The greatest beer run ever : a memoir of friendship, loyalty, and war / John "Chick" Donohue and J.T. Molloy.
Material type:
TextPublisher: New York, NY : William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, [2020] Copyright date: ©2015Copyright date: ©2020Edition: First editionDescription: xiv, 248 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, maps ; 24 cmContent type: - text
- unmediated
- volume
- 9780062995469
- 0062995464
| Item type | Home library | Collection | Call number | Materials specified | Status | Date due | Barcode | Item holds | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Adult Book
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Dr. James Carlson Library | NonFiction | 959.7043 D687 | Checked out | 06/03/2024 | 33111009771839 | |||
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Adult Book
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Main Library | NonFiction | 959.7043 D687 | Available | 33111010440804 |
Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:
NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE DIRECTED BY PETER FARRELLY, STARRING ZAC EFRON AND RUSSELL CROWE!
Instant New York Times Bestseller
Instant USA Today Bestseller
"Chickie takes us thousands of miles on a hilarious quest laced with sorrow, but never dull. You will laugh and cry, but you will not be sorry that you read this rollicking story."--Malachy McCourt
A wildly entertaining, feel-good memoir of an Irish-American New Yorker and former U.S. marine who embarked on a courageous, hare-brained scheme to deliver beer to his pals serving Vietnam in the late 1960s.
One night in 1967, twenty-six-year-old John Donohue--known as Chick--was out with friends, drinking in a New York City bar. The friends gathered there had lost loved ones in Vietnam. Now, they watched as anti-war protesters turned on the troops themselves.
One neighborhood patriot came up with an inspired--some would call it insane--idea. Someone should sneak into Vietnam, track down their buddies there, give them messages of support from back home, and share a few laughs over a can of beer.
It would be the Greatest Beer Run Ever.
But who'd be crazy enough to do it?
One man was up for the challenge--a U. S. Marine Corps veteran turned merchant mariner who wasn't about to desert his buddies on the front lines when they needed him.
Chick volunteered.
A day later, he was on a cargo ship headed to Vietnam, armed with Irish luck and a backpack full of alcohol. Landing in Qui Nho'n, Chick set off on an adventure that would change his life forever--an odyssey that took him through a series of hilarious escapades and harrowing close calls, including the Tet Offensive. But none of that mattered if he could bring some cheer to his pals and show them how much the folks back home appreciated them.
This is the story of that epic beer run, told in Chick's own words and those of the men he visited in Vietnam.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 245-248).
One night in a New York City bar, the colonel's challenge -- Gathering the names -- Setting sail -- Voyage to Vietnam -- Anchored off Qui Nhon -- Looking for Chuckles's brother -- The Texan couldn't care less about orders -- The good samaritan in An Khe looked familiar -- LZ tombstone -- "Who's this guy?!" -- "Wait a minute, you don't have to be here, and you're here?!" -- Firefight at the ambush post -- Screams on the night road -- An Air Force pilot does me a favor -- Stuck in Saigon -- American money is good for bribes -- The Caravelle rooftop bar -- Finding a seafaring friend -- Happy New Year, baby -- Beaucoup VC -- Broken truce -- The American embassy under siege -- Battle at the president's palace -- Am I dead and in purgatory? -- Befriending a South Vietnamese cop -- A giant floating freezer full of food in the midst of famine -- Coast guard brass: a big job on a big ship -- Australian Marines lock the Caravelle up tight -- Finding Bobby -- Explosion at Long Binh -- Helping a descendant of the Mayans -- C.D., phone home -- Please do feed the animals -- "We cannot win" -- "We're outta here!" -- I kiss the ground -- Afterword: reflections on the journey -- Where are they now? -- Addendum: the neighborhood: Inwood, Manhattan, New York City -- Bonus chapter: BBQ and a beer-can shoot with a powerful stranger.
In 1967, John (Chick) Donohue was a 26-year-old U.S. Marine Corps veteran working as a merchant seaman when he was challenged one night in a New York City bar. The men gathered at this hearth had lost family and friends in the ongoing war in Vietnam. Now, they were seeing protesters turn on the troops. One neighborhood patriot proposed an idea many might deem preposterous: One of them should sneak into Vietnam, track down their buddies in combat, and give each of them messages of support from back home, maybe some laughs - and beer. Chick volunteered for the mission. He sailed to Vietnam on a cargo ship carrying a backpack full of American beer, landing in Qui Nho'n in 1968. Things went awry when Chick got caught in the Tet Offensive, starting in the early hours as an eyewitness to the battle to retake the U.S. Embassy in Saigon, where he became stuck for months. Chick Donohue later became legendary as "the Sandhog who went to Harvard." He worked for decades on behalf of New York's tunnel builders as the legislative and political director of Sandhogs Local 147. This is the story of his epic beer run to Vietnam, in his own words and in those of the men he found in the war zone.