When Fighter Squadron (VF)-142 was embarked on board the USS Ranger (CVA-61) in 1960, our leading chief recommended to our skipper that we hold a long-overdue all hands squadron party during our next in-port period in Yokosuka, Japan. The men wanted to have the party at their favorite club in town. The skipper agreed, and set up a party committee, including one of our pilots, Lieutenant junior grade) Denham, and me, then an ensign.
When we came into port, the two of us gathered the down payment for the party from the recreation fund and crew contribution. Lieutenant Denham stuffed the sizable roll of yen into the pocket of his dress blue blouse and we got permission to leave the ship at 1000. As was the custom of the times for officers going ashore, I wore a suit and tie. We caught a cab and arrived at the club about 1030.
It was a large dance hall and the cleanup crew was hard at work cleaning up from the previous night. When we entered, we caught the assistant manager by surprise. Lieutenant Denham's aviator wings and the gold strips and stars adorning his sleeves were a rare sight in this nightclub, normally frequented only by enlisted men. Wide-eyed, the assistant manager inquired into our business at this early hour. The lieutenant replied that we wanted to arrange a large-scale party and wished to see the manager. Within a few seconds, waitresses placed two cups of tea in front of us as the assistant dashed off to summon his boss.
In a minute, a door opened from the manager's office. The manager, dressed in an undershirt and loose-fitting pants and slippers, shuffled the length of the balcony over the ballroom and began to descend the stairs. Halfway down he caught sight of Lieutenant Denham in his full dress blue uniform.
We made eye contact with the manager, but to our dismay, his smile vanished quickly from his face. He turned white, reversed course, and ran back to his room. We didn't know quite what to do and prepared to leave to return at another time.
Then the manager's door opened again, and a broadly smiling manager came down the stairs. This time he was clad in an immaculate tuxedo, complete with bow tie and cummerbund!
We completed our business, and despite our attempts to relax the manager, he remained completely formal, bowing in the appropriate places. On our leaving, we were presented with small gifts. Needless to say, the squadreon party, held a few days later, was a smashing success.