Maurice E . Curts Admiral Maurice Edwin Curts ( March 25 , 1898 – February 15 , 1976 ) was a four - star admiral in the United States Navy who served as commander in chief of the United States Pacific Fleet in 1958 . Early career . He was born in Flint , Michigan to Edwin James Curts , who represented the 13th District in the Michigan state senate from 1913 to 1914 , and the former Minnie Elwood Quirk . Appointed to the United States Naval Academy , he served afloat as a midshipman with the Atlantic Fleet during World War I aboard the battleship " Nevada " in the summer of 1918 . He graduated in June 1919 with the accelerated class of 1920 . His first assignment was aboard the light cruiser " Chester " , followed by sea duty in destroyers of the Atlantic Fleet and the aircraft carrier " Saratoga " , and shore duty at Naval Operating Base , Hampton Roads , Virginia and the Bureau of Engineering , Navy Department . Between 1926 and 1928 he studied the emerging technology of radio at the Naval Postgraduate School and Harvard University , developing expertise which eventually led to his assignment from June 1936 to May 1938 as Officer - in - Charge of the Radio and Sound Divisions at the Naval Research Laboratory , where his contributions to the development of radar earned him a commendation from the Secretary of the Navy . From 1938 to 1939 he commanded the destroyer " Case " , which was serving as a school ship in San Diego , California . World War II . In June 1939 , he was tapped to serve as communications officer on the staff of the new Commander Battle Force , Admiral James O . Richardson . When Richardson became Commander in Chief , United States Fleet , Curts accompanied him as fleet communications officer . During Fleet Problem XXI in 1940 , the fleet tested its communications procedures under simulated war conditions and discovered serious deficiencies in its existing communications plans . After the exercise , the fleet continued to communicate under simulated war conditions at Curts ' recommendation . Richardson declared later : " If the Fleet Problem had resulted in no other advance in naval war readiness and in training , this major step alone would have justified all the money and effort put into the Fleet Problem . " After Richardson was unexpectedly removed from command in January 1941 , Curts hoped to leave the fleet staff and return to sea . When Richardson ' s replacement , Admiral Husband E . Kimmel , summoned Curts to the flagship and asked , " Young man , would you like to be on my staff ? " Curts firmly answered , " Hell , no ! " Taken aback , Kimmel retorted , " You ' ve got to . There ' s no getting out of it . " In reply , Curts muttered , " Oh , hell ! " in tones of such disgusted resignation that everyone present , including Kimmel , burst out laughing . Attack on Pearl Harbor . At the beginning of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7 , 1941 , Curts rushed to Pacific Fleet headquarters , where he was standing beside Kimmel when a spent . 50 caliber machine gun bullet crashed through a glass window and bounced harmlessly off Kimmel ' s chest , leaving a dark stain on the admiral ' s white uniform . Kimmel picked the bullet up off the floor and murmured , more to himself than to Curts , " It would have been merciful had it killed me . " This incident was depicted in the 1970 film by Richard Fleischer , " Tora ! Tora ! Tora ! . " Martin Balsam portrayed Adm . Husband E . Kimmel , and G . D . Spradlin played " Germany " Curts . After the attack , Curts discovered that civilian hysteria in Honolulu was being stoked by the local radio stations , which were broadcasting a series of well - intended messages that were designed to instruct and calm the population but were having the opposite effect . Curts telephoned the stations to " knock off the damned foolishness . " Fleet communications officer . Following Kimmel ' s relief , Curts continued as communications officer on the staff of Kimmel ' s successor , Admiral Chester W . Nimitz , relaying messages to Nimitz from the field during the Battles of the Coral Sea and Midway . Curts was awarded the Bronze Star for organizing and establishing a more workable system of joint Army and Navy communications while communications officer for the Pacific Fleet . In August 1942 , Curts was summoned to Washington D . C . to join the staff of Admiral Ernest J . King , commander in chief of the United States Fleet . As communications officer for the United States Fleet , Curts received the Legion of Merit for his part in adopting successful communication agreements and plans between the military services of the United States and its Allies . Curts is credited with developing the numbering system for organizing fleets and task forces that is still used today . USS " Columbia " . He returned to the Pacific theater in 1944 as captain of the light cruiser " Columbia " , which participated in major Pacific operations including the Battle for Leyte Gulf and the Surigao Strait and the Lingayen Gulf landings in the Philippines . He was awarded the Navy Cross for commanding " Columbia " during the amphibious landings on Leyte and during the Battle for Leyte Gulf from October 17 , 1944 to October 29 , 1944 . The citation stated : " Skillfully directing his ship in an assignment of vital importance , [ then - Captain ] Curts courageously maneuvered through enemy - infested waters during the approach on Leyte Gulf and , continually providing alert and effective defense for our invasion forces against hostile air attacks , furnished close - in bombardment support for the actual landings . In the course of this action , his ship assisted in the sinking of at least one Japanese battleship , a cruiser and six destroyers , thereby contributing materially to the success of our operations in this area . " On January 6 , 1945 , while supporting the landings at Lingayen Gulf , " Columbia " was struck by two kamikaze planes , suffering heavy damage and casualties . Swift damage control measures allowed " Columbia " to complete its bombardment and remain in action to support underwater demolition teams . Three days later , " Columbia " lay close inshore , with maneuverability hampered by the surrounding landing craft , when struck by a third kamikaze . Again , " Columbia " extinguished fires and repaired damage , and was able to complete its bombardment schedule within half an hour of being hit , before departing that night in escort of a group of unloaded transports . Later that year , as chief of staff and aide to the new Commander , Fast Carrier Task Force , Pacific Fleet , Vice Admiral Frederick C . Sherman , Curts attended the Japanese surrender ceremony aboard the battleship " Missouri " on September 2 , 1945 . Flag officer . After the war , he was commander of Cruiser Division Twenty in 1946 ; chief of Navy General Plans from 1947 to 1948 ; Force Commander , Operational Development Force , Atlantic Fleet from 1949 to 1950 ; and assistant chief of naval operations ( readiness ) from 1951 to 1953 . From 1953 to 1955 he went to sea as Commander Cruisers - Destroyers , Pacific , where his career was stalled temporarily by Secretary of the Navy Charles S . Thomas . Chief of Naval Operations Robert B . Carney was selecting members of an upcoming promotion board and picked Curts for his skill and contacts in the fields of electronics and communications . However , " Mr . Thomas vetoed [ Curts ] when I brought the slate in , and said that he didn ' t want him around Washington . I couldn ' t get from him any expression of reason as to this prejudice , but it was perfectly obvious that I couldn ' t bring [ Curts ] back . It was also perfectly obvious that I ' d better not nominate him for three stars , which I had planned to do . . . But about a year later , I was looking for a replacement in the Second Fleet , and I brought in a nomination . Thomas said that he wasn ' t particularly impressed with the person I was suggesting and said it seemed to him that I ' d do better if I put someone like [ Curts ] in . " Queried as to his change of heart , Thomas initially denied ever having vetoed Curts , then , when pressed by an incredulous Carney , " finally said he couldn ' t understand why he had done it , except that somebody must have told him something . " Carney immediately nominated Curts for his third star . Curts returned to Pearl Harbor in 1955 as deputy commander in chief of the Pacific Fleet with the rank of vice admiral . He was promoted to admiral on April 29 , 1957 upon assuming command of that fleet , though he continued to be titled deputy commander in chief since the title of Commander in Chief , Pacific Fleet ( CINCPACFLT ) remained dual - hatted with the title of Commander in Chief , Pacific ( CINCPAC ) , and both were held by Admiral Felix B . Stump . The titles were finally separated on January 14 , 1958 , and Curts became CINCPACFLT in his own right for the two weeks remaining before his relief on February 1 by Admiral Herbert G . Hopwood . Upon relinquishing command of the Pacific Fleet , Curts reverted to the rank of vice admiral for his final assignment as Commander , Western Sea Frontier and Commander , Naval Defense Force , Eastern Pacific . He retired on April 1 , 1960 as a full admiral and became director for telecommunications policy in the Office of the Secretary of Defense until retiring for a second time in 1965 . Personal life . He married Nina ( née Irvine ) on August 16 , 1919 ; she died in 1965 and he remarried to Fayette Hobbs ( née Purcell ) in January 1967 . He had two sons : Navy officer Robert Irvine Curts and Daniel Curts . Awards and decorations . His decorations include two Distinguished Service Medals , including one for his service as communications officer for the United States Fleet ; the Navy Cross , awarded for distinguished service while commanding " Columbia " at the Battle for Leyte Gulf ; the Silver Star ; the Bronze Star ; three awards of the Legion of Merit ; the Purple Heart ; and decorations from Thailand , Peru , and Argentina . He received a commendation from the Secretary of the Navy for outstanding contributions in the development of radar while serving as officer - in - charge of the Radio and Sound division of the Naval Research Laboratory . He received a master ' s degree in electrical engineering from Harvard University in 1928 . Namesake . He is the namesake of the guided - missile frigate " Curts " , whose crest contains a flaming bomb referring to his combat service in command of " Columbia " , flanked by sinusoidal waves intended to evoke his contributions to the development of radar . Retirement , death and burial . In retirement , he resided in Washington D . C . for many years , then moved to Rancho Santa Fe , California . He died at his vacation home at Las Gaviotas , Mexico at the age of 77 , and is buried with his first wife in Arlington National Cemetery .