GI Joe, come with me, I take you around the world!
Tonight I make you so happy, you be my numba 1!
Subic Bay US Naval Station: 1970's Philippine Islands
During the 1960's and early 1970's Olongapo city was an R & R (rest & relaxation) for our American troops in Vietnam. When you walked past the Marine check-point at Subic Bay Naval Station you entered Olongapo City.
What you saw was - MAGSAYSAY DRIVE
About a mile and a half long, Magsaysay Drive was an impressive and unequaled array of neon lights and wall to wall nite-clubs. During it's hey day, over 17,000 Philippino bar girls filled those nite-clubs. Why 17,000 Philippino bar girls? The United States Navy also has AIRCRAFT CARRIERS.
As any US Vet that was there can tell you, every known vice to man was there: drugs, booze, prostitution, even the big M (murder), if you wanted to pay for it. In short, if it was illegal you could easily find it in Olongapo City.
This wild city is actually portrayed, to some degree, in the motion picture 'Flight of the Intruder' starring Wilhem DaFoe, Danny Glover and Brad Johnson. Like I mentioned on my 'Machete'' page, the Philippines during this period was a very violent country in the middle of a serious civil war. The ruling federal government, under President Ferdinand Marcos versus the communist insurgiency.
I had many Philippino friends and saw things I will not mention here, nothing on the scale of Vietnam, but killing is killing and it all smells, sounds and looks the same regardless what country you are in. President Marcos put the country under martial law and enforced a 1am curfew. At one o'clock in the morning my friend, you got off those streets.
During my stay here I was strung out on booze and hard drugs and just having a dandy time. This was life in the fast, furious and dangerous lane, and I loved every minute of it. In fact, after I got out of the Navy I planned on coming back and living here permanently. Some Vets, I heard, after the war did. However, a city called San Francisco, a flame in the wind nite-club singer got in the picture and I never made it back.
A Secret Place Called 'Sherra Beach'
Mostly only American Officers knew of or were privy to this hotspot. Wow! Sherra Beach, I get excited even now thinking about it. This nite-club was GREAT and right on the beach. It was so beautiful. The bands, booze and women played all night here!
But not for me, not on this night.
The Dead Man's Walk
I was not an Officer. At eleven pm, two hours before curfew, I depended on my Philippino buddy's to get me to Sherra Beach safely. This night I couldn't find them, I ventured off Magsaysay Drive looking for a Jitney (cab) to get there on my own.
This particular street was very dark and dirty. Then I saw him, he saw me, I crossed over to the other side of the street, he did the same. I then walked out into the middle of the street, he did the same. I looked behind me and there was no-one there but me and him.
As we got closer that movie 'Gunfight at the OK Corral' came into my mind. It's weird the things that come to your mind when your facing a grim reaper, and make no mistake he was a Grim Reaper. I don't know why I did it, but instead of running (no-one would have been the wiser) I decided to play this out. I thought, if I am going to die tonight, let it be right here and right now, I don't need a Goddam audience.
As we got closer I could see he was shorter than me but very well built, more important, I noticed his confidence was growing stronger as we got closer. This son of a bitch was a 'huck' and one bad mutha 'you know what'. As any veteran will tell you, these things don't usually last long (it's not like you see in the movies). Your mind is in a totally different zone. Everything seems like slow motion, but in fact it is all happening at an incredible speed.
We were only about five feet apart when he reached into his back pocket and pulled out his butterfly knife (I had no weapon). It is absolutely mesmerizing to watch the Philippinos work this famous knife and no-one does it quite like them. It's all done in one sweeping motion and with the flick of the wrist - out comes that blade faster than you can see the shine.
He struck me first, what happened next I go into more details in my book, this is not the place for it. Like I mentioned earlier, it was over very quickly, in the end he was on the ground totally defenseless and nearly unconscious. I was standing over him. In the name of the Father, I stopped before I killed this man that just tried to kill me, I walked away.
Making my way back to Magsaysay Drive I entered the nite-clubs I always hung out in, it was either the Zanzabar club or The Cave I'm not sure which, there was so many clubs and my mind was still on the huck I left in the street.
I did not realize there was blood all over me and that caused some comotion when I walked into the club. Lucky for me my friends Edgar and Renee were there, saw me and pushed me into the men's room to clean me up. What happened next I will always remember. My dear friend Edgar was outraged and demanded that I take him immediately to the alley where the wounded huck was laying. I refused to do this and he only got more angry at me.
If the huck was a grim reaper Edgar was the king of grim reapers and one of the most feared Philippinos in Olongapo City. I had just spared this hucks life twice, and good thing for me I did. As it goes with living your life in the fast lane, one week later totally defenseless and helpless myself, I would overdose on a combination of heroin and booze and my body would be dumped on another street outside of Magsaysay Drive - left to die.
