Background: Larry Wayne Gatlin (born May 2, 1948) is an American country and Southern gospel singer and songwriter. As part of a trio with his younger brothers Steve and Rudy, he achieved considerable success within the country music genre, performing on thirty-three Top 40 singles (combining his solo recordings and those with his brothers). As their fame grew, the band became known as Larry Gatlin & the Gatlin Brothers. Larry Gatlin is known for his rich falsetto singing style and for the unique pop-inflected songs he wrote and recorded in the 1970s and 1980s.
Context: Gatlin was born in Seminole in Gaines County, Texas, next to the New Mexico border. His father was an oilfield worker, and the family lived in several locations while he was a youth, including Abilene and Odessa. He was reared listening to country and southern gospel music. He and his brothers, Steve and Rudy, have performed together since childhood; when they were younger, they often sang in their local church. They sometimes performed on local radio stations, and occasionally on television shows. They also recorded a gospel music album for the Gospel label Sword and Shield. The brothers even managed to beat out the legendary Roy Orbison in a local talent contest. In 1964, Gatlin was a quarterback at Odessa High School. After graduation in 1966, Gatlin was eligible to serve in the Vietnam War; however, he did not, instead choosing to attend the University of Houston. As a wide receiver on the football team, he caught a touchdown pass in a 1968 game in which his team, the Cougars, scored 100 points. He later auditioned for and joined the gospel music group The Imperials. The Imperials went on to perform in Las Vegas, Nevada in January 1971 at Jimmy Dean's Las Vegas Revue. While walking through the showroom, he caught country singer Dottie West's attention, who thought he looked like Mickey Newbury. West soon met Gatlin and was impressed with his songwriting skills. She was so impressed, in fact, that she recorded two of Gatlin's compositions, "You're the Other Half of Me" and "Once You Were Mine." West also passed one of Gatlin's demo tapes around Nashville, Tennessee, and even arranged for him to relocate there, purchasing a plane ticket for him--a story he related on the 11/12/2009 episode of "Larry's Country Diner" on RFD-TV. West later recorded other compositions by Gatlin that would later become hits for him, including "Broken Lady", which was put on West's 1978 album, Dottie.
Question: How long did he serve?
Answer: however, he did not,

Background: Cameron Crowe was born in Palm Springs, California. His father, James A. Crowe, originally from Kentucky, owned a real estate and phone service business. His mother, Alice Marie (nee George), "was a teacher, activist, and all-around live wire who did skits around the house and would wear a clown suit to school on special occasions." She worked as a psychology professor and family therapy and often participated in peace demonstrations and causes relating to the rights of farm workers.
Context: When Rolling Stone moved its offices from California to New York in 1977, Crowe decided to stay behind. He also felt the excitement of his career was beginning to wane. Crowe appeared in the 1978 film American Hot Wax, but returned to his writing. Though he would continue to freelance for Rolling Stone on and off over the years, he turned his attention to a book. At the age of 22, Crowe came up with the idea to pose undercover as a high school student and write about his experiences. Simon & Schuster gave him a contract, and he moved back in with his parents and enrolled as Dave Cameron at Clairemont High School in San Diego. Reliving the senior year he never had, he made friends and began to fit in. Though he initially planned to include himself in the book, he realized that it would jeopardize his ability to capture the true essence of the high school experience. His book, Fast Times at Ridgemont High: A True Story, came out in 1981. Crowe focused on six main characters: a tough guy, a nerd, a surfer dude, a sexual sophisticate, and a middle-class brother and sister. He chronicled their activities in typical teenage settings--at school, at the beach, and at the mall, where many of them held afterschool jobs--and focused on details of their lives that probed into the heart of adolescence. This included scenes about homecoming and graduation as well as social cliques and sexual encounters. Before the book was released, Fast Times at Ridgemont High was optioned for a film. Released in 1982, the movie version lacked a specific plot and featured no major name stars. The studio did not devote any marketing effort toward it. It became a sleeper hit due to word of mouth. The reviews of Fast Times at Ridgemont High were positive, and the film ended up launching the careers of some of the previously unknown actors, including Jennifer Jason Leigh, Eric Stoltz, Judge Reinhold, Phoebe Cates, Anthony Edwards, Nicolas Cage, Forest Whitaker, and Sean Penn.
Question: Did he write Fast Times at Ridgemont High?
Answer:
His book, Fast Times at Ridgemont High: A True Story,