Vegas Voice 8-17 web

By: Adrea Nairne-Barrera / 60s to 60
To most of us, Susan Oliver was the guest
star of the 60s appearing in just about
every show on television. She is remembered as the
“green girl” of Star Trek fame and so many other shows even the internet
can’t keep up with her credits.
To me, she was my friend for a while and a woman who left an
impression that grows more and more significant as I get older. She was
way ahead of her time - educated, beautiful and genuine.
I met her in the late 70s and when I visited her home, I walked into
a huge room with memorabilia scattered around as she was writing the
book about her 1967 solo flight across the Atlantic.
Her property was nestled in the hills off Mulholland Drive with a main
house and a guest house. It was quiet and welcoming.
Looking at her delicate beauty, one would never imagine the strong
woman inside who, on September 21, 1967, took off from LaGuardia
Airport in New York on a solo flight headed for Moscow. Fully prepared for
the journey, she even spoke fluent Russian.
Susan piloted her own Aero Commander 200 and would be only the 2 nd
woman to fly solo across the Atlantic from New York City. Unfortunately,
the Soviet Union would not let her fly in Soviet air space so her flight
ended in Denmark.
In 1983 her book was published and though she received numerous
awards for aviation, including Pilot of the Year co-piloting a Piper
ACROSS
September 21, 1967
THEME: SUMMER BLOCKBUSTERS
1. Q-tips
6. *”Straight Outta Compton” Cube
9. Twirled
13. Betty Page or Grable
14. Motion of approval
15. Speak up
16. Red-headed orphan
17. Rudolph’s Clarice, e.g.
18. 4:1, e.g.
19. *What Groot and Rocket were
guarding
21. *”____ ____: Fury Road”
23. Like some martinis
24. Ditto
25. Perfect summer sandwich?
28. Lover’s strike
30. Dickens’ “The Pickwick ____”
35. Plural of lira
37. Zeal or elegance
39. Reduce pressure
40. Maple, to a botanist
41. Paisleys in paisley fabric, e.g.
43. Deceptive maneuver
44. Committee head
46. Tallest volcano in Europe
47. ____ en scene
48. Bean-shaped organ
50. Chows down
52. Ground cover
53. Movie-____
55. Mont Blanc, e.g.
57. *Maverick and Goose movie
60. *Sigourney Weaver’s 1986 sequel
63. Isabel Allende’s “Portrait in _____”
64. Driver’s aid
66. Sweater style
68. Fill with optimism
69. Make mistakes
70. Follow
71. USSR to USA during WWII
72. Actor Liotta
73. Shabby and tatty
Comanche and winning the 2,760
transcontinental 1970 Powder Puff
Derby, her interests turned to directing
in later years.
The 60s were turbulent to say the
least, and our memories of old shows
and music now stream through cable
and the internet. If I hadn’t known
her, I never would have imagined her accomplishments.
Let’s celebrate the amazing women whom we never imagined had the
guts, intelligence and determination to break out with grace and dignity.
Susan was one of those great women and we miss her spirit every day.
The last time I saw Susan was in the 80s when my life changed and
we lost touch. It broke my heart to hear she was losing her battle with
cancer and passed in 1990. She was much too young and had she gone
on, I know she would have thought up something new and exciting to do.
The next time you see her on nostalgia television, think of her flying
alone over the Atlantic; at a time in our history when women were just
breaking the stereotype. We loved her then, but I think, I love her more
now.
Adrea Nairne-Barrera’s writing focus these days are on
observations, celebrations and complaints about life in the 1960s
to being in your 60’s. You can contact her at: sixties2sixty@
yahoo.com
That War - 50 Years Later
By: Chuck Dean / Vet 2 Vet
Fifty years ago, on August 15, 1967, I
marched another training platoon onto the
parade grounds of Fort Ord, California. As their
drill instructor, I had done whatever I could to prepare them for the hard
times facing them in combat.
The trainees, mostly draftees (many peace-loving college drop-outs
from UC Berkeley), had successfully finished their basic training, and
were now moving on to the next phase; which eventually landed them in
the middle of the Vietnam War.
That war, which was still ramping up 50 years ago, brought about
several changes in American thinking. The endless, seemingly pointless
deaths of recruits gave many draft-age Americans a hostile attitude
toward their government and authority in general.
This attitude, in turn, produced a rift between American youth and its
elders. The older generation, which had brought victory to the U.S. in
World War II, couldn’t recognize how much had changed in 25 years.
Oddly enough, it was members of the “Greatest Generation” who
were responsible for developing the strategy to fight the communists
in Vietnam. They believed in the invincibility of our military and the
inevitability of American victory. Their faith led them to keep pouring
men and money into the fight that achieved little or no progress.
By 1967, 8,694 Americans had died in the war, and it hadn’t even
reached its hardest years. Before the U.S. withdrew from Vietnam, another
50,000 Americans would be lost.
As a non-commissioned officer, and a D.I., I was a soldier doing my
best to adhere to the strict and unwavering performance expected of me
according to Army regulations. However, my first priority was caring for
my soldiers to the best of my abilities, and I will never regret serving as
their D.I. Had it been another time, another era, another life, I most likely
would have made a career of the Army to serve my fellow soldiers.
In light of that, I want to remind everyone to never blame the troops for
the war(s) in which they fight. They are simply upholding their pledge to
keep us free AND following instruction and orders from the powers-thatbe.
We have troops in the line of fire at this very moment in need of our
support; so, let these words from Oliver Stone (Vietnam Veteran and
Filmmaker) serve as our mantra: “...those of us who did make it have
an obligation to build again, and to teach others what we know, and
to try with what’s left of our lives to find a goodness and meaning to
this life.”
Chuck Dean served as an Army paratrooper in Vietnam and
through that experience was led to address the many transitional
issues veterans struggle with. He is the author of several important
books for veterans. All can be found on Amazon at: http://www.
amazon.com/author/chuckdeanbooks
DOWN
1. Health resort
2. POTUS’ West one
3. Tolstoy’s Karenina
4. ____-a-Bear Workshop
5. Britney of “Baby One More Time”
fame
6. *Dr. Jones, to his friends
7. Make a pigeon sound
8. a.k.a. dropsy
9. Canned meat
10. Hummus holder
11. Windows alternative
12. Opposite of paleo-
15. Trying experience
20. Vascular tissue in plants
STATEPOINT CROSSWORD
22. Unit of electric current
24. Cover with drops
25. *B in “MIB”
26. Chinese fruit
27. Do it lightly?
29. Sunburn soother
31. Make waves
32. Tiny purses
33. *Actress Rene in “Lethal Weapon
3” and 4
34. *Keanu Reeves’ 1994 action
thriller
36. Sportscaster Andrews
38. Fashion house founder Ricci
ANSWERS:
42. Bringing death
45. Bob Marley’s music
49. Texter’s u
51. Woodworker’s woe
54. *Bruce Lee’s “____ the Dragon”
56. Type of feather
57. “____ it like it is”
58. October stone
59. Feel for
60. Bald eagle’s home
61. #60 Down
62. Hare’s tail
63. *Black Pearl’s domain
65. Baseball stat
67. Anthem author
see next page
16
August 2017
17