Written by Kris Land
Jack Lemmon: The Face of Ensign Frank Thurlowe Pulver
Jack Lemmon was an actor with a lengthy filmography including over sixty films. Lemmon was a 
likeable actor that was noted as being equally likeable off screen as well. His talent was lent to famous films including The Apartment (1960), Some Like It Hot (1959), The Odd Couple (1968), Out to Sea (1997), Grumpy Old Men (1993), and many others. He appeared in the widely acclaimed film Mister Roberts (1955) which earned him a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award.
A Young Jack Lemmon
Jack Lemmon was born John Uhler Lemmon III on February 8th, 1925. He was delivered inside an elevator in the Newton-Wellesley Hospital located in Newton, Massachusetts. He was an only child and his father was president of a company that produced doughnuts. Lemmon was enrolled at John Ward Elementary School and later the Rivers School. Lemmon claimed that he knew he wanted to take on an acting career by the age of eight.
Pursuing his dreams, Lemmon attended classes at Phillips Academy and the Harvard University where he was an active participant in many of the school drama clubs. After graduating from Harvard, Lemmon decided to enlist in the Navy where he served as an ensign. After his discharge, Lemmon resumed his pursuit of a professional acting career. He took on roles in television productions, Broadway plays and on the radio.
Jack Lemmon and the U.S.S. New Bedford
Jack Lemmons talent helped make the film version of Mister Roberts the success that it was. He took on the role of Ensign Frank Thrulowe Pulver, bringing personal and professional experience to the production. Along with the other big names appearing in the film, Lemmon helped bring another high point to the career of the U.S.S. New Bedford. Today named the Seabird, efforts are being made to acquire and transform the ship into an environmentally friendly bastion of the Earth. Although indirectly, Lemmon helped the effort by bringing the ship into the limelight with his contribution to the hit film, Mister Roberts.
The Death of Jack Lemmon
Lemmon was a talented actor who was also a generally likeable person. He enjoyed a long, fulfilling career but sadly lost his battle with cancer on June 27th, 2001. He had been coping with the condition for two years prior. Despite his declining health, Lemmon kept his illness private as much as possible during his last years. Today, Jack Lemmons grave can be found in the Westwood Village Memorial Park in Westwood, California. He remains close to his friend and fellow actor, Walter Matthau.
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1944: Camano Class Light Cargo Ship was laid down for the US Army as FS-289 at Wheeler Shipbuilding in Whitestone, NY.
1945: Delivered to US Army.
1950: Acquired by the US Navy on July 1, 1950 and placed in service as USNS New Bedford (T-AKL-17).
1954: The movie, Mister Roberts, was made on the USNS New Bedford (T-AKL-17).
1955 - 1963: Used as a cargo supply ship for the Texas Towers, a network of advanced radar stations located off the Eastern Seaboard. In 1957, Capt. Sixto Mangual was commander of the AKL-17 and in 1961 it was rechristened the USNS New Bedford. The New Bedford, sailing out of State Pier, was keeping vigil when Texas Tower No. 4 callapsed off the New Jersey coast during a January 1961 nor'easter.
1963: Reclassified as Miscellaneous Unclassified (IX-308).
1971: The New Bedford (IX-308) served as a Torpedo Test Firing Vessel in the Puget Sound area.
1994: Ceremony in New Bedford.
1995: The ship was struck from the Naval Register on April 4.
2004: The Sea Bird's current disposition is a tuna long liner (fishing boat) out of San Diego, CA.
2006: Design of the Tesla Turbine began on June 11, 2006. The Sea Bird was sold by Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service for commercial service.
2007: The Sea Bird was drydocked for renovations.
2008: The Sea Bird setting sail to Sea-Tac in Seattle, WA.
2009 - 2010: The Sea Bird is currently docked at Seattle Sea-Tac.
