Joseph Winford Smith (December 20, 1925 - March 28, 1983) was an American

bobsled Bobsleigh or bobsled is a team winter sport that involves making timed runs down narrow, twisting, banked, iced tracks in a gravity-powered sleigh. International bobsleigh competitions are governed by the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Feder ...

der who competed in the 1950s. He won a gold medal in the four-man event at the 1953 FIBT World Championships in

Garmisch-Partenkirchen Garmisch-Partenkirchen (; Bavarian: ''Garmasch-Partakurch''), nicknamed Ga-Pa, is an Alpine ski town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the seat of government of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen (abbreviated ''GAP''), in the O ...

Military service

Smith was born and raised in

Cullman County, Alabama Cullman County is a county located in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, the population was 87,866. Its county seat and largest city is Cullman. Its name is in honor of Colonel John G. Cullmann. Cu ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, he served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

from October 1943 to April 1946. Smith was an enlisted soldier in the

United States Army Reserve The United States Army Reserve (USAR) is a Military reserve force, reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the Army element of the reserve components of the United States Armed F ...

from April 1947 to March 1948 and began to pursue a college degree. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Army Reserve on May 30, 1950 and completed a B.S. degree at the

Alabama State Teachers College Alabama State University (ASU) is a public historically black university in Montgomery, Alabama. Founded in 1867, ASU is a member-school of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. History Alabama State University was founded in 1867 as the Lin ...

in Florence in 1951.

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

Joseph Smith or "Colonel Joe" worked with the

USO The United Service Organizations Inc. (USO) is an American nonprofit-charitable corporation that provides live entertainment, such as comedians, actors and musicians, social facilities, and other programs to members of the United States Armed F ...

as Chief of the Armed Forces Entertainment Office. He traveled with many of the celebrities who performed for the USO during 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 ...

period including

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in more than 70 short and feature films, with 5 ...

Sammy Davis Jr. Samuel George Davis Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American singer, dancer, actor, comedian, film producer and television director. At age three, Davis began his career in vaudeville with his father Sammy Davis Sr. and the ...

Jim Nabors James Thurston Nabors (June 12, 1930 – November 30, 2017) was an American actor, singer, and comedian, widely known for his signature character, Gomer Pyle. Nabors was discovered by Andy Griffith while working at a Santa Monica, California, Sa ...

Raquel Welch Jo Raquel Welch ( Tejada; September 5, 1940) is an American actress. She first won attention for her role in ''Fantastic Voyage'' (1966), after which she won a contract with 20th Century Fox. They lent her contract to the British studio Hammer ...

, among many others. Joseph Smith was offered the position of the Director of Entrainment for the Disney Corporation, which he promptly turned down, as well as turning down a multimillion-dollar deal for the writing of his personal memoirs. In 1983, Smith died in

Hillsborough County, Florida Hillsborough County is located in the west central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. In the 2020 census, the population was 1,459,762, making it the fourth-most populous county in Florida and the most populous county outside the Miami metrop ...

due to a massive

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

. He was buried at

Myrtle Hill Memorial Park Myrtle Hill Memorial Park is a cemetery in Tampa, Florida, in the United States. It was established in 1917, and is located at 4207 East Lake Avenue. It is owned by Dignity Memorial. Notable graves * Gen. Paul DeWitt Adams (1906–1987), US Arm ...

in Tampa, Florida.

References

Bobsleigh four-man world championship medalists since 1930
archived webpage 1925 births 1983 deaths People from Cullman County, Alabama United States Navy sailors Military personnel from Alabama United States Navy personnel of World War II United States Army soldiers United States Army officers University of North Alabama alumni American male bobsledders United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War {{US-bobsleigh-bio-stub