Leon Rubenstein
Leon Rubenstein was born in Fort Worth, Texas, in 1924 and moved to Dallas at the age of three after his parents divorced. He and his older brother, three years his senior, grew up during the Depression, at one point living next door to an aunt with eight children. Money was tight, and Leon remembered standing in line with his mother, a single woman who sold millinery, to receive groceries from the government. The family moved often through Dallas neighborhoods, and Leon attended school and eventually graduated from Forest High, where he played football, ran track, served in ROTC as second in command of the cadet corps, and was voted one of the most popular students. A childhood friend from the neighborhood was future Hollywood mogul Aaron Spelling, who later attended SMU at the same time Leon did.
After two years at SMU studying business administration, Leon enlisted in the Navy as World War II raged. Following boot camp in San Diego, he was assigned to a motor machinist school, which spared him from the deadly Tarawa invasion that claimed many of his fellow sailors. He served aboard the destroyer USS Lindsey through three major campaigns: the Marshall Islands, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. At Iwo Jima his ship was credited with knocking out six gun emplacements. Off Okinawa, the Lindsey was struck by two kamikazes, blowing away much of its bow and leaving 57 dead and 56 wounded. Leon, stationed in the number three magazine, was blown over the side but survived. The crippled ship was towed backward to Guam and eventually returned to Norfolk, Virginia.
After the war, Leon returned to Dallas and, in his early twenties, taught himself music and fronted a dance band as a singer, playing weddings, nightclubs, and fraternity and sorority events for several years. He married Muriel at age 26, and the couple settled in Dallas, later moving to a large home on Gramercy Place as their family grew to three children. Leon sold shoes, worked the door at a nightclub in the evenings, worked for Neiman's, ran his own store in Preston Center for five years, and later sold industrial chemicals. He became deeply involved with the Jewish War Veterans, organizing a Thanksgiving dinner for homeless veterans, a hot dog social, and fundraising for the local Veterans Hospital, including support for a Fisher House. An avid traveler, Leon took 66 cruises. He and Muriel had two sons and a daughter and four grandchildren.
Full Transcript
Leon 1924 Fort Worth but you didn't stay there long you were three years old when you guys moved right my mother and father got a divorce so that's the reason we moved to Dallas and we moved and next door to her sister's house which had a small house and she had eight children her sister in the big house. So we sort of grew up there but we moved different places and from there we moved over to Grammar School which was on Cigar Street and the duplex so we're on one of the duplex. So from there you know we stayed there for a while and then we moved further up on into say Harwood Street another duplex where we went to higher grade you know not kindergarten but right our grade of learning and we stayed there and then we moved to Irby Street which I started high school and went to Forest High now the other one we just left was Colonial which was a you know lower grade but after we left colonia back up we went to Irving Street from there and then we used to walk to high school several blocks every day.
Now did your mom remarry? My mother was divorced and she didn't remarry until I got out of the service. Okay. And I went to college, SMU, two years. And then she decided she wanted to make a new life for herself. So she moved to Los Angeles. And she didn't like it there. And then she moved to San Francisco. Well, you know, it was a pretty brave woman that she knew nobody, didn't have a job, and so she used to sell a millinery. So she moved to San Francisco. Thank you Did that affect your dad's business? Did it affect your family at all? Do you know?
Oh sure. My mother was single. I remember as a little kid standing in the line to pick up groceries from the government. So there I was in a big long line with my mother and we picked up groceries and doing depression. You have a brother. Is he younger or older? Older. He was three years older. Okay. What did you guys do for fun when you were little? We used to run up and down the alleys that was right next to our house. And then we had Aaron Spelling's house, which is the big mogul in Hollywood. he was around the corner on Browler so we would all run up and down the alleys and end up in Aaron's house and you know that's it but I always played baseball you know and that was about it and football sometimes And were you friends with Aaron Spelling?
Oh yeah we were very good friends What was he like as a kid? Well he like my mother said I didn't even remember he put on plays in the garage or something you know so he was you know very talented he later on went in the army and wrote for the newspaper and later on he went to SMU same time I did you know and he was smart he took acting and stupid me I took business administration I should have took acting and went to Hollywood with a could have should have the story of my life now in high school what was high school life like for you well I really enjoyed high school you know I played football I was a ball carrier and I was in ROTC and I ended up second in command of the cadet corps and I was voted one of the most popular in school And I really enjoyed high school I went out for track also So my years there were great.
Now you went on to SMU. Did you play ball there too? No, I just didn't even go out for a ball. I just studied, more or less. Now, of course, World War II was going on while you were in school. What were you thinking? Did you realize that you were going to have to get involved, or what were you guys thinking? Well, we knew what was going on, and we knew eventually we were going to have to get in. So when I graduated, I went right in the service, you know, and just a few weeks, I was gone, you know, and the Navy, you know.
I chose the Navy. so they sent us to San Diego for boot camp so we were in boot camp six or eight weeks whatever and then they decided to give me a test and I took a test and made a good grade so they put me in what they call a motor max school where you work on the motors so the guys left and they went to Terawa and a lot of those guys got killed in the Terawa invasion, and I missed that because I was in school here, and of course, then they put me in amphibious forces, you know, where we go into Marshall Island invasion, and so I didn't, you know, six weeks, you don't know too much, you're hot and cold on the gauge, I couldn't have fixed the motor or anything, they would rush you right through.
so anyway i was uh did the invasion and then they decided to transfer me into new destroyers which was coming out the oldest scores had one gun on a turret these were two guns a new ones coming out two two forward one out so uh they put me in a barracks in downtown san francisco which didn't make me mad you know and all had to do was sign in and sign out for two or three months So eventually we got on the ship and had to shake down. And from there, like I say, we went to the Marshall Islands. And then from there we went to Iwo Jima.
Iwo Jima was a nightmare for the Marines There were 40 casualties there but close to 7 died and the rest were wounded And there were 100,000 Marines, I understand, going to invade the island, which had Japanese troops on that island. There were airfields and they needed that because our bombers would fly into Japan, get all shot up, try to fly back to the Marianas and they'd crash in the ocean and die a lot of them. So this would be short, you know, they could land there. So our destroyer was ordered in before daylight. There was a division ready to go in. So they ordered us into the beach, check for a minefield or a coral for the landing boats would get caught like they got caught in Tyrawa.
and they stuck on that car and got wiped out a lot of them. So from there we went to on our way to Okinawa we got into a typhoon. Well we were rocking and rolling. We were going like this. I thought that we were going over you flip right over but in that typhoon aircraft aircraft lost a lot of airplanes on the and we lost three destroyers that went under with everybody on board. So we were lucky we didn't flip over. So when we got to Okinawa invasion that was a major deal. The Japanese fleet coming down what's left of it and they had kamikazes you know suicide planes.
A lot of suicide planes. They tore the fleet up. They crashed into you. and they died for the Emperor. They were about 16 years old up. So we were supposed to help another destroyer dead in the water got hit. So we took on the way we took two kamikazes. One first one hit us below the bridge, first one hit us in number one magazine, blew the ship almost half away and I was in number three magazine at the bottom of the ship. So we were dead in the water. the third kamikaze was circling see if we were going to the bottom of the ocean while he was thinking about it a Navy pilot come along shot him down so I'd say this right there and it's a miracle number one magazine was 12 feet from Number 2 magazine and it didn't blow up but we got the dry dock and then we were looking for the hatch for number 2 magazine because the gun turret and the handling was gone and the front was gone they're all blown away and we opened up finally found the hatch open the hatch and everybody was drowned down there so we pulled them out they all swole up you know and buried them so we were there Okinawa, Karamahara Harbor where the Betty bombers fly over so we wouldn't shoot at us because they follow your trace around.
So finally the next night they've towed us backwards to Guam where they cut the whole front end off put a false bow on us and we made it ten miles an hour the west coast through the Panama Canal to Norfolk Virginia where they put us in barracks where they were worked on the ship and after a while the war was always so that's when we got out and came home you know. Now how many total battles were it was three your ship was in three? Well when we got blown up we had 57 dead 56 wounded so I was lucky. You're a young kid what are you thinking when this is going on what's going through your head?
Well we were in the number three magazine and all of a sudden all electricity goes off and we're in a dark room you know no lights no nothing so we said oh something happened bad you know so we opened that hatch and coming out you know so the bosa mate says stay down there i said we're coming out you know everything's dead so when we got up top side it was chaos you know guys running around with blankets and body in them and you know everything it was chaos, you know. But I got blown over the side, and the doctor was blown over the side, and the guys on the 40 and 50 millimeter, probably, concussion, probably blew them over the side, I don't know.
But, like I said, we were 57 dead and 56 wounded. So, they had a tug come along and asked us, we want to take everybody off. And the captain said, we're going to stay with the ship. But really what saved us when we were going full speed ahead, and we took those two, he ordered the ship in reverse which kept the one model in front from caving in and that when we probably sunk So the tug come on and the captain said we not leaving we staying on the ship okay So there's another story, took five kamikazes and they said, we're going to abandon ship, we're not abandoning ship.
And somehow they survived and went to the port, but five of them hit that ship, you know, they were bad. Leon, what was the name of the ship you were on? USS Lindsey, L-I-N-D-S-E-Y. Okay. We were, what do they call it, DM. They put mine tracks on each side of us where we were supposed to go in the enemy waters or somebody and drop mine, but they never put a mine on us, so it didn't make me mad because it's got a little mine can blow up, you know. Yeah. Now, the scariest moment was when the kamikazes, in the war for you was when the kamikazes were attacking you?
Oh yeah, very seriously. I think as I understand it in Okinawa they sunk 15 ships and damaged 22. They might have sunk more but they were a human bomb you might say. What was the name of this battle? Okinawa, the Battle of Okinawa and they had bombs strapped underneath so when they go in hit, the bomb go off and everything else in the magazine or wherever he hit. But they tore the fleet up. They estimated if we invaded Japan, there would be a million casualties. Now this was your third battle. You were in three battles. Was this your third one? Yeah, third one. What were the first two battles?
Well, the first one was Marshall Islands and the second was Iwo Jima. you know so when we went in like I said I forgot to tell you we were credited knocking out six gun emplacements with our guns you know our heavy gun which saved a lot of our brave Marines lives you might say so and then from there actually we headed for Okinawa you know which is on the doorsteps of Japan and and there were 21,000 Jap troops and the Marines annihilated 20,000. There was only a thousand left. So they fight to the death of the Japanese. Now when you went into these battles how much information did you have in your briefing meetings We had no information We just said battle stations and we go to the battle stations They didn't tell us anything where we were going.
I'm surprised, but they didn't. And how was the morale on the ship? Yeah, it was pretty good. We had this Jewish guy who was the plow officer. And he bought the food and everything. The food was good and we were all happy. We stayed at sea a long time at times. Of course I was 18 when I went in. Some guys were married and whatever. But I was fine. Now the war ends and you come home. Is that when you got married? I didn't get married until I was 26. Okay. Because in between, I had a, you know, like in my early 20s when I came home, I went into music.
And I had a band, and I used to front the band and sing. And they had a music store downtown, and I couldn't read or know music. I was like Frank Sinatra. He couldn't either sing by ear. so the guy that worked there was a saxophone player and the guys that come in there want jobs well he get he get the band together when he got the band together I'd booked a band and we all get together and you know and we do our thing we played sororities fraternities nightclubs weddings you know things like that so I did that about three years maybe maybe four and and then finally got out of it, you know.
So it was fun while it lasted. And where did you meet your wife? I met her walking down the street when I was, she was with a woman I knew. So, you know, it looked pretty interesting. So we finally, you know, went out and started going out with each other. And then we got married, you know. What was her name? Muriel. Muriel. Okay. Where did you guys settle down? In Dallas, you know. The first house we had was right off of Malkinburg. It was a nice little house you know and we didn have any kids then but we started to have a family And then from there we moved over to Gramercy Place We had three kids by then.
That was a big house there on Gramercy, right off of Royal. And what did you get into when you left the music business? What did you do? Well, I sold shoes. and then I had a friend of mine who would have an orchestra and so him and Abe Weinstein and one other fella they open up a nightclub type thing but they had entertainers come in so when I worked at a shoe store during the day and I'd get on the door in the evening and they had long lines you know people want to get in so I'd get them and seat them and I put reserve on the front seats you know so we had one guy Jewish guy used to come in and had a beautiful wife with him and he'd tip me and I put him on the front you know I take the reserve sign off you know and then you know I did that for quite a while but that got kind of old but wearing me out two jobs like that and was you know late so I sold shoes there for quite a while then I went to work for Neiman's you you know, on Preston Road, where they had a store on Preston Road, which they don't have anymore.
And then from there, I went across the street and opened up my own store for five years in Preston Center. So I was in there. So I got tired of retail, so I went into selling industrial chemicals. And I got in trouble, yeah. So I've been on 66 cruises. I've been all over the world a few times. Favorite spot in the world? What's your favorite? I like Italy and south of France. And Spain is good, too. Did you ever get back to Japan? No. Well, I flew in one time when I flew into the airport, and then from there I flew into Singapore. So that was, you know, I was in a travel business then, so I wanted to see Singapore.
So you had to go to Japan and we hit a storm. I thought we were going down and flying into Singapore. So I was in Singapore for a while and flew back home. Fondest memory of World War II if there could be one? I guess it was Imajima. In the Jewish war veterans I met this fellow and he was a marine and you know and he said he was at Iwo Jima in the 5th Marine Division. Their job was to cut the island in half. So I said well I fought at Iwo Jima so we've become very close friends you know. I'm Navy he's a marine you know.
But he did recently he died I went to the hospital visited him a couple times great guy wonderful guy what was his name his name was Roy Elsner Roy Elsner wonderful man a wonderful guy you know and we all very sad about that you're involved with the Jewish war veterans right tell me a little bit about that well we're veterans helping veterans and I was chairman of the and put it together and raised all the money for the homeless veterans Thanksgiving dinner every year so I'd raise the money you know and run maybe two thousand twenty five hundred so I had people give me donations
you know and I'd go out and hustle the money so then I was also chairman of the hot dog social you know we put on at the Richardson Senior Center that was the two main things what we did you know and of course like I said we we helped a lot at the Veterans Hospital we go out and sell poppies and we have a women's auxiliary and we bought new furniture for the veterans hospital with the women auxiliary New furniture for the day room we had a donation from walmart give us ten thousand dollars and we went out and raised five thousand so we put
an electronic map when you walk into the hospital probably over a million square feet out there and then we donated money and well we had the money but we bought what they called the Fisher House now a lot of people don't know what Fisher House is this Jewish guy in New York went to the hospital visit a buddy and everybody's sleeping in their halls or relatives so he said he got to do something about that so he raised the money and put in like today he died but his son daughter they put in 42 all over the country 42 Fisher House and they have one
here at the Veterans Hospital. So I was out there for the opening, and this big all-man, he donated $700,000. Wow. Doing that money. Now, Aaron Spelling, did you ever keep in touch with him when he became famous in Hollywood? No, he had his own clique, and he came to Dallas once with one of the movie stars. I forget her name. she was in a series all time on TV and that's the last time I seen Aaron you know but Aaron wouldn't fly you know he he's scared of flying so but I used to date his niece for quite some time you know but she was in Hollywood she used to make up all the Hollywood stars and so she came back Dallas and I was dating for a long time but she died recently you know she only about 61 you know but she a wonderful lady you know what was her name her name was Adele Frank you know okay in your lifetime there's been so much advancement in technology was an invention come along or did something come along that you went wow how did we ever get along without that?
Well, TV for one thing. We used to listen to radios when I was growing up and whatever was on the radio we used to listen. But TV and of course the improvements in the automobiles, fantastic. And of course the cell phone, all the technology coming up and the flat screen TVs and everything. It's unbelievable. Now in your lifetime you've lived through so many momentous occasions of course world war ii president kennedy assassination yeah the moon landing for the first time something good in 1969 of course the tragedy of 9-11 was there something that really stood out in the national scene that happened that you really took notice of that you knew exactly where you were when it happened yeah when kennedy got uh uh assassinated i was uh selling chemicals I was in Denton Texas you know short distance there and I heard I couldn't believe it you know it's unbelievable because I really liked him as a president I voted for him and so I'm a little on the conservative side you know myself you know I believe in a strong government and strong military and everything else keep it safe but I was really flabbergasted when he got assassinated Do you remember what it was like when Roosevelt died Yeah that was I think it was we were still at sea and I think it was April or some date there but we were still at sea and then came over he died and we were all pretty sad about it you know and because he was a good man.
Now, you and Muriel had three kids, two sons and a daughter. You have four grandkids, two in Houston and two in Norfolk. What advice does granddad have for those grandkids in the next generation? Follow your dream. That's what I tell them. Follow your dream. And I have the two in Houston. Both of them are in Baylor University. One of them will be 22. I can't believe it. time goes by too fast. The boys will be 22 and the 18, the girl. So they're enjoying and they make fantastic grades, you know, very smart. So they like it and hopefully I'll be around when they graduate. And then how old are the two in Norfolk?
They're 16 and 14. Still in high school. Well, she home homeschooled them which was good because a lot of these schools are bad you know and it was bad out there so she homeschooled them which and they're very fine kids you know well thanks for doing this today you did a great job yeah is that it