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Dixon16.jpgWork CrewMy work crew. We completed a new perimeter bunker at Duc Pho... a WELCOME improvement and 100% safer than what we had in the early days! Taken with a Polaroid on a self-timer. Not bad, huh? The boy next to me was one of two kids (a boy and a girl) I adopted from a local orphanage. We had a program where we could adopt orphaned kids and contribute something to their care each month. There were four Vietnamese helping us build this big bunker and they are all in this photo. The guy just over my shoulder to the left side of the photo was Roman (not sure if the same Roman listed on your site). The fellow behind me and in between the two Vietnamese was from Philadelphia... and I must say I cannot remember his name because we always called him "Philly" anyway! The other two GIs on the left are UNK (names forgotten).
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Dixon60.jpgWhatta Takeoff!Duc Pho Runway, LZ Montezuma, August, 1967. Although I thought that the runway had metal planking by this time, I could be wrong. Note the dirt runway with tire tracks. Certainly not a pilot's dream. Recall taking this shot from the back door of a C-123...a noisy, scary plane, but exciting to fly in especially when they later added JATO-assist pods on the wings.
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Dixon59.jpgWell, you saw me!During the melee, I tried to take photos but that was impossible. Somebody ran onstage and covered the redhead with a camouflage top and she was hustled offstage...and that was that! So, you get the camouflage shot!
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Dixon56.jpgUS Embassy - SaigonA photo of the US Embassy in Saigon before the attacks. Notice how high the front wall is over the fellow walking. One wonders how the press depicted the embassy wall as so easy to climb!
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Dixon70.jpgUnknownSomeone wrote in about a fellow in one of the field batteries whom I believe had a Spanish surname. I am not sure if this was him or not, but I recall knowing this guy who I think was either B or C battery. As I recall he was shot, possibly KIA. Great fellow with a good sense of humor... but again, darned if I can remember his name...
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Dixon19.jpgUnique 2/9th IconAnother photo showing the 2/9th symbol again on the nose of a truck. These were only painted on our vehicles and appeared on the nose and the hood. Later in 1968, they seemed to stop doing this graphic. Someone high up in 4th Division resented what they viewed as a leftover icon from 25th, but as far as I know, the symbol was not 25th and was used by 2/9th.
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Dixon52.jpgTraffic JamThe local street toughs that the GI's referred to as "cowboys" used to give me a motorcycle to ride around on. HERE is what is looked like out on the streets in the embassy district near the U.S. Special Services compound in the late afternoons. Traffic jam, South Vietnamese style!
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Dixon9.jpgTo my rescue...The Chinook touches down at LZ Liz...thank goodness!
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Dixon9a.jpgTo my rescue...LZ Liz was a scary place to me. Never felt at ease there. I did some commo work out there and this particular time, the guns had been firing quite a bit all night long. I "slept" (if you could call it that) in a bunker right near one of the guns... and was a welcome sight to see the sun come up that next morning. I awoke to the sound of a Chinook coming to get me and to drop off supplies and food. I took pix of him on the way in and landing. It looked like the sun was shining right through him on the way in. Man, it was a beautiful sight to see!...
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Dixon67.jpgThe Supply DudeHere was a jolly little fellow who worked in supply. But heaven help you if you didn't follow all the rules by the book! The jolliness stopped right there! Sadly, I just don't recall his name either. Memory is eroding now on the names.
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Dixon35.jpgThe Motor ManA very memorable character at right; his name was either Rogers or Richards. Fellow at left is UNK. The guy really loved WOMEN and met a few courtesy of the local mama-san. He said that Asia was heaven and he had no plans to return to the US. There were a lot of guys like that over there.
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Dixon51.jpgThe MetropoleLooking out front the guard post in front of the Ky-Son billet to the intersection of Tran Hung Dau St and another street that angled off from it. The pedicabs were called "Cyclo" (sick-low) by the Vietnamese. The tall, smooth front building to the right was a Vietnamese theater (I actually went in once and saw a show with my girlfriend- even though you weren't supposed to). The building off to the left is- OHHhhhhh yesssss... the French colonial hotel... The Metropole.
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