Episode 36: Eddie Ray (Part 1)

The Late Night History podcast is hosted by writer and oral historian Matt Fratus. Join Matt in this special, two-part episode featuring Ret. Marine Col. Eddie Ray, one of only two Navy Cross recipients from the Gulf War.  In part 1, we delve into Eddie’s unique life journey leading to the Gulf War. From his formative years in LA to his stint as a college football player at the University of Washington alongside the future NFL Hall of Fame QB Warren Moon to his early days as an enlisted Marine and junior officer, we uncover the intriguing chapters of Eddie’s life. The episode is packed with a lot of exciting history and lessons learned. Notably, a training mission that went awry and how Eddie established himself as a leader. Additionally, Eddie shares how he became involved with the Marines Light Armored Vehicles. At the time, the assignment was considered “The Kiss of Death” for an officer’s career, mainly because nobody understood how to operate the unproven LAVs.

Of course, that reputation would change under Eddie, where he combined football-inspired plays with military tactics for the battlefield. But you’ll hear all about that in Part 2. This link is for other podcast platforms: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/late-night-history Join 13K followers of Late Night History on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/latenighthistory/ Support the show on Patreon so this one-man show can continue producing content with world-class guests like Eddie Ray: https://www.patreon.com/LateNightHistory

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