Aside from 'kid' stories, Shep used to tell a lot of stories about being in the Army. He would often kid about being in the mess kit repair battalion, but he was really in the signal corps which was the basis for most of the stories.
He was in the service from July 20, 1942 to December 16, 1944 achieving the grade of T-5.
In the 'official' Army photo he is seen wearing the Signal Corps brass lapel pin, a Marksman medal (Rifle?), the Army Service Forces arm patch and what appears to be a Good Conduct Ribbon.
Very little is known about his actual service, however, between his stories as told on the radio and in print, and what records are available it appears that he never went overseas spending a large amount of time in Florida at Camp Murphy after completing Signal Corps training at Camp Crowder.
He tells a story about Roswell T. Edwards at his Limelight show of April 14, 1965. During the show a man in the audience stands up and it is Edwards who was now living in Manhattan. Edwards was stationed at Camp Murphy according to an April 27, 1943 article announcing his enrollment in a special course at the signal corps school at Camp Murphy.
There appears to be a link to his being at Drew Field in Tampa, Florida for some period. Drew Field was used to activate many of the Signal Air Warning radar units such as the one Shep served in and was just Northwest of Camp Murphy. As pointed out in "Shep's Army" by Eugene Bergmann, in the chapter "Swamp Radar," Shep says (as transcribed from the June 20, 1964 Limelight Show), "We were assigned to the 3162nd Signal Air Warning Radar Unit, which at one point was posted deep into the heart of the Florida Everglades, and we were putting together our little unit for the trip down there." So it appears that he may have been stationed at Drew Field and went 'down there' to Camp Murphy to the South at some point. Further evidence has been uncovered by Steve Glazer in the form of a hospital admission record for Shep's service number (16098946) indicating he was admitted to the hospital at Drew Field in April 1944. It lists "First Diagnosis (code 7429) Diarrhea, cause not specified."
At Camp Murphy he worked with a radar unit, probably the 801st Signal Training Regiment. In several of his Army related Playboy short stories he claims to have worked with the SCR268 Radar unit.
When Camp Murphy was deactivated, in early to mid 1944 he still had time left and quite possibly was transferred to Ft Monmouth, another source of many stories. During that period he even discusses going to Ft Dix for assignment. (Laying Wire - June 27, 1964 Limelight show)
On his January 31, 1978 Episode of Shepherd's Pie ("The Reunion") he tours Fort Monmouth and sits on the steps of barracks 704 which he claims to have been his barracks when he was there, and reminices.
According to his 'Service Record' and 'Final Payment Roll', (see below), he was discharged through Camp Atterbury, Indiana on December 16, 1944.
In later years, Shep made claims that he was in the Korean War. (Shepherd's Pie - January 31, 1978 - "The Reunion" and Weird NJ magazine Issue #3.) These claims were not true and were the product of Shep's tendency to 'bend the facts.'
On October 19, 1949 Shep was approved for a monthly disability payment of $13.80 for a knee injury. What caused the injury and how long the payments were made is not known.
People Shep spoke of: Army
Related Plots / Story Lines and Other References Used
Where Shep Makes Reference To This Subject:
Time
Date
Category
Title
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November 11, 1971 Article "Shepherd's America" Recycled
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December 27, 1959 Radio Last Sunday Show of the Year
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September 4, 1961 Radio It's All Part of Life - Square Eggs - Army Bangalor Story
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February 5, 1962 Radio Camp Crowder Record
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April 11, 1963 Radio Army Room Mate
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July 3, 1964 Radio 4th of July in the Army
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August 1963 Radio Army Induction
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May 3, 1963 Radio Italian POWs
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December 19, 1963 Radio Sportsman For All Occasions
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1963 Radio Long John Nebel Show
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June 20, 1964 Radio Summer Solstice - Rader in the Florida Swamps, Red Garter Dixieland Band / Summer Job, Toledo Mudhens Play-by-Play
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June 27, 1964 Radio Laying Wire; Red Garter Dixieland Band / Personal Radio Hell - Hillbilly Hit Parade
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June 1964 Radio Aggressive Nature of Man
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July 11, 1964 Radio Covering Political Conventions; Red Garter Dixieland Band / More on Elections, Rain God, Smoky Joe
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July 25, 1964 Radio Church Remote, Female Cretins on a Bus / Shep's birthday, Army - Climbing Poles, Air Show
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August 29, 1964 Radio First Day in High School / Theme for Signal Corps; Girls Swimming Class
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September 5, 1964 Radio Labor Day Weekend - Army Story: Shermie the Wormie / More Army Stories
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November 7, 1964 Radio British Trip - On Tour With The Beatles / More On Tour With The Beatles, Army Ping-Pong
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November 17, 1964 Radio Driving Captain Cherry on a Date
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24:48
December 30, 1964 Radio New Year's Eve at The Burly Cue
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18:29
May 27, 1964 Radio Shep's First Martini, Avoiding Responsibility
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January 28, 1965 Radio Company K: Captain Cherry Bugs Out
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February 12, 1965 Radio Rude Noises in Company K; Latrine Duty
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March 2, 1965 Radio Worst Job in the Steel Mill
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March 19, 1965 Radio Embalmers, Getting Out Of Army, Electric Blue Suit
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March 24, 1965 Radio Great Generator Hunt
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April 3, 1965 Radio Used Cars, Driving Own Car to the Prom / The Great Generator Hunt
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April 8, 1965 Radio Love at the USO
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10:27
April 13, 1965 Radio Code School (and meeting Fred Allen)
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24:39
April 14, 1965 Radio The Return of Roswell T. Edwards
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April 24, 1965 Radio The Star and Garter. Pursuit of Sin / Cave Diggers, Drive in Date, Company K Eggs
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June 5, 1965 Radio Graduation, Junior Class President, Date with Jeanette Dombrowki, Army Payday
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June 26, 1965 Radio Graduation Day
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July 3, 1965 Radio The Dago Bomb
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July 10, 1965 Radio Be careful of the live wires! / VD Film, Trooptrain Ernie, Army Glasses
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July 15, 1965 Radio Moving Pianos
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July 15, 1965 Radio Moving Pianos
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July 17, 1965 Radio Baseball Stories, Great Ice Cream Riot / Moments of Fear, Weekend Pass Fistfight
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August 7, 1965 Radio Fantasy vs Reality, Shirt Commercial / Army Casual Company
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August 9, 1965 Radio Civil Rights Movement as Show Biz
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August 11, 1965 Radio Reading Listeners' Letters
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August 28, 1965 Radio Building first radio with the Old Man / The Lure of Defeat, The Mets, Enlisting
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September 13, 1965 Radio Lost Three Day Pass
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September 25, 1965 Radio Shep Buys a New Car / Cheer for Ted Mallie; Cave of Snakes; Og & Charlie; Army Grease Trap
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October 23, 1965 Radio Bolting Burgers; Nudity in Frisco; Army Life - Playing Footsie in the Library
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November 6, 1965 Radio Surprise! Another Army Story
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November 30, 1965 Radio Company K: Pole Climbing
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December 13, 1965 Radio Christmas is Coming
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April 1964 Radio Tatoos
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February 19, 1966 Radio 2nd Anniversary at the Limelight - Washington's Birthday, Army Sports; Visit to Grandma
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April 2, 1966 Radio Steel Mill; Model A Mill Car;Army Induction Physical
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April 30, 1966 Radio Sex Education; Top Secret Radar; $20 in Library Book
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May 5, 1966 Radio Go See the Chaplain / Emde's Folly
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June 2, 1966 Radio Great Plains of Kansas
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June 4, 1966 Radio Broken window / Company K: Firing Range
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June 17, 1966 Radio USO Show - The Darling of Company K
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June 28, 1966 Radio 23 Skiddoo - Computer Charisma, Primaries Reporting
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June 1966 Radio Army Stories - "Digging A Ditch" and "In The Negev"
A Limelight show rebroadcast in Boston, according to the audience station break chant.
•
July 11, 1966 Radio Archy Declares War, Army Cockroaches
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July 23, 1966 Radio Forced March Through the Ozarks with Gasser & Goldberg
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August 6, 1966 Radio Polish Wedding, VD Movie
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August 30, 1966 Radio The Inchoate Cry; Signal Corps Training - Tying Knots
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September 8, 1966 Radio Army - Company "K" and Separation Blues
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September 10, 1966 Radio Butter vs. margarine; Noises in Basement
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September 28, 1966 Radio Almost in the Slam - Three Day Pass
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August 26, 1967 Radio Minor League Baseball, Amusement Park Rides, Leave at the Boardwalk.
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October 7, 1967 Radio Concrete Mexicans / Shep, the Colonel, and Sweetheart Pillows
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October 21, 1967 Radio Marching Bands and Dead Chickens
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November 4, 1967 Radio Jobs / 2nd Lieutenant Shepherd
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November 11, 1967 Radio Hobbies, Radar, Beer and Tonsils
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November 18, 1967 Radio Army Movies / Chow in the Mess Hall
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November 25, 1967 Radio Boredom in the Army / USO Pass / Thanksgiving
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December 9, 1967 Radio Sunrise Semester / The New York Woman / Gas Masks
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November 22, 1968 Radio Shooting Craps in Company K
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August 11, 1969 Radio Toilet Tax, Army Story
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August 12, 1969 Radio Snakes, Army Snake Story
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October 2, 1970 Radio Army Induction Physical
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39:45
October 10, 1970 Radio Story of Company K and Spanish Fly
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December 5, 1970 Radio Army Pranks
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December 24, 1970 Radio Army Guard Duty on Xmas Day
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December 30, 1970 Radio Army Guard Duty During New Years Eve
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January 6, 1971 Radio General Inspects Company K
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January 13, 1971 Radio Private Sanderson (Army Yardbirds)
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January 18, 1971 Radio New Action Army/Fishing in Italian Village
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January 21, 1971 Radio Practical Jokes, Army Signal Corps Oscillator Buzzbomb
•
20:48
January 29, 1971 Radio Gasser & Shep Almost Tattood Long Branch, NJ
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January 30, 1971 Radio Army Story of Making PFC
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22:07
April 10, 1971 Radio Army Glasses
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October 25,1971 Radio Army Rifle Range
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August 26, 1971 Radio Trivia, God's Top 40, Payday
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March 31, 1972 Radio Co. K Change Of Command
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April 12, 1972 Radio Trivia, Chaplain in Army - Unusual Caskets, Seeing The Chaplain For A Pass
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34:00
May 11, 1972 Radio Cockroaches
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June 23, 1972 Radio Witchcraft
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November 2, 1972 Radio Army Chickens - Marijuana Soup, Chicken Plucking, Motor Pool
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March 12, 1973 Radio First And Last Performance Of The Signal Corps Song
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July 18, 1973 Radio Army Revenge
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August 13, 1973 Radio Real Life, Aunt Teresa, Witty Sayings, Shep The Druid
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22:12
December 24, 1973 Radio Christmas Service Poem, The 3 Day Pass
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26:35
January 9, 1974 Radio Real Mysteries, Awakening Sleeping Animals
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37:36
February 4, 1974 Radio Unexpected Undersudies - Zoo Opera, Lt Fixes Radar Unit
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November 18, 1974 Radio The Poetic GI
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31:07
November 27, 1974 Radio Thanksgiving in the Army
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03:29
December 6, 1974 Radio The Perfect Christmas Gift - Salami
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09:12
January 24, 1975 Radio Signal Corps - Special Order
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37:48
February 3, 1975 Radio First Timers, Army 2nd Lt, Dolt fixes radar set
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June 30, 1975 Radio Bad Nights (aka Tentacle)
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July 22, 1975 Radio Practical Jokes
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December 24, 1975 Radio Christmas in the Army, Pole Line Construction
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January 23, 1976 Radio Army Story, Someone Swipes His Wheaties, Post Cerial Plant Tour
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March 7, 1969 Radio AWOL / Locked in a Department Store
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June 5, 1962 Radio Raincoats, Helmet Liners & G.I. Shoes
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June 20, 1962 Radio Selling Yourself
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August 21, 1962 Radio Animals in Pants, Army for keeps
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August 28, 1962 Radio Work Abstraction
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September 3, 1962 Radio Signal Corps Song
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September 13, 1962 Radio BBQ Lawsuit
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October 3, 1962 Radio Army Pass in NY
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October 19, 1962 Radio Pushed to the Brink
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November 12, 1962 Radio Army KP
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November 13, 1962 Radio Army, Area Two
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November 15, 1962 Radio Creative Military Ads
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November 16, 1962 Radio Great Expectations
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November 20, 1962 Radio Christmas in the Army
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November 23, 1962 Radio Army Laurel and Hardy Moments
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December 7, 1962 Radio Never Admit To Anything
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February 14, 1963 Radio Troop Train Ernie
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February 27, 1963 Radio Army Shoes, Uncle Alby
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11:28
March 1, 1963 Radio Homer Croft - Bugler
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March 25, 1963 Radio Army Specialized Training Program
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April 2, 1963 Radio Troop Train, Jug Band
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April 12, 1963 Radio Army Induction
•
10:21
April 23, 1963 Radio Date After Army
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May 10, 1963 Radio Army Secret Weapon
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September 24, 1963 Radio Army Taps, ASTP
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October 17, 1963 Radio Army Air Corp Flight - more Blue-assed Buzzard
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January 30, 1964 Radio Army Late Replacements
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January 14, 1965 Radio Army Life
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1960or 1961 Radio Dating Girl from Morristown
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December 12, 1961 Radio Evil of Boredom, Army Coke Bottle Game
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Unknown Radio Army - War Games, Maneuvers, Company K
•
12:00
June 24, 1967 Radio Army-Battalion Detail - How to Run KP Duty
•
March 17, 1975 Radio The Perfect Christmas Gift - Salami
•
April 14, 1977 Radio Gun Training
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January 20, 1966 Radio Salute to Millard Filmore, Army, Shep the Dentist
•
19:48
February 20, 1970 Radio Gasser & Shep Almost Tattood Long Branch, NJ
•
March 15, 1968 Radio Company K - Galloping Dominos
•
03:35 +
January 24, 1969 Radio Signal Corps Pillow
•
January 25, 1969 Radio Army Myths Vs real Life - Boozing
•
25:41
February 26, 1974 Radio Army Bread Man
•
April 24, 1971 Television Trains
•
June 13, 1971 Television Florida
Links to Further Information:
Photos:
Shep's Army Record
Courtesy: Ed Murphy
1943 Roswell T Edwards - army article
Courtesy: Steve Glazer
July 20,1942 Additional Army Service Information
Courtesy: Steve Glazer
1943 Shep in the Army
Courtesy: Dorothey Anderson
April 1944 Hospital Admission Card - Drew Field
Courtesy: Steve Glazer
December 16,1944 Shep's Army Discharge
Courtesy: Randall Shepherd
December 16,1944 Army Final Payment Roll
Courtesy: Steve Glazer
September 1945 Popular Mechanics - Laying wire from a plane in the Army
Courtesy: John Edwards
Army Marksman medal
Army Service Forces patch
Army Signal Branch Insignia
Technician Fifth Grade
