"Liberty Call, Liberty Call"

Liberty is the shore leave sailors get to spend on dry land! During the age of sail, liberty was often abused by the members of the crew who took it as a prime opportunity to drink in excess, indulge in the brothels and the ladies of the night and anything else denied them for a time underway…

Books, films and music about sailors on liberty have been made and written much over the years. Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen’s 1949 musical “On The Town” comes to mind. Like a stray cat marking his territory, from New York to Amsterdam to Cape Town to Hong Kong to Olongapo, sailors have made their mark around the world. The cliché of drunken rowdy sailors in foreign lands is not a myth by any means… with time ashore being so rare, and life at sea so grueling, sailors used their time on liberty to vent their frustrations and satisfy their lustful desires. I hope you enjoy the picture show of our past as we were a wild bunch …

Bad Boys On Liberty …

Early Days of Liberty in the Philippines (1) 

Early Days of Liberty in the Philippines (2)

Early Days of Liberty in the Philippines (3)

Last Call for Alcohol ...

Out on the town, in the early days ...

Out on the town (2)

Out on the town (3)

Out on the town (4)

Out on the town (5)

Out on the town (6)

What do you do with a drunken sailor ...

It was fun while it lasted boys ...