Why the blog title is that?
Last August and September 2011, I was watching Taps in my house in Makati. Shot in 1980-81 at Valley Forge Military Academy and College in Wayne, Penn. USA, it motivated me to be prepared for a rough life as a military academy cadet and last December, when the movie celebrated its 30th year anniversary, and was doing one of my two theses for my school about military academies worldwide, I made the decision to start applying for VFMAC in time for becoming a plebe there this August 2012.
Taps was the 1981 movie which told the story of a military academy in trouble and its cadets facing its end and the rebellion which changed their lives, adapted from the late Devery Freeman's 1979 novel Father Sky, and directed by Harold Becker with music from Maurice Jarre. The late George C. Scott and Timothy Hutton topbilled the movie as BGEN Harlan Bache, USA (Ret.), president of Bunker Hill Military Academy and Cadet Major Brian Moreland, whom the former promoted from being a Cadet Captain and Company Commander for C Company to become the AY 1981-82 Cadet Major of the Academy... its very last as it had to be closed after years of faithful service to the nation through a decision of its academy board. The company had among its officers and cadets some of Brian's best friends, Evan Handler (Cadet 1LT Edward West), Billy Van Zandt (CDT Bug) and new plebe cadets Brendan Ward (CDT PVT Charlie Auden) and John P. Narvin, Jr. (CDT PVT Derek Mellot). Brian had a father in the late Wayne Tippert (Kevin Moreland) who was then a United States Army Master Sergeant.
Sean Penn was Cadet CPT Alex Dwyer leading D Troop in his first movie, Giancarlo Esposito A Company's commanding officer Cadet CPT JC Pierce and Tom Cruise, in his second movie and first major role was...
undoubtly B COMPANY C. O. CADET CAPTAIN DAVID SHAWN!
The Red Beret wearing and gun carrying cadet officer, that is.
Because of Taps B Company is absolutely my favorite of all the units of the VFMAC Corps of Cadets, and Tom's character role was the main reason why I've decided to join and finish my secondary studies there by August 2012. Its also because of preparing for full time military service in the United States Navy via the NROTC while in college in San Diego while studying aerospace engineering or the Officer Candidate School in Pensacola, FLA. after college, all going to my final goal of becoming a USN Naval Flight Officer and becoming truly a part of the best of the best, especially after graduating from the world famous Naval Flight Weapons School also known as TOP GUN, part of the wider Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center in Naval Air Station Fallon in Fallon, Nevada and formerly from 1969 to 1996 in San Diego, California at then Naval Air Station (now Marine Corps Air Station)Miramar, nicknamed Fightertown USA. (BTW there's a Top Gun post coming soon here!)
Donald Kimmel was Tom's best friend cadet in the movie. Well Tim, Tom and Sean were great friends even through there was fierce rivalry among them in Taps, as you see in this next picture with Evan on the hallway of VFMAC's Wheeler Hall, where most of the shots were filmed (there were also scenes in the Alumni Chapel, the Main Area of VFMAC and the storied parade field):
To cut the story short the rebellion started during the academy ball when Gen. Bache accidentally killed a town teenage boy disrupting the cadets, thus he was later arrested and later was on hospital arrest. It would be a long time before all would go wrong, the cadets more affected, and all hell breaks lose in the end as what Brian, David and Alex would be... and it would dramatically change the face of the United States' military academies.
Brian and David would later die in the end, and as this video and pic shows, David died uttering one of my favorite lines in Taps.... "It's beautiful, man! BEAUTIFUL!"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppMQ2Jvekfg
So that's why my blog is named I'm David Shawn's Own: it's all because like him, I'm ready to die faithfully serving the United States of America as part of its armed forces, truly ever worth defending. BTW I'm watching Taps right now on Jack TV and it's gonna have its own post coming soon. So stay posted here.
Like him, my last words in battle would be this: "It's beautiful, man! BEAUTIFUL!"
Eternal glory to the cadets of Bunker Hill Military Academy, who risked all so we can live in a world that is forever truly worth defending!
LONG LIVE BUNKER HILL MILITARY ACADEMY! HUZZAH!
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