Walt Bellamy

Remembering Col. Robert Rheault, Walt Bellamy, Charlie Trotter

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• published: 06 Dec 2013
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A Green Beret And The Moral Ambiguity Of War SILVER WINGS GROUNDED, AN OLYMPIC STAR, AND A CHEF WITH A FLAIR Handsome, well-educated and brave, Col. Robert Rheault rose through the ranks of the American Special Forces Unit, the Green Berets, in the 1960's. He was one of the highest ranking Green Beret soldiers during the Vietnam War, but his career was undone when troops under his command executed a suspected enemy Vietnamese spy in their ranks. The episode, which prompted Daniel Ellsberg to release the Pentagon Papers, ended his military career and gave him a different perspective on war. He was a loose model for the Marlon Brando character Col. Kurtz in the 1979 classic movie, Apocalypse Now. Walt Bellamy was the center on one of the great unheralded basketball teams of all-time, the 1960 U.S. Olympic team. In an age of great NBA centers, Walt Bellamy held his own against the greatest and made the Hall of Fame. Charlie Trotter was the renowned Chicago chef whose restaurant and flair put Chicago on the map as one of the world's great culinary cities Robert B. Rheault /roʊ/ (October 31, 1925 -- October 16, 2013) was an American colonel in the U.S. Army Special Forces who served as commander of the First Special Forces Group in Okinawa, and the Fifth Special Forces Group in Vietnam from May to July 1969. Rheault was best known for his role as commander of the unit responsible for the 20 June 1969 execution of South Vietnam double agent, Thai Khac Chuyen, who compromised intelligence agents involved in Project GAMMA operating in Vietnam and Cambodia. Rheault was awarded the Silver Star for his actions in combat in the Korean War, attaining the rank of captain. After Korea, Rheault taught French at the U.S. Military Academy for several years in the mid-1950s, attaining the rank of major. Rheault attended the Special Forces Qualification course, the Q-Course, in 1961, and his initial Special Forces assignment was with the 10th Special Forces Group in Germany. He would later command the 1st Special Forces Group on Okinawa before being assigned to Vietnam to take command of the 5th Special Forces Group. Colleagues said of Rheault that he was one of the most respected and beloved officers ever in Special Forces, a "must promote" to General Officer rank if his command, and career, had not been ended prematurely by the Green Beret Affair.[4] Life Magazine cover from 14 November 1969 with Robert Rheault shortly after resolution of the "Green Beret Affair" All U.S. Army Special Forces, in 1969, operated under the control of 5th Special Forces Group, headquartered at Nha Trang, on the southeast coast of South Vietnam, and there was a close relationship with the CIA that complicated the chain of command and philosophy of rules of engagement.[5] Colonel Rheault took command of 5th in May 1969 and his unit was charged with seeking out leaks in a CIA-directed espionage ring as part of Project GAMMA. Colonel Rheault along with six of his Special Forces officers and a sergeant were arrested by the U.S. Military under the orders of General Creighton Abrams and threatened with court-martial charges of murder and conspiracy to commit murder, arising from the alleged extrajudicial killing of Thai Khac Chuyen, a Vietnamese double agent for the Americans and the North Vietnamese. Bellamy had a stellar 14-year career in the NBA, and was the NBA first overall draft pick in 1961. Bellamy was named the NBA Rookie of the Year in 1962 after having arguably one of the three greatest rookie seasons in NBA history (along with Wilt Chamberlain and Oscar Robertson).[3] His 31.6 points per game average that season is second all-time for a rookie to Wilt Chamberlain's 37.6, and the 19 rebounds per game he averaged that season is third best all-time for a rookie (to Chamberlain's 27 and Bill Russell's 19.6). Bellamy also led the NBA in field goal percentage in his rookie season, and had a 23-point, 17-rebound performance in the 1962 NBA All-Star Game. Bellamy played with the Chicago Packers, which became the Baltimore Bullets, for his first four seasons before he was traded to the New York Knicks for Johnny Green, Johnny Egan, Jim Barnes, and cash a few games into the 1965-66 season. .