The U.S. Navy sailor captured in the iconic V-J Day kiss photo taken in Times Square on Aug. 14, 1945 died last week at age 95.
The photo, which appeared on the cover of Life Magazine, is heralded as one of the most famous smooch photos of the 20th century, perhaps ever.
The recipient of George Mendonsa’s kiss was a stranger in a nurse’s uniform who was taking part in the Times Square celebration after word came that the stubborn Japanese had thrown in the towel.
The photo turned Mendonsa into a celebrity.
The sailor, in recalling “The Kiss”, said the young nurse had reminded him of nurses he saw taking care of badly wounded soldiers on hospital ships.
The smacker was his way of saying thanks.
Recipient of the unsolicited kiss, Greta Friedman, 20 years old at the time, had no complaints. Besides, she told a friend, he was kind of cute.
That was 1945.
Today, it would be a far different outcome for the young sailor.
After a #MeToo protest, Mendonsa would be hunted down by the cops and charged with sexual assault. He would be dragged before a military tribunal and kicked out of the navy and ordered to turn in his medals awarded for heroism and bravery. He would spent the next two years crawling through the court system, running up huge legal bills, before being convicted. The judge, taking his outstanding war record into account, would give him a suspended sentence. There would be calls, some from members of Congress, for the judge to be fired.
During all of this a law firm from the Bronx would announce that it was, on behalf of its badly traumatized client who is under psychiatric care and unable to work, suing Mendonsa, the U.S. Navy, the City of New York and a tavern, where Mendonsa had had a few drinks, for $22.5 million.
Four years later, a confidential out-of-court settlement would be announced. The law firm, which got 40% of the settlement, would say in a news release, on behalf of its client, that it was never about the money.
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HERE AND THERE Somebody needs to check the water coolers at Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) headquarters where the union bosses claim that starving Venezuelans enjoy a vibrant, healthy democracy under dictator Madura. CUPE isn’t alone. So does Cuba, North Korea, Iran, China and Russia. … The late comedian George Carlin once said something about elections that almost makes sense. He said the folks who vote are to blame for bad governments, not the folks who didn’t vote. … According to Postmedia, 120 police officers were used to take down a 65-year-old Kingston man, wanted in a cold case murder investigation, at his home. That is about the same number of marines used to storm Mount Suribachi (famous flag-planting photo) during the bloody Battle of Iwo Jima. … With the kind of brutal winter we’re having, kind of hard to get worked up over a study that shows our winters will be milder with less snow in 20 years. … In 1997 Princess Diana was killed in a car crash, Mother Teresa died, Bill Clinton was President, Tiger Woods became the youngest golfer to win the Masters and Mike Tyson was suspended for biting Evander Holyfield’s ear. And, in Cornwall an empty lot at Pitt and Second streets was created when the King George Hotel was destroyed by fire. Yup. It has been that long.
TRIVIA ANSWER The International Bathtub Derby – a weekend summer festival – attracted thousands of people to watch the Saturday and Sunday Cornwall Canal races.
TRIVIA What was the hotel at 33 First St. E. called before it became the Aardvark? At one time it had a beer-only licence.
THIS WEEK 1957 – Faced with a large deficit Cornwall General Hospital board of directors announced daily room rate increases: standard ward $7, semi-private $8 and private $10. … City council agreed to hire nine new firefighters to bring the department’s strength to 28. A report said Cornwall fire losses were four times the provincial average and that fire insurance rates in the city were as much as 60% higher than communities of a similar size. … The old public library on the southwest corner of Second and Sydney streets was being torn down after the building was purchased by Dover’s Ltd. The one-storey stone building was built in 1903 with funds from the Carnegie Foundation. The new library – in the former Cline House – had a 20,000 book capacity, double the former library. … Thousands of city elementary school children were receiving a second round of the Salk polio vaccine shots. … Council approved making First and Third streets one-way between Cumberland and Marlborough streets. … Cornwall Separate School Board approved plans for a new four-room school in Riverdale. … Harold Snetsinger, former Dickinson’s Landing grocer, opened a temporary grocery store in a large house on Elm Street in Ingleside. It would serve the new community until the shopping plaza was built. … St. John’s Presbyterian Church in Farran’s Point held its last Sunday service. The congregation would worship with St. Matthew’s church in Woodlands until a new church was built in Ingleside. … Cornwall Minor Hockey Association playoffs were under way on outdoor rinks at the Athletic Grounds. … A city man was handed a four-month jail sentence by Magistrate P. C. Bergeron for shoplifting several items at a local variety store. … Rheal Savard, Moe Savard, Larry Kwong and Ron Muir scored as Cornwall Chevies downed Belleville MacFarlands 4-1 in the first game of the Ontario Hockey Association Senior A semi-final series.
SPORTS STUFF Cornwall Curling Centre seniors brought home the Parnell Cup at an event hosted by the Lancaster Curling Club. The city rink was skipped by Gilles Viau with Don McIntosh third, Don Hogan second and Garry Pilon lead. The Parnell is an annual four-club event with teams from Cornwall, Morrisburg, Lancaster and Prescott. …A 9-2 win in the 12-team playoff round steered Dan Julien to the winner’s circle of the Gordon’s Jewellers draw. Supporting cast was third Roger Roy, second Mike Paquette and lead Luc Tremblay. Dave Lalonde – with third Arnold Grady, second Luc Lefebvre and lead Dave Evans was second with Jean Leroux – third Dwight Grant, second Norm St. Pierre and Richard Marleau lead – finishing third.
FACTS’N’FIGURES The average monthly rent (2017) for a two-bedroom apartment in Cornwall is $835; in Peterborough ($988), Belleville ($1,005), Kingston ($1,157), Ottawa ($1,232), Toronto ($1,404). The Ontario average is $1,140. The city’s has a rental vacancy rate ranging between 2% and 3%.
FINAL THOUGHT When ignorant folks want to advertise their ignorance, you don’t really have to do anything, you just let them talk. – Barack Obama
