Elmo Zumwalt | |
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Nickname(s) | "Bud" |
Born | San Francisco, California, US | November 29, 1920
Died | January 2, 2000 Durham, North Carolina, US | (aged 79)
Buried | |
Allegiance | United States |
Service/ | United States Navy |
Years of service | 1942–1974 |
Rank | Admiral |
Unit | |
Commands held |
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Battles/wars | |
Awards | |
Spouse(s) |
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Elmo Russell "Bud" Zumwalt Jr. (November 29, 1920 – January 2, 2000) was a United States Navy officer and the youngest person to serve as Chief of Naval Operations. As an admiral and later the 19th Chief of Naval Operations, Zumwalt played a major role in United States military history, especially during the Vietnam War. A decorated war veteran, Zumwalt reformed United States Navy personnel policies in an effort to improve enlisted life and ease racial tensions. After he retired from a 32-year navy career, he launched an unsuccessful campaign for the United States Senate.
Zumwalt was born in San Francisco, California, the son of Elmo Russell Zumwalt, and his wife, Frances Pearl (née Frank) Zumwalt, both country doctors.[1][2] Frances was raised Jewish, the daughter of Julius and Sarah Frank of Burlington, Vermont. His family moved to Tulare, California, where he grew up. She became estranged from her parents for marrying outside the faith, as the Zumwalts were Christians.[3]
Zumwalt, an Eagle Scout and recipient of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award from the Boy Scouts of America, attended Tulare Union High School in Tulare, California, where he became the valedictorian, and Rutherford Preparatory School in Long Beach, California.
"Z-gram" was the semi-official title for policy directives issued by Elmo Zumwalt as Chief of Naval Operations (CNO).[8] Many of these directives were efforts to reform outdated policies potentially contributing to difficulties recruiting and retaining qualified naval personnel during the period of United States withdrawal from the Vietnam War.
After he retired, Zumwalt wrote On Watch: a Memoir, published by Quadrangle Books in 1976. It reviews his Navy career and includes reprints of all the Z-grams he issued as CNO.
Also in 1976, Zumwalt unsuccessfully ran as a Democratic candidate for the United States Senate from Virginia, and was defeated by incumbent independent senator Harry F. Byrd Jr. by a 57% to 38% result. Later, he held the presidency of the American Medical Building Corporation in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
While serving in Shanghai in 1945, Zumwalt met and married Mouza Coutelais-du-Roche, whose French-Russian family was living there. She returned with him to the United States. They had four children: Elmo Russell Zumwalt III; James Gregory Zumwalt; Ann F. Zumwalt Coppola; and Mouzetta C. Zumwalt-Weathers.
Zumwalt's eldest son, Elmo Zumwalt III, served as lieutenant on one of Zumwalt's patrol boats during the Vietnam War. In January 1983, he was diagnosed with lymphoma, and in 1985 it was discovered that he also had Hodgkin's disease.[10] In addition, his grandson Elmo Russell Zumwalt IV had been born in 1977 with learning disabilities. Admiral Zumwalt and his family were convinced that both son and grandson were victims of Agent Orange, which the admiral had ordered to be sprayed over the Mekong Delta to kill vegetation and drive "the Viet Cong back 1,000 yards off the water's edge".[10]
In an article published in The New York Times in 1986, Elmo Zumwalt III said:
I am a lawyer and I don't think I could prove in court, by the weight of the existing scientific evidence, that Agent Orange is the cause of all the medical problems – nervous disorders, cancer and skin problems – reported by Vietnam veterans, or of their children's severe birth defects. But I am convinced that it is.[10]
Admiral Zumwalt and his son collaborated with writer John Pekkanen to create the book My Father, My Son, published by MacMillan in September 1986, where they discussed the family tragedy of his son's battle with cancer. In 1988, the book was made into a TV movie with the same name, starring Karl Malden as the admiral and Keith Carradine as his son.[11] Elmo Zumwalt III died from his cancer on August 14, 1988, at the age of 42,[10] three months after the TV movie was shown.[11]
During his son's illness in the early 1980s, Admiral Zumwalt was very active in lobbying Congress to establish a national registry of bone marrow donors. Such donors serve patients who do not have suitably matched bone marrow donors in their families. Though his son ultimately was able to receive a transplant from his own sister, many patients do not have close relatives who are able and willing to help in this way. As such, his efforts were a major factor in the founding of the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) in July 1986. Admiral Zumwalt was the first chairman of the NMDP's board of directors.
In his later years, Zumwalt resided in Arlington County, Virginia.
Zumwalt died on January 2, 2000,[12] aged 79, at the Duke University Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina from mesothelioma. His funeral service was held at the Naval Academy Chapel. In his eulogy President Bill Clinton called Zumwalt "the conscience of the United States Navy".[13]
The United States Navy's DD(X) guided missile destroyer program has been named the Zumwalt class in his honor,[14] and its lead ship, USS Zumwalt, bears his name by Navy tradition.
In 2013, the Mesothelioma Center for Excellence at the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center was renamed the Elmo Zumwalt Treatment & Research Center. It specializes in mesothelioma research, particularly for veterans who may have been exposed to asbestos during their service.
Ensign | Lieutenant, Junior Grade | Lieutenant | Lieutenant Commander | Commander | Captain |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
O-1 | O-2 | O-3 | O-4 | O-5 | O-6 |
June 19, 1942 | May 1, 1943 | July 1, 1944 | April 1, 1950 | February 1, 1955 | July 1, 1961 |
Rear Admiral (lower half) | Rear Admiral (upper half) | Vice Admiral | Admiral |
---|---|---|---|
O-7 | O-8 | O-9 | O-10 |
Never Held | July 1, 1965 | October 1, 1968 | July 1, 1970 |
Navy Distinguished Service Medal with two gold award stars | |
Legion of Merit with gold award star | |
Bronze Star with Valor device | |
Navy Commendation Medal with Valor device | |
Navy Unit Commendation | |
China Service Medal | |
American Defense Service Medal with bronze "A" Device | |
American Campaign Medal | |
Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with one silver and two bronze campaign stars | |
World War II Victory Medal | |
Navy Occupation Service Medal with "ASIA" clasp | |
National Defense Service Medal with one bronze service star | |
Korean Service Medal with two bronze service stars | |
Vietnam Service Medal with one silver and two bronze service stars | |
Navy Expert Rifle Marksmanship Ribbon |
Presidential Medal of Freedom[12] |
Grand Cross of the Order of May (Naval Merit), (Argentina) | |
Commander of the Order of Léopold, (Belgium) | |
Grade of High Officer of the Order of Naval Merit, (Bolivia) | |
Grand Officer of the Order of Naval Merit, (Brazil) | |
Grand Cross of the Order of the Southern Cross, (Brazil) | |
Order of Merit, (Chile) | |
Grand Officer of the Order of Naval Merit Admiral Padilla, (Colombia) | |
Grand Cross with Silver Breast Star of the Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez and Mella, (Dominican Republic) | |
Commander of the Legion of Honour, (France) | |
Grand Cross, Second Class of the Order of Merit, (Germany) | |
Grand Cross of the Order of George I, (Greece) | |
Bintang Jalasena, First Class (Indonesia) | |
Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic, (Italy) | |
Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun, (Japan) | |
Order of Military Merit, Third Class (Republic of Korea) | |
Order of National Security Merit, Tong-Il Medal (Republic of Korea) | |
Grand Officer of the Order of Orange-Nassau (with Swords), (Netherlands) | |
Grand Cross of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav, (Norway) | |
Commander Grand Cross of the Royal Order of the Sword, (Sweden) | |
Order of Naval Merit, First Class (Venezuela) | |
National Order of Vietnam, Third Class (Republic of Vietnam) | |
Republic of Vietnam Navy Distinguished Service Order, First Class (Republic of Vietnam) | |
Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm (Republic of Vietnam) | |
Chuong My Medal, 1st Class | |
Philippine Liberation Medal with two service stars (Philippines) | |
United Nations Korea Medal | |
Vietnam Campaign Medal (Republic of Vietnam) | |
Korean War Service Medal (Republic of Korea) |
Philippine Presidential Unit Citation (Philippines) | |
Korean Presidential Unit Citation (Republic of Korea) | |
Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation (Republic of Vietnam) | |
Vietnam Civil Actions Unit Citation (Republic of Vietnam) |
Distinguished Eagle Scout Award |