John D . Bulkeley John Duncan Bulkeley ( August 19 , 1911 – April 6 , 1996 ) was a Vice Admiral in United States Navy and was one of the most decorated naval officers . Bulkeley received the Medal of Honor for actions in the Pacific Theater during World War II . He was also the PT boat skipper who evacuated General Douglas MacArthur from Corregidor in the Philippines and commanded at the Battle of La Ciotat . The Navy named an " Arleigh Burke " - class guided missile destroyer after him : , commissioned in 2001 . Early life and career . Bulkeley was born in New York City and grew up on a farm in Hackettstown , New Jersey where he graduated from Hackettstown High School . Unable to gain an appointment to Annapolis from his home state of New Jersey , he gained an appointment from the state of Texas . Due to budget constraints , only the upper half of the 1933 Academy class received a commission upon graduation . John Bulkeley , noted early on for his intense interest in engineering , joined the Army Air Corps . Like the flying machines of the day , he landed hard more than once . After a year , and because the President and Congress permitted additional commissions in the Navy ( as a government plan for additional jobs ) , Bulkeley gave up flying for the deck of a cruiser , the , as a commissioned officer in the Navy . Bulkeley charted an interesting course in his early years and was recognized early on by the Navy ' s leadership . As a new ensign in the mid - 1930s , he took the initiative to remove the Japanese ambassador ' s briefcase from a stateroom aboard a Washington - bound steamer , delivering it to Naval Intelligence a short swim later . This bold feat , the first of many in his life , did not earn him any medals , but it did get him a swift one - way ticket out of the country and a new assignment as Chief Engineer of a coal - burning gunboat , the , also known in those parts as " The Galloping Ghost of the China Coast " . There he met Alice Wood , a young , attractive English girl , at a dinner party aboard . In China , they witnessed the invasion of Swatow and Shanghai by Japanese troops and the bombing of , the first US Navy ship sunk in World War II . World War II . At the dawn of World War II , Bulkeley was a lieutenant in command of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three , a Philippine - based detachment of six motor torpedo boat s . He hit his stride as a daring , resourceful and courageous leader . He picked up General Douglas MacArthur , his family , and his immediate staff , who had been ordered to flee the Philippines , and took them aboard PT 41 and other motor torpedo boats through over of open ocean . On arriving at Mindanao , MacArthur said , " You have taken me out of the jaws of death . I shall never forget it . " Bulkeley earned many of his array of decorations while in command of that squadron and a subsequent one . In 1944 , he took part in the Normandy invasion . Bulkeley led torpedo boats and minesweepers in clearing the lanes to Utah Beach , keeping German E - boat s from attacking the landing ships along the Mason Line , and picking up wounded sailors from the sinking minesweeper , destroyer escort , and destroyer . As invasion operations wound down , he received command of his first large ship , the destroyer . One month after D - Day , he came to the aid of two British gunboats under attack by two German corvette s . Charging in with only one gun working , he engaged both enemy vessels at point - blank range , sinking both . When asked , he explained , " What else could I do ? You engage , you fight , you win . That is the reputation of our Navy , then and in the future . " Cold War . During the Korean War in 1952 , Bulkeley commanded Destroyer Division 132 . After the war , he was Chief of Staff for Cruiser Division Five Because the North Koreans did not have a large navy and the Chinese were not committing their own , few naval battles were fought in the war . Destroyer Division 132 focused on providing naval gunfire support for troops on shore , but also , on several occasions , the destroyers engaged enemy shore batteries . Throughout the conflict , the North Koreans failed to inflict serious damage on any American warship deployed . In the early 1960s , Bulkeley commanded Clarksville Base , Tennessee , then a tri - service command under the aegis of the Defense Atomic Support Agency . Having lost none of his wartime daring , Bulkeley was known to test the alertness of the Marines guarding the base by donning a ninja suit , blackening his face and endeavoring to penetrate the classified area after dark without detection . This was a dangerous endeavor , as the Marines carried loaded weapons . Ever popular with his men , who both respected and admired him , Bulkeley could be seen driving around the base in his fire - engine red Triumph TR3 sports car with a large silver PT boat as a hood ornament . Promoted to Rear Admiral by President John F . Kennedy , who commanded PT - 109 during World War II , Bulkeley was dispatched to command the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba , where he met Cuba ' s threat to sever water supplies in response to the Bay of Pigs invasion and other assaults by ordering the installation of desalinization equipment to make the base self - sufficient . Last years . Bulkeley retired from active duty in 1975 . However , he was recalled to active duty in a retired - retained status in order to serve as the commander of the Navy ' s Board of Inspection and Survey ( INSURV ) which conducts inspections and surveys of U . S . naval vessels before their commissioning and deployment . Bulkeley retired from the Navy in 1988 , after 55 years of service . On April 6 , 1996 , Bulkeley died at his home in Silver Spring , Maryland , at age 84 . Admiral Bulkeley was buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery . Awards and decorations . Military decorations : the Medal of Honor , the Navy Cross , two Distinguished Service Crosses , two Navy Distinguished Service Medal s , two Silver Star s , two Legion of Merit s with Combat V , two Purple Heart s , three Combat Action Ribbon s , the French Croix de Guerre and the Distinguished Conduct Star . Medal of Honor citation . Bulkeley ' s Medal of Honor citation reads : For extraordinary heroism , distinguished service , and conspicuous gallantry above and beyond the call of duty as commander of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron 3 , in Philippine waters during the period 1941 to 1942 . The remarkable achievement of LCDR Bulkeley ' s command in damaging or destroying a notable number of Japanese enemy planes , surface combatant and merchant ships , and in dispersing landing parties and land - based enemy forces during the 4 months and 8 days of operation without benefit of repairs , overhaul , or maintenance facilities for his squadron , is believed to be without precedent in this type of warfare . His dynamic forcefulness and daring in offensive action , his brilliantly planned and skillfully executed attacks , supplemented by a unique resourcefulness and ingenuity , characterize him as an outstanding leader of men and a gallant and intrepid seaman . These qualities coupled with a complete disregard for his own personal safety reflect great credit upon him and the Naval Service . Legacy . Route 57 in Mansfield Township , Warren County , New Jersey , is named the " Admiral John D . Bulkeley Memorial Highway " in his honor . In addition , the USN destroyer , commissioned in 2001 , is named after him . Bulkeley in the movies . Robert Montgomery played motor torpedo boat squadron commander LT Brickley , based on Bulkeley , in the 1945 movie " They Were Expendable , " John Ford , assisted by Montgomery , directed . The cast also includes John Wayne , Ward Bond , and Donna Reed .