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40 Insights into the Lives of Famous War Veterans

Khalid Elhassan July 13, 2019 26 min

14. Lenny Bruce Lied about his age to enlist

USS Brooklyn. US Naval History and Heritage Command

Bruce’s wartime service began in early 1942, when 16 year old Lenny lied about his age to join the US Navy. He was assigned to the light cruiser USS Brooklyn, and saw combat in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean while providing convoy escort. The Brooklyn also provided fire support for amphibious landings, including the Torch landings in North Africa, the invasion of Sicily, the Anzio landing, and Operation Dragoon, the Allied landings in southern France.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.