Living the Life of Riley with 96-Year Old World War II Veteran Mr. Donald Sperier

In this episode, we discuss Mr. Sperier's time during the war. He wanted to be a naval aviation pilot "on the carriers." He recalls how they faked his colorblind test so he could advance to the next round of screening.

It wasn’t until the next physical exam that he was busted. He'd have to give up on his dream of serving in the Naval Air Force and join the Merchant Marine Cadet Corp.

He finished basic training and started his maritime training as a cadet in King’s Point, New York, which he says was "heaven on earth." Why? There were so many women to choose from. Apparently, all the 19-20 year old men were off at war, which meant those men training at King's Point had their choice of young gals.

Mr. Sperier didn't take many trips to Europe—his deployment called for only 3 months of sea duty. Though he does remember fondly the brand new T2 tanker he rode as part of the convoy to Britain.

We also talk about his career after the war ended. He worked as a test engineer at Pratt & Whitney, then got word the United States planned to go to the moon.

He said he had to figure out a way to work on "the moon shot"—a project he definitely wanted to part of. At Chrysler, he helped to build the Saturn rocket that propelled the first man to the moon. The rest, as they say, is history.