval
Base. His father was among the families that had gathered to meet their
returning heroes. Since it had been so long since the first ships had arrived
home the fanfare was nonexistent and only the families with returning
servicemen were on hand. Frankie came down the gangplank to the cheers of the
people on the dock and into the arms of his father. He bent down and patted the
dock in his only gesture of his happiness to be home.
Frankie and his
father came back to East Farewell quietly and there were no public
announcements made. It was only through a tip from a close friend was this
newspaper even aware of the homecoming. When approached by this paper Frankie
would only say he was grateful to be home and greatly saddened by not being
here for his mother’s passing. His father asked that the family be given time
and privacy to get acquainted again. This paper will comply with his request
and is asking the town to also comply. When alerted of the homecoming many had
called for a parade and welcome home ceremony. Those plans have been put on
hold. “The guy is a hero and he
deserves some recognition, I am sure he will never pay for a beer in this town
ever again,” said bartender and lifetime friend, Harry O’Malley.
For now this
paper will only say, “Welcome home, Frankie, thank you for your service.”
Frankie Knox
SPORTS
COUGARS SLIP PAST BEARS
East Farewell- The Cougars ended their two game losing streak by
just beating the Central Bears, 52-50 on Friday night. The Cougars were again
without center Dave McGill who is sidelined due to injury, but replacement
center, Jimmy Hawkins, did a very respectable job by scoring 10 points and
grabbing 12 rebounds. Hawkins was not the Cougars weak spot. The overall play
was not the sharp, patterned play that the fans have come to expect. The play
was slow and sloppy. The whole team looked lethargic and their passing was inaccurate
telegraphed. It wasn’t until after the game that Coach Wilson offered a
solution. “Tonight, the whole team seems to have come down with the flu. They
were able to take the floor and after the first half I was going to call the
game but they collectively wanted to finish. I played my subs who were healthy
and we were able to get by the Bears, just barely (laughing). I sent all the
sick boys home right after the game. I hope they get better, we will have to
forefeet next week if they don’t recover.”
The subs along
with a healthy Hawkins were able to hold off the Bears who may have been a
little scared of catching whatever the Cougars had. The poor Bears have had
trouble all year and this was just another problem for them to deal with. Their
shooting was off and their defense was skittish at best. The Cougars subs, led
by Walt Ferguson, Mack MacKensie and Robby O’Shea were able to put together
enough of team to turn back the Bears with a defense that kept the Bears off
the board for the last two minutes. The final was Cougars 52, Bears 50.
Hopefully, the
Cougars will have recovered when they travel to Corning to face the red-hot
Devils next Friday afternoon. The game will be in the Corning High Gym at 4:30.
NATIONAL NEWS
Soviet
Deserters Flee to West Berlin – 2-WAY SIDEWALK IN DALLAS – PLAYERS &
COACHES TO PICK ALL-STARS – FDR PLAY DEBUTS –
CAMPANELLA DEAD
CAMPANELLA DEAD
At
least one, and possibly four, Red Army; deserters have cracked the biggest ring
of Soviet might displayed in Berlin since 1963 to escaped to the West, it was
reported today. The Soviets tacitly admitted defeat in their attempt to bait
the defectors by calling off the manhunt at noon. The Western Allied Nations
revealed the presence of only one Soviet deserter in the West, but Russian
anti-Communist organizations in Berlin and West Germany said four Russian
deserters had crossed into West Berlin.
The first two-way moving sidewalk was put in service at Love Field in Dallas, Texas. The length of the walkway through the airport was 1,435 feet.
Baseball announces players and coaches rather than fans pick all sta
The play "Sunrise at Campobello," by Dore Schary about Franklin D. Roosevelt's struggle against polio, opened on Broadway with Ralph Bellamy as FDR.
Roy Campanella - the famed
Dodgers catcher and the best catcher in the National League, breaks his neck in
an auto accident, about a mile from his house in Glen Cove, Long Island. A
seven-man team worked over the Negro star for four hours and 20 minutes in an
attempt to repair the damage and relieve paralysis from the chest down. It now
appears his career is through and he’ll at least be partially paralyzed.
Campy’s car skidded on wet pavement as he went into a dangerous S curve. The
car flipped over and crashed into a telephone pole. The first doctor to reach
him as he lay moaning said, “It doesn’t look good for his baseball career.”
Married with six children, ranging in age from 4 to 16, Campanella owns a
prosperous Harlem liquor store. As a baseball veteran of more than 10 years,
Campanella is eligible for a $175 monthly pension when he reaches the age of
50. If permanently injured, he gets $250 a month for life under baseball’s
pension plan. He was getting ready to move with the team from New York to Los
Angeles. In his 10 seasons with the Dodgers, Campy thrice was voted the National League’s
MVP - in ‘51, ‘53 and ‘55.
Many, many
thanks to www.mrpopculture.com for
contributing to this section of the East Farewell News.
