John "Chickie" Donohue (born 1941) is an American former

United States Marine The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

, merchant seaman and

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

ist. He is best known for his 1968 journey through

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

where he delivered beer to several United States service members during the height of the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

Early life

A native of

Inwood, New York Inwood is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in Nassau County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 9,792 at the 2010 census. It is considered part of Long Island's Five Towns area and is located within the Town ...

, a neighborhood in upper Manhattan, Donohue served in the Philippines and Japan with the

United States Marines The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through com ...

from 1958 to 1964.

Vietnam beer run

In November 1967, influenced by

anti-war An anti-war movement (also ''antiwar'') is a social movement, usually in opposition to a particular nation's decision to start or carry on an armed conflict, unconditional of a maybe-existing just cause. The term anti-war can also refer to pa ...

demonstrations and bartender George Lynch, who worked at a local bar called ''Doc Fiddler's'' (now ''The Red Barrel''), Donohue set out on a four-month journey to bring beer to several enlisted men from his neighborhood who were deployed in Vietnam. He landed a job on a merchant ship taking ammunition from New York to

Qui Nhon Quy Nhon ( vi, Quy Nhơn ) is a coastal city in Bình Định province in central Vietnam. It is composed of 16 wards and five communes with a total of . Quy Nhon is the capital of Bình Định province. As of 2019 its population was 457,400. Hi ...

, Vietnam, where he arrived on January 19, 1968, and handed out the first beer to Tom Collins, a member of the 127th Military Police Company and Donohue's childhood friend. He later travelled to

A Shau Valley A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes'' ...

where he brought beer to two additional Inwood natives, Kevin McLoone and Rick Duggan, and participated briefly in the

Battle of Khe Sanh The Battle of Khe Sanh (21 January – 9 July 1968) was conducted in the Khe Sanh area of northwestern Quảng Trị Province, Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam), during the Vietnam War. The main US forces defending Khe Sanh Combat Base (KSCB) ...

. The following day, he set out for

Saigon , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...

where he handed out his last beer to Bobby Pappas, a communications specialist in the Army. Having missed the return voyage of his merchant ship, he had to wait for some time before getting a passport and visa through the U.S. Consulate. On the day of his flight out of Saigon, the

Tet Offensive The Tet Offensive was a major escalation and one of the largest military campaigns of the Vietnam War. It was launched on January 30, 1968 by forces of the Viet Cong (VC) and North Vietnamese People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) against the forces o ...

started, leaving him stranded in the country. He later latched on as an oiler on a merchant ship destined for New York where he arrived on April 1, 1968.

Later life

In 1970, Donohue bought the pub ''Doc Fiddler's'' and ran it for several years. He later was a trade unionist.

In media

Donohue is portrayed by

Zac Efron Zachary David Alexander Efron (; born October 18, 1987) is an American actor. He began acting professionally in the early 2000s and rose to prominence in the late 2000s for his leading role as Troy Bolton in the ''High School Musical'' trilo ...

in the

biographical A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just the basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or ...

action comedy film Action comedy is a genre that combines aspects of action and comedy. The genre is most prevalent in film with action comedy films, though several TV series fit this genre. Film The action comedy film is a film genre that combines aspects of actio ...

The Greatest Beer Run Ever ''The Greatest Beer Run Ever'' is a 2022 American biographical war comedy-drama film directed and co-written by Peter Farrelly, based on the book of the same name by John "Chickie" Donohue and Joanna Molloy. The film stars Zac Efron and Russ ...

'', directed by

Peter Farrelly Peter John Farrelly (born December 17, 1956) is an American film director, screenwriter, producer and novelist. Along with his brother Bobby, the Farrelly brothers are mostly famous for directing and producing quirky comedy and romantic comedy fi ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Donohue, Chick 1941 births United States Marines People from Inwood, Manhattan American people of the Vietnam War United States Merchant Mariners Living people Harvard Kennedy School alumni