Ship Trivia Quiz

Would you class 78 feet long as big? If so...... but I'll give someone else a chance - don't want to monopolise the thread - and anyway, I might be wrong!

Rick

A bit of additional web research has established that subfixer was right:  http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0047797/

As I remember it, Above Us the Waves was a pretty good flick.  Unfortunately it seems to be available on DVD only in the PAL format, which doesn't work on American DVD players.  Its top-billed star, John Mills, also starred in another first-rate British submarine movie called Operation Disaster.  I'd really like to see that one again.

Subfixer - over to you for the next question.

In case anybody's curious about the fourth answer I had in mind - I was careful in the original question to use the word "production," rather than "movie."  Theodore Bikel, who has had a second career as a folk singer, "created" the role of Kapitan Georg von Trapp, Imperial Austrian Navy, in the original Broadway production of The Sound of Music.

So next time you watch The Enemy Below, think "Edelweiss, Edelweiss...."

Hmmmm....The African Queen, The Enemy Below, and The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming are certainly right.  I'm not sure about Above Us the Waves.  I saw that one on TV many years ago, but not recently.  It's not listed in my big fat paperback "DVD and Video Guide."  I did find a used copy of it at amazon.com, but the cast list doesn't include Mr. Bikel.  (Maybe his role was a small one.)  It isn't listed on Mr. Bikel's website, either. 

Subfixer, if you've got firm evidence we'll give you the prize (such as it is), since I did specify the number four.  But the fourth one I was thinking of hasn't been mentioned yet.  Hint:  it was an extremely well-known production, but one in which ship modelers would be considerably less likely to take an interest in than any of the aforementioned movies.  And it's the only one of the four in which Mr. Bikel played an actual historical character.

Okey-dokey, here's my list:

The Enemy Below- Heinie Schaffer

The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming  (one of my favorite all time movies) Russian captain

Above Us The Waves- German officer

The African Queen- German first officer

I'm not sure about the The Enemy Below answer, I can't remember if he was an officer or not.

One aspect of this story that impresses me is that Seaman Sheean only got a "Mentioned in Dispatches."  I'd think such heroic and self-sacrificial conduct would merit a medal.  In the U.S., such a person likely would be considered for the Medal of Honor. 

Now here's a question for nautical movie buffs.  (It occurred to me as I was watching a flick on cable TV the other night.)

The famous Austrian actor Theodore Bikel has appeared in four productions in which he's played naval officers.  Name the productions and the part he played in each.  (At least one of them is a big favorite among modelers; at least one of the others may be surprising.)

Correct Prof! And coincidently Teddy Sheean was also the answer to the question I asked when I butted in a week or so ago. Make sure you check out the Gunplot website, it's awesome!

Cheers

Mick

I haven't read the link you provided yet, Professor, but a story like this is well worth reading twice.  The link below leads to an account of Sheean's actions as related by survivors of the Armidale: 

http://www.gunplot.net/sheeanarmidale/Sheean.html

Named in honor of Ordinary Seaman Teddy Sheean (killed in action on board HMAS Armidale off Timor, Dec. 1, 1942), she's the only ship in the history of the Australian Navy to be named after a sailor.

YAHOO searches are indeed wonderful research tools:  http://www.navy.gov.au/ships/sheean/default.html

Firstly, thank you Rick for a challenging and cleverly phrased qusetion in one of my areas of interest: the RN!

OK try this one: What is significant about the Collins-Class Submarine HMAS SHEEAN?

Well done Mick! HMS Galatea, commanded by HRH Prince ALFRED, Duke of Edinburgh (1844 -1900).

The full details of his long and successful RN career can be found here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred%2C_Duke_of_Saxe-Coburg_and_Gotha but briefly:

"The Duke of Edinburgh devoted himself to his profession, showing complete mastery of his duties and unusual skill in naval tactics. He was promoted rear-admiral in 1878; vice-admiral 1882; admiral 1887; and received his baton as Admiral of the Fleet in 1893. He commanded the Channel fleet 1883-84; the Mediterranean fleet 1886-1889; and was commander-in-chief at Devonport, 1890-93. He always paid the greatest attention to his official duties and was most efficient as an admiral."

Percy Scott wrote in his memoirs that "as a Commander-in-Chief, the Duke of Edinburgh had, in my humble opinion, no equal. He handled a fleet magnificently, and introduced many improvement in signals and manoeuvring."

So, its over to you for the next question.

Rick

AHA! Think I've got it.Very tricky Rick!! Is it HMS Galatea?

Mick

No, not "Chequer". Another clue?

The man who shot the Duke of Edinburgh was arrested at the scene, quickly tried, convicted and hanged.

Rick

"long Royal Navy career", "several months in Australia on a round-the-world voyage".  One of the reasons he spent so long in Australia was that he was recovering from an assassination atempt - he was shot in the back. And he was single at that time.

Rick

Well this has become a real toughie for me then.  I thought Mr. Death had nailed it with HMS Magpie, since that is the only frigate that I can find that he served on.

 Are we not speaking of Prince Philip, the current Duke of Edinburgh? 

Surface_Line wrote:

subfixer wrote: Arrrrgh, matey, aye that it is so.   And what is your question, Mr. Death?

I was just responding to death's discovery that the USN treats its middies differently.

No, Death, it was not HMS Magpie

Try again.

Rick

subfixer wrote:

Arrrrgh, matey, aye that it is so.

And what is your question, Mr. Death? 

death wrote:

Mick PS I am a Midshipman in the Royal Australian Navy and we are commisioned and to be treated as a junior officer.I didn't realise it was so different in the USN!

Arrrrgh, matey, aye that it is so. Be glad, lest you be treated as bilge water by USN squids. 

Was it HMS MAGPIE?

Mick

PS I am a Midshipman in the Royal Australian Navy and we are commisioned and to be treated as a junior officer.I didn't realise it was so different in the USN!

OK,  a really Royal Navy question.

During his long Royal Navy career, The Duke of Edinburgh spent several months in Australia on a round-the-world voyage. What was the name of the frigate he was commanding?

Rick

Bingo, Rick - I was looking for Alfred Sephton from the AA cruiser Coventry.  Killed in action off of Crete on May 18 1941.

 Rick has the ball now.  Run, Rick - run!

Surface_Line - the school I went to didn't have a Navy ROTC program, but what you're describing sounds exactly like the Army's SMP (Simultaneous Membership Program) - I was, for all intents and purposes, an E-5 in the 86th Field Artillery battalion in Barre, VT during my Junior and Senior years.  I drilled with the unit once a month and drew E-5 pay for the time spent in drill.  I was shown respect by the enlisted men (they probably didn't know what to make of me is all), but it was made very clear to me that they were not reequired to follow any order I might give - in fact, I was specifically told not to attemnpt to do so, as it would only create an uncomfortable atmosphere.  It wasn't a particularly rewarding position, since I was used as a runner for the most part and didn't get exposed to any particular responsibilities other than following orders (which I was already able to do).

What a unit - it was the Service Battalion, and one weekend we conducted a drill on how to destroy a nuclear round if capture was likely. We created a perimeter with the trucks and were told to get under them to keep an eye out for the enemy.  That's when one of the guys, stationed under a deuce-and-a-half, started a fire in the dry grass. Right next to the fuel tank.  Next time we met he was gone - rumor had it that he went down south somewhere to learn how to be a mercenary.  I can only assume that plan ended badly.

Surface_Line wrote:

Back to the point: Jimmy Carter was commissioned shortly after the war ended, so he did not qualify as part of that trivia question.   There, I feel better now. Rick Heinbaugh

Rick, I have a feeling that I would have enjoyed serving under a Mustang like you. My dad was a Mustang, too, but went from Navy enlisted to an Air Force commission after WW II.

Getting back to the VC question, they were awarded to the following, serving in ships other than submarines and destroyers:

Alfred Sephton - cruiser HMS Coventry - 1941

William Savage - HM Motor gunboat 314 - 1942

Frederick Peters - Sloop HMS Walney - 1942

I guess one of these is the one you wanted?

Rick

I guess I have to weigh in on this one, since the fate of the civilzed world is certified NOT to be in the balance...

My credentials: During my 24 year Navy career which included enlisted and commissioned service, I served for two years on the staff of the NROTC Unit at the University of Washington, preparing some of those midshipmen for the sunmmer cruises that are mentioned above.  Also served with a Navy Warrant Officer, as well as many dozens of Navy Commissioned Warrant Officers.  and there is the hook...

First, let's explore the statement "a warrant is a warrant".  That would be true, but the Navy doesn't have them anymore.  I think the other services do.  Consider the paygrades.  We all know E-1 to E-9, and O-1 to O-10.  The Warrant grades are W-1, and CWO-2 to CWO-5.  W-1 is not a commissioned officer, and CWO-2 thru 5 (5 is a new level brought in during the last 15 years or so, across the different services) are Commissioned Warrant Officers, although frequently spelled out as "Chief Warrant Officers".   The Navy stopped using the rank of W-1 in about 1973.  I believe the Army still uses W-1 for helicopter pilots (answer to the trivia question - "What force has the most aircraft in the world? - the US Army has more helicopters than any air force has airplanes - but I digress)  Where do they rank?  For lineal numbers, the CWOs rank below the junior Ensigns.  For authority on a ship, Ensigns don't try to match rank with CWOs.

So that W-1 Warrant that I knew in 1973 was a certifiable dinosaur, and when the Navy pulled the plug on that paygrade, he was given the option of "up or back down", and he reverted to Chief Petty Officer.  I've never met a Navy CWO-5, as the Navy was the last to embrace that paygrade - Congress approved it in ~1990 and I believe USAF used it first, with other services gradually following.   I retired from the USNR in 1997.

 Midshipmen?  They are not officers.  How are they to be treated when they go out on their Summer Cruises?  The First Class midn, the gonna-be-seniors in college, are dressed in khaki, they mess in the wardroom, they act as assistant division officers during their cruises, and they generally "rub elbows" with the junior officers (learning leadership).  The Third Class midn, the gonna-be-sophomores in college, are dressed as enlisted, they work with the enlisted folks, they stand junior enlisted watches, they learn what it is like to be on a ship from the bottom up (learning to follow orders).  And if they don't like it, when they get back to the NROTC Unit, they opt to not sign the scholarship committment papers.  See ya.  During those cruises, as was stated, all these midn are paid equivalent to an E-5, less quarters, housing, or family allowances.

Since you ask: What about their Second Class Summers (gonna-be-junior)? That is made to a structured course around various disciplines - aviation/surface/subs - in more of a training environment than the First and Third Class Summers, when they are sent individually to a fleet unit for immersion in the Navy environment.

Midshipmen do not have any rank authority.  And though I speak from the NROTC experience, this is also true for Midshipmen in OCS, the Academy, and all the other programs, right up until the moment of raising the right hand for the commissioning oath.

 Back to the point: Jimmy Carter was commissioned shortly after the war ended, so he did not qualify as part of that trivia question.

There, I feel better now.

Rick Heinbaugh 

Schoonerbum,

Dodgers 2?

Was that Brooklyn or Los Angeles?

Anyway, it is interesting (but far from earth shaking) whether or not a midshipman is now (or recently, meaning WWII) considered to be an officer.

A commissioned officer is, without question, an officer. A warrant oficer is kind of in between. A non-commissioned is generally not considered to be an officer. The official rank of an Air Force Officer Trainee is an E-5, a non-coimmissioned officer. Therefore, an Air Force Officer Trainee is not an officer. (No commission, no warrant. Therefore, no officer.) I believe similar designations exist for other servives.

But, does this hold for the Navy and for mideshipmen? Perhaps a service academy graduate could weigh in on this.

After all, the satus of the officer corps of the free world hinges on the answer to this question.