My Portfolio

Mum was and still is a fantastic singer. She sang like Billy and Ella during her teens. Dad was all about Country music and sang like Ferlin, George and Hank. With 10 kids in the house they played music all the time, Mum on the piano and Dad on the guitar....

For whatever reason I have no memory of how I came to own a Studebaker Lark. It was my very first personally-owned vehicle. I'm sure it didn't run well because I would've had very little money to support it in high school. What I do remember is that the front seats...

Trying to get 10 kids to do chores was like herding cats...

I was fortunate to have a unique relationship with all 9 of my siblings. In the coming stories I hope to share memories with all. Jimmy was the oldest and I was next. So, I spent more time with Jimmy than any of the others. I looked up to him as...

    This old guitar has taken me to many unusual places. It's one of the most special keepsakes I own.

It's been quite a journey since returning hone and being discharged. Like any life story there is too much to include in any one story. The highlights are, among other things, my 10 year career in a rock band with my brothers in the 70's. To see a slide show of...

A pile of dirt! That's all my brothers and I needed to create weeks and months of amazing entertainment. Dad was one of the most creative fathers ever. He would dump a pick-up truck full of topsoil right in the middle of the back yard. With a 99 cent bag of...

Today is the 9th anniversary of the tragic 9-11 attack and I found myself watching the minute by minute replay on NBC this morning. I'm surprised at how emotional I got and in many ways I'm glad I was able to re-experience it as it happened. I remember the day it...

My family consisted of 10 kids. It wasn't easy for my parents to offer allowances. But, they did whenever they could. So, I would take out trash or rake leaves or things like that to earn my 25 cents a week. Does that count as a first job? Or, I suppose...

Boys will be boys. We worked hard and we played hard whenever we could. R&R was in Tapei. It was a real eye opener for me. Here is a card from the Asia Hotel where I stayed. And below a card I got from one of the night clubs.    ...

  This audio contains reflections of life after discharge and my career since Viet Nam. When I came home I could hardly recognize my parents. They were like aliens to me. I couldn't wait to shed the uniform. Here's the picture of my mother's greeting me, secretly whispering in my ear,...

  This recording talks about every day life like what we ate, how we got through our typical day etc. Here I am standing in front of the ammo dump at our command base in An Hoa. Three days after this photo, incoming rockets blew it into oblivion.   Whenever we...

These recorded sessions were conducted by my Christine and I as part of the Library of Congress' Veteran History Project. To comply with their standards the interview was broken into 5 sessions. This recording includes some biographical information as well as some stories of the early part of my military service....

This poem was written by me and sent to my brother, Tom, when he was a Marine tunnel-rat in Viet Nam.   The year was 1968, and I was 15 years old.   My parents, my nine siblings and I waited every day for word on whether or not he was...

  This segment is all about roasts and tributes. Terry gives a hilarious account of one of my "mixed race" golf outings. I love him and his brothers because we can have as much fun as we want with each other with regards to race jokes and fun. The truth is...

IT'S MY PARTY!!! It was an incredible night to remember. Before we started taping the show there was an incredible Italian buffet and everyone pigged out big time. During the dining hour we played a continuous playlist of songs recorded in the 70's by my old band, Brothers Kingdom. As a...

This video segment is one of my favorites. Singing with Christine for the first time ever on stage was one of my most special moments in life and a dream come true for her. OK, so it wasn't the VERY first time she sang in public I tried to make light of...

I miss this era so much!!   It felt so nice having Jimmy and Johnny onstage again after over 3 decades. Jimmy comes up first to sing Blackbird. I picked up the wrong guitar for the song. I needed the one that was tuned to an open tuning and instead picked...

  If you want to see why we are such a musical family this segment tells the tale. George and Lil have been singing together since they met. In fact, they lived across the street from each other and Dad used to sing on the front porch and Mum couldn't resist....

  I wouldn't be honest if I didn't reveal this. OK, so I wouldn't reveal it. OK, I better reveal it. Poor Christine had such a hard time putting this event together alone. She knows how much I love directing stage shows. I've done it for 40 years. How could she...