William D Larue

Candy William D Larue

"CANDY: True Tales of a 1st Cavalry Soldier in the Korean War and Occupied Japan" is the coming-of-age autobiography of a small-town teenager going to war in 1950. Kenny LaRue is like many young men at that time who volunteer for the Army out of a sense of patriotism and duty. Through quirky circumstances, he ends up on the front line of Korea, where he remains firmly in denial he might be killed - until he sees a buddy blown up by an enemy shell. Kenneth J. LaRue, in collaboration with his son William, tells this story in a no-nonsense way steeped in humanity and humor, including recollections of off-duty antics in Occupied Japan. The title "CANDY" is inspired in part by mispronunciation of Kenny's name by the young "bar girls" in Japan. Candy happens to be, too, a recurring element of his story, from the treats he gives to beggar children in Korea to the Army candy he used to settle his stomach after a brutal battle on Thanksgiving 1951. About the Authors Kenneth J. LaRue is the recipient of several awards and decorations for his Army service from 1951-1953, including the Combat Infantry Badge, Korean Campaign Ribbon with two bronze stars, United Nations Ribbon and Japan Occupation Ribbon. He worked for a paper mill in Potsdam, New York, from 1954 to 1974, and was employed as the Potsdam village clerk from 1975 to 1994. Ken was a member of the Canton VFW; a facilitator of the Divorced and Separated Support Group at St. Mary's Church in Potsdam; and was a founding member of the local Solo Singles group. He died November 30, 2012, after a long illness. William D. LaRue, married father of two, is an award-winning journalist, former TV critic for The Post-Standard in Syracuse, and a website producer for several major newspapers. Bill once owned one of the world's largest collections of licensed merchandise from the TV series "The Simpsons." He is author of the 1999 book "Collecting Simpsons!"