Naval boot camp, San Diego, 1957. The night before everyone was running around getting ready, I saw some guys stitching their dungaree shirts together. I asked them why. They told me it helped keep the shirts from wrinkling, nice and neat for inspection.
When pulling clothes in and out of a locker, they do get wrinkles and lose their form. Then you have to refold them. So guess what? I was ready for my bag inspection. The next day, here comes the Commanding Officer. “Nice bag, sailor. But your shirt is folded wrong.” Oh boy, I had been had. When he picked up my shirt, you should have seen his face when all three shirts came up. He folded the shirt in half and started hitting me with them, saying, “In all my naval career, I’ve never seen a jewel like this!”
That is how I got my nickname “Needles.”