I am a bit late with my D-Day blog. Did not feel well for a few days so did nothing.

My D-Day story a special one. About a special person. Someone I knew well and respected. His name Marcus Curry.

Marcus’ roots were Boston. His grandfather a judge, his father an attorney. Marcus graduated from Harvard in time for World War II. The Army infantry. He was one of those who was trained for D-Day.  A sergeant at the time. 

It was Omaha Beach for Marcus. Not everything went as planned. Marcus was on one of the first landing larges.  It did not land timely. Due to poor weather and German bombing from the beach, his landing barge bounced around for hours before it headed inland as originally planned. Circled and circled in the weather. Everyone sick throwing up.

His barge headed in the second day.

Never made it. Got blown up on the way in. 

Marcus survived. However, he was way out in the water, a long distance from the beach. Somehow he had lost all his equipment and clothing.  He was able to finally make it to the beach where he crawled up bare ass. Marcus portrayed what happened next to me in simple terms. A colonel was standing on the beach. Saw Marcus unattired and without a weapon, shouted at him: “What are you doing? Don’t you know men are dying inland. Get some clothes and a weapon and get up there.”

Marcus told me he thought the colonel was a “dumb fuck.” He, Marcus, was lucky to have made it to the beach and be alive, and this asshole colonel was chastising him.

Marcus did his duty by God and country, found some clothes and a gun, and moved on.

A few days later, he was captured. For some unfathomable reason, the Germans thought he knew some secret information.  They tortured him to obtain it. They placed his balls in a metal vise and screwed away. Turned and turned.

At first Marcus screamed. Then laughed. Does not know why the laughs came. But they did. He just laughed and continued to laugh out loud big time instead of screaming.

To the day he died, Marcus claimed his balls in the vise was the worst experience of his life.

The Germans finally realized Marcus was either crazy or they had made a mistake and devised him. 

A few days later, Marcus escaped and continued the fight into Germany.

When the war ended, Marcus and thousands of other American troops were rather promptly released. Marcus decided to play golf for a while. He did so everyday for months. Then decided he wanted to go to law school. It was the early summer of 1946. Harvard accepted him. However cold not take him till January. Boston University would take him in September. It was Boston University for him.

Somehow Marcus became a New York City lawyer rather than a Boston one as his grandfather and father had been. He became an insurance company trial lawyer. Rode the subways daily from one courthouse to another.

He apparently did a good job. Judge Lockwood was a retired New York State Supreme Court Justice in Utica. He did not enjoy judging as much as being a trial lawyer so he retired and went back to work at his former firm. He hired Marcus to move to Utica and work with his firm. 

Marcus was a good 15 years older than me. We met when he came to Utica. Sometimes we were on the same side of a lawsuit, others on opposing sides. Marcus I soon discovered was an outstanding attorney. Quiet and sedate. Knew what he was doing all the time.

Marcus was with the Judge’s firm for several years. I was in need of another good trial man. A top gun. I thought of Marcus. Could I attract him away from the Judge’s firm? We talked. He agreed to join me. Acquiring him, one of the best moves I ever made.

Marcus was with me 22 years before he passed on. A lawyers’ lawyer. He handled many of the “big cases” for my firm. Made me a ton of money, as well as himself. I compensated him well. He was worth every penny.

I eulogized Marcus when he passed away. One of the things I shared was he and I in 22 years never had a bad word or disagreement between us. He understood his position and responsibility and performed accordingly. He was a mentor to me as well as a friend.

Enjoy your day!