US Navy Admiral. A highly decorated World War II combat veteran, he saw action in the Pacific Theater at Battle of Coral Sea, the Battle of Midway, the Battle of Guadalcanal, the Battle of the Philippine Sea, the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the Battle of Iwo Jima, and the Battle of Okinawa. Nicknamed "Ted," his father was the owner of The Daily Times newspaper in Port Huron, Michigan who later moved to California and became editor and publisher of The Daily Independent in Santa Barbara. After completing high school in 1906, he received an appointment to attend the US Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland and graduated in 1910. He had consecutive duty on the battleships USS Montana, USS Ohio, and USS Maryland and upon completion of the mandatory two years of sea duty, he was commissioned an ensign in March 1912. In January 1914 he was ordered to the USS Cheyenne on the Pacific Station for submarine duty. He was transferred to the submarine USS H-3 in April 1915, and from her to command of the USS H-2. In December 1917, after the US entered World War I, he reported for duty in charge of fitting out the USS O-7 at Quincy, Massachusetts and assumed command when she was commissioned on 4 July 1918, engaging in patrol duties in the Atlantic Ocean during World War I. After the end of World War I, he became the navigator on the battleship USS Minnesota. He then served shore duty at the Bureau of Engineering in Washington DC until 1921, when he was named as Commanding Officer, Submarine Division 9, at San Pedro, California later at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. In 1933 he commanded a destroyer division and from 1934 to 1935, he was Aide to 11th Naval District Commandant, Rear Admiral George Tarrant. In 1936 he completed flight training and became a naval aviator at the age of 47, and the following year served as executive officer of aircraft carrier USS Saratoga, and of Naval Air Station San Diego to 1938. In 1939 he was promoted to the rank of captain and commanded a Patrol Wing in Panama. In 1940, following a Senior Course at the Naval War College at Newport, Rhode Island, he became the Commanding Officer of the aircraft carrier USS Lexington and was serving in that position when the US entered World War II in December 1941, following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. In May 1942, at the Battle of Coral Sea, Japanese bombers scored direct hits on the Lexington and he ordered the ship abandoned. He was then promoted to the rank of rear admiral and served as assistant chief of staff to Commander-in Chief Admiral Ernest King until October 1942. He then became commander of the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise until April 1943, after which he was transferred to Pearl Harbor and two months later he became Commander, Carrier Division 2, on board the aircraft carrier USS Essex. In July 1943 he became Commander, Carrier Division 1 aboard the aircraft carrier USS Saratoga. From 1944 to 1945 he served in the Fast Carrier Task Force, as Commander, Carrier Division 2. In 1945 he was promoted to the rank of vice admiral and became Commander, US 5th Fleet in 1946 and he retired in that position in March 1947 with 37 years of continuous military service. Among his military and foreign decorations and awards include the Navy Cross (with 2 Gold Stars), the Navy Distinguished Service Medal with (2 Gold Stars), the Legion of Merit (with combat "V" device), the Navy Commendation Medal, the Nicaraguan Campaign Medal, the Mexican Service Medal, the World War I Victory Medal (with submarine clasp), the American Defense Service Medal (with fleet clasp), the American Campaign Medal, the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (with 5 service stars), the World War II Victory Medal, the Navy Occupation Service Medal, the Companion of the Order of the British Empire, and the Philippine Liberation Medal (with 2 bronze stars). He was then promoted to the rank of admiral on the retired list through a February 23, 1942 Act of Congress that permitted "tombstone promotions" to three-and four-star grades, if they had been specially commended for performance of duty in actual combat. After his military retirement, he authored "Combat Command" (1950), a history of the Pacific Theater of World War II, drawing on his personal experiences. He also became active in politics and civic activities, as a member of the San Diego County Republican Central Committee, a delegate to the 1948 Republican National Convention, Director of the San Diego Chamber of Commerce, Chairman, Board of Trustees of Balboa University in San Diego, California, and Regional Coordinator, Civil Defense, Region 10, California. He died at the age of 69.