I log onto Vietnam sites of a day and I’m always looking for new sites or checking updates. I read books and keep my eye out for things pertaining to the war, and love conversing with Vets and other entertainers who were there, and understand. People who were involved just know, and there is an understanding and kinship. It seems like I’m thinking about Vietnam, and my time there, constantly.

It may have been triggered off by my first Christmas there and my first Christmas away from my family and home, and the feeling it gave to be able to give back to the people that were there for all of us.

We were the first official Australian entertainers to go to Vietnam to entertain our armed forces and were sponsored by the R.S.L. (Returned Soldiers League). I travelled as a young bloke of twenty, and was overwhelmed by the adventure, the excitement and the experience of not only entertaining our own troops, but performing for Americans as well.

It never occurred to me that my parents were horrified at the thought of their son going into a war zone or that I would be in any danger.I had my twenty first birthday in Saigon and I had a great time.

We worked a club on the eve of my birthday and invited a whole bunch of people home to the villa where we stayed downtown, in one of the suburbs. We had a great party, champagne and the works. No official stuff, just a good slap-up party.Slept most of the next day then got up, and did it all again. So, in reality, I had two twenty first birthdays, and for me, they were really great and a lot of fun.It wasn’t until quite sometime later in my life that it dawned on me that I had robbed my parents of my Twenty First. I know now, as a parent, that one of my life’s goals is to be with my daughter on her twenty first birthday. I wonder what my parents were thinking on 11/12/65 while I was in Saigon having a great time. It’s something that I can never give back to them.

I woke up on the morning of Christmas Day, 1965, and I felt pretty terrible. It was my first Christmas away from my parents and home, and I felt very very melancholy.

“What in the bloody hell am I doing here?” was on my mind. It was the little boy coming out in me and it didn’t feel too good. It was the first realisation I had of what I had taken on and what I was doing, and at that point in time, it left me in the doldrums.      There were three shows organized for that day. Two at Bien Hoa and one at Vung Tau. Three shows in a day is normally a tough call, but this day looked like being the toughest and I felt very unsure.                            

As I showered, shaved and had some breakfast, things were pretty quite in the villa and maybe the other guys had similar thoughts and feelings. I had all my things ready to go when the Aussie military blokes arrived (Pick-Up as we called it) to escort us to Bien Hoa.The first Aussie bloke I bumped into as he came into the house, immediately shook my hand and thanked me. I was taken aback when he said, “Thanks for giving up your Christmas to be here with us.”                                                                        

That continued all day. All these guys coming up and thanking me and shaking my hand.

We had three great shows with Don Lane, Lucky Starr, Lyn Flecture and a bunch of others. Everything went great especially when we joined the officers and served the enlisted men Christmas lunch. We learnt that it is an Australian military Christmas tradition and we had a great time joining in.              

It had never dawned on me that I would have something to give!                                                      

It turned out to be a fantastic day and the best Christmas I’ve ever had. From being down in the dumps first thing in the morning, to being on top of the world for the rest of the day, was just great.                                                                                

Maybe, this is one of the reasons I’m addicted!