patches Posted October 30, 2014 Share #1 Posted October 30, 2014 Anyone ever heard of this guy? Or seen this photo? Quite a story about him http://spartacus-educational.com/JFKconein.htm But curious as to what and why he's wearing a straw hat with officers cap device and an Airborne Cap patch on it, as well as a 503rd ROCK patch as a combat patch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tankerman Posted October 30, 2014 Share #2 Posted October 30, 2014 What a read!! WOW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vintageproductions Posted October 30, 2014 Share #3 Posted October 30, 2014 Looks like he is wearing a "Cowboy" type boonie hat that were fairly common in most Asian countries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dakota Posted October 30, 2014 Share #4 Posted October 30, 2014 Quite an odd but Bad *** look! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doyler Posted October 30, 2014 Share #5 Posted October 30, 2014 I knew an Alamo Scout who was in the 503rd prior to his being a Scout.Seen his Viet Nam uniform and he wore the 503rd as a Combat patch. His WW2 discharge listed him as 503rd as well but the MOS stated "Scout". Im thinking Conein was WW2 503rd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseygary Posted October 30, 2014 Share #6 Posted October 30, 2014 I was going to say that the straw hat looks like the kind of headgear worn in the Dutch Asian colonies before 1941, but after I read his bio it doesn't seem like he was near any of the Dutch colonies before or after the war. I'd sure like to read a full-scale book about this guy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irish Posted October 30, 2014 Share #7 Posted October 30, 2014 Conein was an interesting fellow. He was a partner with Edward Lansdale during his years post WW2 in the Philippines and Indo China. Both playing important roles as King makers. First with Ramon Magsaysay in the Philippines and then Diem in Indochina. Great Photo by the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrei Posted October 30, 2014 Share #8 Posted October 30, 2014 His hat looks to be a french bush hat made in Extrême-Orient which means made in Indochina. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan H. Posted October 30, 2014 Share #9 Posted October 30, 2014 Somewhere, I have a photo of another soldier with the exact same insignia- para-glider cap patch sewn to a VN bush hat with the side pinned up and a 503rd "The Rock" patch worn on the right shoulder. IIRC, the soldier whose photo I have served in the 173rd Infantry Brigade in Vietnam. The Herd was one of the first combat units in Vietnam. I'll see if I can find the photo of which I speak- the one I have is in color. Allan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patches Posted October 30, 2014 Author Share #10 Posted October 30, 2014 His hat looks to be a french bush hat made in Extrême-Orient which means made in Indochina. Right, wide brimmed cloth bush hat, Straw hat what was I thinking Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patches Posted October 30, 2014 Author Share #11 Posted October 30, 2014 I knew an Alamo Scout who was in the 503rd prior to his being a Scout.Seen his Viet Nam uniform and he wore the 503rd as a Combat patch. His WW2 discharge listed him as 503rd as well but the MOS stated "Scout". Im thinking Conein was WW2 503rd. No I don't think Conein ever served in a line unit in WWII. From this photo we do see a glimpse of wing and an oval, maybe at some point in the 50s, late-sh 50s, however brief, Conrein had a standard troop assignment? Maybe in Germany or at Bragg with a Battle Group of the 503rd Inf? One was in the 24th Inf Div, the 1st BG and another in the 82nd Abn Div, the 2nd, soon to be joined by the 1st BG that was reassigned from Germany to the 82nd at Bragg. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doyler Posted October 30, 2014 Share #12 Posted October 30, 2014 No I don't think Conein ever served in a line unit in WWII. From this photo we do see a glimpse of wing and an oval, maybe at some point in the 50s, late-sh 50s, however brief, Conrein had a standard troop assignment? Maybe in Germany or at Bragg with a Battle Group of the 503rd Inf? One was in the 24th Inf Div, the 1st BG and another in the 82nd Abn Div, the 2nd, soon to be joined by the 1st BG that was reassigned from Germany to the 82nd at Bragg. Agreed Just thought he may have been assigned to the 503rd when going to SEA/VN at wars end after reading his bio.I hadnt read it before I first posted.Stated his group went to organize and fight the japanese.Guess its one of those mysteries. Wearing as a combat patch I would think he would have had to be in WW2 or Korea to wear as a right shoulder patch.Plus the khaki uniform makes me think its pretty early picture of him in the late 50s or early 60s. Intresting fellow at any rate.He seemed to be in all the right places (or wrong places). We had a local vet who was in the Navy and retired from there.He told stories of being in Viet Nam in the early 50s.He said his unit often supplied older aircraft parts to the french to keep the C47s up and running.He was on a boat that ran parts up river to them.Wish I would have spoken to him more.Sadly he is now gone and so is the rest of the story. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patches Posted October 31, 2014 Author Share #13 Posted October 31, 2014 @doyler, CHECK Understood. My feelings now is that this photo of Conein was taken in the 50s when he was on a troop assignment, with the 503rd in Germany? Super Commandos, as in WWII Jedburghers, OSS, CIA etc, officers or enlisted, like Conein were still part of the Army, and going by another Super Commando, John Singlaub would on occasion have to pull Troop Duty at one time or another during their career. The hat, as IDed by Andre as French Tropical type from Indochine, may have been his from his previous duty there, and worn in this photo all dolled with U.S. insignia up by him as a goof or something, he was after all supposedly an eccentric. As a thought, though I can't find period photos to confirm this, I get the feeling that that when the 503rd AIR was a part of the 11th Abn Div, it had the local approval to wear the ROCK patch on the right shoulder. As seen here on Olivia D'Haviland's fatique shirt given as a present from the boys in the 503rd AIR, 11th Abn Div in 1957, whether it was sewn on just for the gift, or it was a standard practice however brief? Who's the big 1950s 11th Abn Div expert again? Maybe this member can shed light on this idea of the ROCK patch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doyler Posted October 31, 2014 Share #14 Posted October 31, 2014 Kevin Great work and super picture. Im wondering if the patch was worn on the sleeve at times rather than on the pocket? I recall seeing the 508th and 501st wearing pocket patches in the early 60s.Maybe at the time the 503rd wore them on the sleeve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patches Posted October 31, 2014 Author Share #15 Posted October 31, 2014 Kevin Great work and super picture. Im wondering if the patch was worn on the sleeve at times rather than on the pocket? I recall seeing the 508th and 501st wearing pocket patches in the early 60s.Maybe at the time the 503rd wore them on the sleeve. If they did that would zero out the wear of a combat patch, if it was done, must of been done not for a long time, brief. Too bad Ican't so far find photos to see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doyler Posted October 31, 2014 Share #16 Posted October 31, 2014 I have on a couple occasions seen the 508th devil worn as a shoulder patch on the right sleeve.Dont know if it was a vets anomalie as there was an 82nd on the left.This was on a WW2 ike.One even sold on ebay several years ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DUDLEY Posted November 28, 2014 Share #17 Posted November 28, 2014 Anyone ever heard of this guy? Or seen this photo? lucien conein.gif Yes, i have certainly heard of him. As a matter of fact, I did quite some research on Lucien Conein and was in contact with his family. His military personnel record is very impressive. After OSS/Jedburgh missions in France and Vietnam, he joined the Strategic Services Unit (SSU) and did work in post-war Germany. Was part of the Counter Intelligence Corps until 1952. He then went to Washington for other intelligence work. Was in Saigon during during '54-'55. Then joined HQ of the 77th SFG untill '59. He probably was already part of the CIA in this period. Went to Iran in 1959. His military record suddenly stops in 1961. Take a look at this, just took from my bookshelf. Conein's copy of Get Tough, which he probably carried around when he was an instructor at Jedburgh school Milton Hall. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patches Posted November 29, 2014 Author Share #18 Posted November 29, 2014 Dudley, any idea why he's wearing the 503rd Infantry ROCK patch on this uniform? Was he in this unit briefly in the 50s, between his assignments in Saigon, and the 77th SFG at Bragg? Perhaps at Bragg itself with the 2nd BG 503rd Inf, 82nd Abn Div,which was in the 82nd around 1957, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DUDLEY Posted December 1, 2014 Share #19 Posted December 1, 2014 Dudley, any idea why he's wearing the 503rd Infantry ROCK patch on this uniform? Was he in this unit briefly in the 50s, between his assignments in Saigon, and the 77th SFG at Bragg? Perhaps at Bragg itself with the 2nd BG 503rd Inf, 82nd Abn Div,which was in the 82nd around 1957, I have no idea! His record doesn't mention the 503rd. After Saigon he was part of "Sgt Gp 8706th DU Washington DC" (??) until October 56. From November 56 to May 59 he was with 77th SFG. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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