I joined the Corps in July 1956. Spent my time at MCRD, then Camp Pendleton and on to Asia for two tours in the Phillipines. When we were out in the boondocks, we still had c-rats from a long time before that. The Lucky Strikes and Chesterfields were so old we had to hold them upright or the tabacco would fall out. A few draws and they were burned up! The c-rat fruits were good, but the stews were a gut churner! They had a greasy layer on top that would turn your stomach.
Best years of my life!
Jim Suthers, Sgt.
I can remember eating Cs from the 1940s during ITR. While in Vietnam (E/2/4) I think we received newer ones. I grew up less than rich and didn’t mind the taste. The only meal I couldn’t stomach was the scrambled eggs (and ham? — not sure exactly what they were called). I made out like a bandit because I was one of the few non-smokers in the platoon. I traded my smokes for canned fruit or the cake that came in some C boxes. Ah, the memories!
C-Rats! One of my favorite topics! My all time favorite was and still is “Beans and Wienies” Had to twist the end of some of the smokes to keep the tobacco from falling out! Love it! Thanx for the memory Jim! Harry
The C-Rats we had in VN were from the Korean War years. Some of that stuff was pretty tasty.