Never mind those fake stories about Lee Marvin and "Capt" Kangaroo!
It's a little-know fact that Rock Hudson fought at Iwo Jima and was one of the guys in that famous photo of the Marines raising that flag on top of Mount Errobutt.

  As well, that's where Rock first met Jim Nabors,
who was an instructor in hand-to-hand combat. Very few marines could go up against Nabors, and they quickly gave up once he growled "Now- your ass is MINE, sweetheart!"

  They were known (privately) amongst themselves as the "Gay Battalion" and soon became notorious amongst the Japanese soldiers, who quickly decided they would rather fight to the death rather than be captured by these marines! It was only much later that the US High Command found out this true reason why the Japs fought to the death.

Hudson and Nabors were both awarded Red Hearts for their minor wounds received while in hand-to-hand combat with the terrified Japs.  (Nabors apparently broke several fingernails) 

"RED" Heart, you may ask?

   Well, it was originally red. But Rock immediately demanded that the name of the medal be changed to the "Purple" heart, and the Generals wisely complied with his request, over the objections of the effete Lee Marvin and that cowardly private who later called himself "Captain" Kangaroo!

 And we might add that more complaints also came from "Mr" Rogers, who always had some lame excuse for not being up at the front with Hudson and Nabors - E.G. "Golly kids, someone stole my flak jacket, and all I have is this warm sweater to protect me!"  

 Some Trivia:
  Rock Hudson and Capt. Nabors were instrumental in getting Liberace to  come to  Iwo Jima, and later Okinawa, to entertain the exhausted marines with his deft keyboard style.