Honorary Marine is a title that has been given to various people by the
United States Marine Corps
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 c ...
.
Current official program (1992–present)
The distinction is currently bestowed solely by the
Commandant of the United States Marine Corps to "individuals in the civilian community who have made extraordinary contributions to the Marine Corps."
It "carries no entitlement to pay or benefits."
[
Nominations may be submitted to the commandant by "commanding generals, commanding officers, and officers-in-charge" and "must be endorsed by a general officer within their chain of command."][ Criteria include:][
:(a) A terminally ill child that has some unique or qualifying link to the military or the Marine Corps.
:(b) An individual who has given extraordinary service or support to the Marine Corps, and for whom any lesser form of recognition would be insufficient.
:(c) Deceased individuals whose actions or contributions on behalf of the Marine Corps would have merited consideration before their death.
]
Honorees
Two somewhat differing lists can be viewed on the official Marine Corps website, one at th
Marine Corps Honorary Marine
page (1992-2011), and the other i
this document
(1992-2007).
Among the notables on both lists are:
*Joe Rosenthal
Joseph John Rosenthal (October 9, 1911 – August 20, 2006) was an American photographer who received the Pulitzer Prize for his iconic World War II photograph '' Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima'', taken during the 1945 Battle of Iwo Jima.
...
(1996), the reporter who took the iconic photograph '' Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima''Marine Corps War Memorial
The United States Marine Corps War Memorial (Iwo Jima Memorial) is a national memorial located in Arlington County, Virginia. The memorial was dedicated in 1954 to all Marines who have given their lives in defense of the United States since 17 ...
, based on Rosenthal's photographDaniel Inouye
Daniel Ken Inouye ( ; September 7, 1924 – December 17, 2012) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Hawaii from 1963 until his death in 2012. Beginning in 1959, he was the first U.S. representative ...
(both 2001)[
* Jim Nabors (2001), star of the television comedy show '']Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.
''Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.''The show (and CBS) renders the title as ''Gomer Pyle – USMC''. is an American situation comedy that originally aired on CBS from September 25, 1964, to May 2, 1969. The series was a spin-off of ''The Andy Griffith Sho ...
'', "promoted" to lance corporal on August 9, 2001, later to corporal on September 25, 2007[
*Actor ]Chuck Norris
Carlos Ray "Chuck" Norris (born March 10, 1940) is an American martial artist and actor. He is a black belt in Tang Soo Do, Brazilian jiu jitsu and judo. After serving in the United States Air Force, Norris won many martial arts championshi ...
(2006)[
*Actor Gary Sinise (2012)
*]Member of Congress
A Member of Congress (MOC) is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The term member of parliament (MP) is an equivalen ...
Ike Skelton (2010) Former Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee
Among the 2012 honorees were Cody Green, a terminally ill boy who loved the U.S. Marine Corps, and Ryan Crocker
Ryan Clark Crocker (born June 19, 1949) is an American retired diplomat who served as a career ambassador within the United States Foreign Service and a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He has served as United States Ambassador to ...
, U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan.
Jacob Tyler Sprinkle was posthumously made an Honorary Marine on July 11, 2014 and the family was presented his honor on October 15, 2014. The ceremony was held at Lee High School in Jonesville, Virginia. The presenting officer of the United States Marine Corps was Lt. General John A. Toolan, Jr., Commander, Marine Corps Forces, Pacific. Jacob lost a 13-year fight with congenital heart defects.
As of October 2014, there have been fewer than 100 Honorary Marine titles presented in the 239 years of the Marine Corps.
Other ad hoc honorees
Lon Chaney, Sr. was made an honorary member of the Corps for his portrayal of a Marine sergeant in the 1926 film '' Tell It to the Marines''.[ Cartoon character ]Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny is an animated cartoon character created in the late 1930s by Leon Schlesinger Productions (later Warner Bros. Cartoons) and voiced originally by Mel Blanc. Bugs is best known for his starring roles in the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merr ...
was given the rank of honorary Marine master sergeant for his performance in ''Super-Rabbit
''Super-Rabbit'' is a 1943 Warner Bros. cartoon starring Bugs Bunny. The cartoon is a parody of the popular comic book and radio character Superman by DC. ''Super-Rabbit'' was the 16th Bugs Bunny entry, and the 47th directed by Chuck Jones.
...
''. Actor and comedian 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 ...
, famous for his work with the USO, was named an honorary brigadier general of the Corps.[ ]
References
{{US Marine Corps navbox
United States Marine Corps personnel