Ol'Harry

RECRUIT TRAINING TAKES DIFFERENT TWISTS

Military stories come in various shades of interest.  The era of service has a lot to do with the shade.  Seeing that Ted Russ’ two years of peace time military service coincided with two of my rather docile four years, I couldn’t fathom his story becoming a best seller.

A sizable segment of the population would beg to differ.

The son of a Fort Bragg barber, Russ graduated from Wake Forest College in 1955 with degrees in general science and education.   He was drafted into the Army the following year.

After basic and advanced training at Fort Hood, Texas, Russ deployed to Germany.  Perhaps in recognition of his college background, he traveled from base to base as a chemical, biological and radiological inspector/instructor in the Chemical Corps of the 2^nd Armored Division.

His overseas deployment completed, Russ returned to Fort Hood where he instructed new Army inductees.  It is unknown how much an inductee from Tupelo, Mississippi remembered about his two-day training cycle on chemical, biological and radiological warfare, but Russ, his instructor, remembers the two days like yesterday.

While Russ doesn’t recall the names and times of all the soldiers he trained, he particularly remembers training Private Elvis Aaron Presley. 

TED RUSS AND HIS MOST FAMOUS TRAINEE

“We took groups of recruits out in the field for two days at the time.  It seemed that everyone in Texas knew Elvis was in recruit training at Fort Hood.  We knew he would come through our training cycle at some point.  I was quite inquisitive about how training the King of Rock and Roll would work out. 

 

Elvis was a good trainee and well-liked by his Army peers.  He took his celebrity status in stride.  He realized that learning how to use a gas mask was serious business and went through exactly the same training as all other recruits.  He asked no favors or for any special treatment,” Russ recalls.

Surely it was coincidental, but General Colin Powell also met Presley while on active duty.  According to Powell, “I saw him as Elvis Presley, the soldier – not as Elvis Presley the celebrity.”  Right.

RUSS RECALLED ELVIS PRESLEY COPED WELL WITH HIS CELEBRITY STATUS WHILE IN THE ARMY

Russ would not go so far as to say Presley was a typical Fort Hood doughboy, “His company was the only one that had gasoline-powered lawn mowers.  All other companies had push mowers – I always thought Elvis funded the gasoline mowers and the government funded the pushers.

Elvis did not perform for the public during his Army service, but his handlers released enough films and records to keep his fans in a frenzy.  Anytime his fans could get on base, long lines developed at the slightest hint of an Elvis sighting.”

Russ has several photos of Presley.  His personal favorite may be the photo of Russ and Presley together, “When we show that photo to friends, my wife always tells everyone that I am the good-looking one.”

About the time Presley deployed to Germany, Russ deployed to civilian life and returned to North Carolina, “Since I enjoyed teaching and instructing so much in the Army, I got a job teaching high school chemistry, biology and physics in Camden County, making $331 per month.”

Russ may have enjoyed teaching soldiers, but found that high school teaching wasn’t his forte, “I quit teaching and went to work for Breon Laboratories in pharmaceutical sales for ten years.”

After a stint with Key Homes in Greensboro, Russ formed Russ Realty Company in the early 1970s.  He retired in 2005.

Russ was a Baptist, but married a Methodist.  He readily admits his wife was the better salesperson – they are long-time members of West Market Street United Methodist Church. 

He and Carolyn Alston, whom he says was an avid Elvis Presley fan, were married in the Greensboro College Chapel on June 10, 1961.  They have four children, five grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. 

TED RUSS HAD A SMILE AND HANDSHAKE FOR EVERYONE 

While Russ has carefully preserved his 56-year old photos of Elvis Presley, I was surprised he had never attended an Elvis Presley concert – or visited Graceland, “I always wanted to do both, but just never got around to it,” he says. 

Disclosure – I married an Elvis fan who owned his every record.  We have been to Graceland.  We also enjoyed Elvis’ Greensboro Coliseum concert of April 21, 1977. 

Elvis Aaron Presley died August 17, 1977.  In addition to being a good soldier, he was the best-selling recording artist of all time.