Audie Murphy’s military career was not a mere reroute, or an afterthought from his glamorous life as an actor. He was as popular a soldier as he was a movie star, and for very good reasons. By the time he was 20 years old, he’d raked in all the combat awards for valor the army could give at the time. He’d served nine campaigns in WW2.
The US Army had to hold him back during the Korean War, using his image as a marketing tool instead, to boost their recruitment service. Audie Murphy retired from service with the rank of major.
Harvey Korman
American comedy actor, Harvey Korman, worked for many years in the American television industry. He originally signed up to be a United States navy reserve seaman first class during the very end of World War II, hoping to still be able to contribute valuable efforts to the war’s cause.
Unfortunately (or fortunately?) for Korman, he was only able to serve between 1945 and 1946. Dream thwarted (in the best way possible), he decided to study drama in Chicago instead, which started his career in the entertainment industry. In 2002, he was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame, having won several awards.
Roberto Clemente
Roberto Clemente was a famous American baseball player for the Pittsburgh Pirates whose career spanned from 1955 to 1972. During those times as an athlete, he had secretly thought about finding ways to serve in the military, doing so while the rest of his teammates were training in Puerto Rico during the winter. He joined the United States Marine Corps reserves as an infantryman back in the 50’s without their knowledge.
He realized that his Marine training had prepared his body physically and he benefited greatly from it. However, in 1964, he left the military to prepare for the World Series.
Jack Lemmon
Jack Lemmon was a famous American actor who, in the course of his career in the entertainment industry, won two Academy Awards. HIs very first movie is titled The Lady Takes a Sailor, where he appeared alongside the ever-beautiful Jane Wyman. Lemmon looked the part, becauser, unbeknownst to many, he was also a sailor for a brief period prior to being an actor.
During WW2 he had enlisted in the navy and worked as a communications officer on an aircraft carrier. He never saw combat though, and his service was very brief.
Rob Riggle
Rob Riggle had hopes of building a military career back in the day. His initial plan was to become a naval aviator, so he joined the service in 1990, with the intention of pursuing a pilot’s license to kickstart his long-term goal.
Riggle also liked acting and did some of it on the side. Then he was faced with a choice between his two big dreams. In the end, he decided to drop out of the military when his acting career took off to greater heights than he’d expected. Still, he actually became a member of the United States Marine Corps reserve, and did a tour of duty to Iraq in 2007. However, his tour was purely to entertain troops as part of the USO.