Goalie_deacon t1_j77esq9 wrote on February 4, 2023 at 5:26 PM

Reply to comment by LeanMeanDrMachine in TIL American writer Jack Kerouac served on SS Dorchester which was torpedoed by a German U-boat on 3 February 1943. Kerouac would have also been on the ship during the attack, but for a telegram he received from coach Lou Little, asking him to return to Columbia University to play football. by History-Guy111111

He wasn’t in the military when he was aboard the SS Dorchester. He was a civilian merchant mariner. He did later enlist in the Navy Reserve, but was discharged for mental health problems.