Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney was one of the highest paid actors from the late 1930s through early 1940s. In 1944, he was drafted, and the Army put him to work entertaining World War II troops on radio and the stage. He was even awarded a Bronze Star for his performances in combat zones. Rooney also was awarded several other medals for his military service, include the Army Good Conduct Medal and the World War II Victory Medal.
Oliver Stone
Oliver Stone joined the Army in 1967 and specifically requested combat duty. He fought in Vietnam and was wounded in action twice, earning the Bronze Star with “V” device, which he received after conducting “extraordinary acts of courage under fire,” and a Purple Heart with one Oak Leaf Cluster. His movie “Platoon” was heavily influenced by his combat experiences in Vietnam.
Tony Curtis
Tony Curtis was an American actor famous for movies in the 1950s and 1960s. However before he became famous in Hollywood, he served in the U.S. Navy. He enlisted in the Navy after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, where he was inspired by Cary Grant’s role in the 1943 film “Destination Tokyo” to join the Pacific submarine force. He was even at Tokyo for the surrender of the Japanese and was able to witness it from the signal bridge of his submarine. He went on to study acting using the GI Bill once he was discharged.
Jesse Ventura
Jesse Ventura is a former professional wrestling and media personality who had distinguished career as a member of the U.S. Navy underwater demolition team during the Vietnam war. He did not see any active combat. He was frequently referred to as a Navy Seal, but he never completed the final training to become an actual Seal. He left the Navy and Vietnam in 1975 and started to build up his career as a wrestler from there.
Jimi Hendrix
Jimi did not enter the military because he wanted to; after getting busted for stealing a car, he was given a choice – the US Army or prison. He enlisted and got assigned to the 101st Airborne Division. Jimi expressed his feelings about serving in the army in a letter to his dad, “There’s nothing but physical training and harassment here for two weeks, then when you go to jump school, that’s when you get hell. They work you to DEATH, fussing and fighting.” His struggles were many, but thankfully he didn’t serve long. He was honorably discharged after one year due to an ankle injury sustained during a jump.
George Carlin
George Carlin was a member of the U.S. Air Force but apparently had a rough time in the military. He was stationed at Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana as a radar technician. He was court martialed three times and received a general discharge, but his work as a disc jockey while on active duty was the jump start for his entertainment career.
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