Master Gunnery Sergeant

Smart man.

They gave him that Master Guns, might as well get it while you can.

Uh, always remember, when in doubt, throw it out.

Trash69 out.

And I am real picky about my leaders, and I can lay on one hand that I felt was good leaders.

Master Gunnery Sergeant Carlisle was hands down one of the finest Marine leaders, officer or enlisted, I ever knew.

We run PT three times a week.

My PFT score was a 300 because of him.

And, uh, [laughs] one goes, w- I can't-- I don't know who it was.

One of them in the group was like, "I guess we don't salute anymore, Master Guns." And he goes, [inhales] "I was killing men when you were in your daddy's ball sack.

Shut the fuck up." [laughs]

[laughs]

The first grade alone held eight of them.

Sergeant Major, First Sergeant, Master Gunnery Sergeant, Master Technical Sergeant, Quartermaster Sergeant, Paymaster Sergeant, Master Steward, and Master Cook.

The second grade held six more.

By January 1944, the Corps was running eight separate ranked tables, spanning a dozen branches and specialties.

Bag went flying through.

And this master gunnery sergeant showed up out of nowhere right in my face and started screaming at me.

Honest to God, I thought I was in the wrong place.

So after he screamed at me for a while and said, do you have anything to say for yourself, you smart-ass college boy? put my hand on his shoulder, looked him right in the eye, and called him Sarge.

I've never done so many push-ups in my life.

But he took a special interest in me, shall we say, once we got back to the battalion.

I probably gained more military bearing than I could ever have from that Master Gunnery Sergeant.

Because