Voting Station

William D. Leahy

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Military Personnel

The Resume

    (May 6, 1875-July 20, 1959)
    Born in Hampton, Iowa
    Admiral
    Chief of Naval Operations (1937-39)
    Governor of Puerto Rico (1939-40)
    US Ambassador to France (1941-42)
    Chief of Staff to the Commander-in-Chief (equivalent to the later position Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; 1942-49)

Why he might be annoying:

    He originally wanted to attend West Point before settling for the Naval Academy.
    He initially dismissed Harry Truman as a 'bush leaguer.'
    When told about the atomic bomb, he said, 'This is the biggest fool thing we have ever done. The bomb will never go off, and I speak as an expert in explosives.'
    A biographer noted that in most photos, he sports a 'sour grimace on his face.'

Why he might not be annoying:

    When he retired as Chief of Naval Operations, President Franklin D. Roosevelt told him, 'Bill, if we have a war, you're going to be right back here, helping me run it.'
    When Roosevelt proposed naming a senior officer as his personal military advisor and point of contact with the service chiefs of staff, Army Chief of Staff George Marshall replied that Leahy would be the only candidate acceptable to all three chiefs of staff.
    As Roosevelt's right-hand man, he was involved in all aspects of planning and executing US military strategy during World War II.
    He was the first five-star admiral in the US Navy (December 15, 1944).

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 6 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 6 Votes: 0% Annoying