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Norman’s Corner: Speaking to Admiral Rickover

By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the second in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar, author, analyst, and consultant in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) Soon after I went to work for Navy Times in late 1959, the editor-in-chief, John Slinkman, came over to my desk and

Norman’s Corner: Tom Clancy

By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the seventeenth in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar—author, analyst, and consultant specializing in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) In July 1983 a friend asked my wife, Beverly, and me to attend a bar-b-q at his home. Among the few others

The Loss of the USS Thresher: What We Now Know – SECOND SATURDAY WEBINAR

Nearly 58 years ago the nuclear-powered submarine Thresher submerged east of Cape Cod never to surface. In recent months the Navy has released hundreds of pages from the Navy Court of Inquiry hearings held subsequent to the tragic loss of Thresher and her crew. Join us for our March Second Saturday with retired Captain James

BOOK REVIEW – Hunters and Killers: Volume 2: Anti-Submarine Warfare from 1943

By Norman Polmar and Edward C. Whitman, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD (2016) Reviewed by Larry A. Grant Hunters and Killers, Volume 2: Anti-Submarine Warfare from 1943 is the second volume of a sweeping survey of submarine and antisubmarine warfare written by two very well-informed authors. During his forty-year career as a Navy civilian employee,

BOOK REVIEW – Hunters and Killers; Vol. 1: Anti-Submarine Warfare from 1776 to 1943

By Norman Polmar and Edward Whitman, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD (2015) Reviewed by Robert P. Largess In a page-long “Perspective” prefacing this unusual book, the authors express the reason for its writing: “Since the early decades of the last century, several hundred non-fiction books have been written about submarines and submarine warfare.” This substantial

Norman’s Corner: A Most Unforgettable Character

By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the 26th a series of blogs by Norman Polmar—author, analyst, and consultant specializing in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) Being a “character” is a very positive description of a person.  To me, a character is one who thinks for himself or herself,

Norman’s Corner: My Protégé and My Mentor

By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the 25th in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar—author, analyst, and consultant specializing in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) During the summer of 1965, when I was assistant editor of the Naval Institute Proceedings, a young man came into my Annapolis

Norman’s Corner: My Adopted Brother

By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the 24th in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar—author, analyst, and consultant specializing in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) The U.S. nuclear attack submarine Thresher sank during sea trials off the New England coast on 10 April 1963, with the loss

Norman’s Corner: An Airman’s Airman

By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the 23nd in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar—author, analyst, and consultant specializing in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) I knew Don Engen for a very brief period. Still, he had a significant influence on me. Vice Admiral Engen dropped out

Norman’s Corner: Who is Nigel West?

By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the 21st in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar—author, analyst, and consultant specializing in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) Nigel West is not a spy.  Some people think that he is.  British journalist and documentary film producer Jon Ronson, in his

Norman’s Corner: The Father of Aegis

By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the 20th in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar—author, analyst, and consultant specializing in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) In the mid-1970s my neighbors in Northern Virginia included Stu and Martha Landersman.  Stu was a Navy captain and a surface warfare

Norman’s Corner: An Astronaut Underwater

By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the nineteenth in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar—author, analyst, and consultant specializing in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) I knew an astronaut.  We were friends for a few years.  We were not close, but we were on a first-name basis.

Norman’s Corner: A Real Curmudgeon

By Norman Polmar (Editor’s note: This is the eighteenth in a series of blogs by Norman Polmar—author, analyst, and consultant specializing in the naval, aviation, and intelligence fields. Follow the full series here.) We often tend to use terms and words to describe people that, when we learn the true meaning of the word, often