| Highlights of Mr. Graham's appearances in world media include his famous interviews in 1997.
A so-called "Expat" sitting in his living room one night in western Germany, Graham became outraged by the lie of United States Secretary of Defense William Cohen at a press conference being broadcast on CNN International. Cohen was being confronted by the media regarding military hazing. A United States Marine had brought the videotape of a brutal initiation ceremony to the New York news media and DATELINE NBC broadcast the incident nationwide, at prime time. The incident involved the achievement of parachuting qualification. One earns a pair of wings to pin on the uniform. The brutal act recorded by a marine showed initiated marines passing on the tradition of physically stabbing the pins into the chest of the initiate -- at a run from ten meters away. In one scene a marine does this with his teeth, biting the comrade in the chest and lifting him two feet up the wall of a living room.
Pressed to explain, Cohen responded, "The pentagon has no knowledge of this type of event being widespread."
Graham pulled two hours of videotapes out of a closet and attempted to expose thousands of sailors on board USS Ranger in 1989 and 1991 participating in this type of traditional behavior. In his case it was known as "Wog Day".
A wog is a pollywog, a baby fish. The ceremony, a nautical tradition, takes place as one crosses the equator. One is met by King Neptune who boards the ship and orders cleansing of all wogs. Those cleansed are christened "Shellback" and for this reason, wog day is officially known as Shellback Initiation. One receives official entry of successful completion of this military exercise in one's service record: a Page 13 Administrative Remark.
Graham was responsible for service record entries as a Personnelman Second assigned to Fighter Squadron One. "The World Famous Fighting Wolfpack" was officially the all-round best fighter squadron in the United States Navy, twice awarded the Navy E for efficiency during Graham's tour of duty. Graham's tour included two six-month cruises across the Pacific as far as Australia, as well as the Persian Gulf War. Graham served in both Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm and experienced 44 days prosecuting the war in the Persian Gulf, in a tax-free combat pay zone with "the real Top Gun".
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