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- Lexington Herald-Leader
Kentucky
Saturday, March 15, 1997
Rear Admiral Raymond H. Bass, 87
Los Angeles - Retired Rear Admiral Raymond H. "Ben" Bass, 87, Olympic gold medalist in 1932 and gymnastics Hall of Famer as well as a hero of World War II, has died. Mr. Bass, who also was a business executive and real estate agent, died Monday in nearby Glendale where he had lived since 1960. He was inducted into the USA Gymnastics Hall of Fame in Indianapolis last year for his record-holding rope climb. Mr. Bass set the record at the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles, climbing the eight-meter rope in 6.7 seconds. The event never was held again. "I presume they (the International Olympic Committee) voted out the rope climb because they didn't care much for the U.S. getting 1-2-3 as long as Lou Mang was around," Mr. Bass told the Los Angeles Times in 1982. "But that's the politics of the Olympics." Two of Mr. Bass' Naval Academy teammates had finished second and third with 6.8 seconds and 6.9 seconds. They were all trained by Mang, a Naval Academy coach who had developed a technique for climbing the rope involving principles of balance and rhythm. Mr. Bass was delighted to find himself honored when he returned to the Naval Academy for his 50th reunion in 1981. "At the door of the gym they still have that rope that I climbed," he later told The Times. Mr. Bass' Olympic record all but overshadowed his war record, although the gold medal rated only equal display beside the two Navy Crosses and two Legion of Merit awards in his home. (His war decorations also included silver and bronze stars.) He began the war as commander of the submarine Plunger and was the only sub skipper to survive two missions into the dangerous Sea of Japan. Slated for a third when the war ended, he was put in command of 12 submarines dubbed "Benny's Peacemakers" that steamed into Tokyo Bay for the V-J Day ceremonies. In peacetime, Mr. Bass went on to command a fleet of 55 submarines in the Atlantic, the troop transport Rockbridge in the Mediterranean and the heavy cruiser Bremerton in the Far East. After his retirement from the Navy in 1959, Mr. Bass joined Bendix Electrodynamics in Los Angeles. When he retired from Bendix in 1972, he became a Glendale real estate agent. He retired for a third time in 1992. A native of Eaglette, Arkansas, Mr. Bass earned a bachelor of science degree from the Naval Academy, and both a master's in engineering and a master's of business administration from UCLA. Mr. Bass is survived by his wife, Marjorie; two sons, Raymond Jr. and Robert, and a daughter, Elena.
Find-a-Grave Obituary
Rear Admiral Raymond H. Bass, a World War II hero, Olympic gold medalist and gymnastics Hall of Fame member, died here on March 10. He was 87 and lived in Glendale. Admiral Bass was also a business executive and real estate agent. Admiral Bass was inducted into the U.S.A. Gymnastics Hall of Fame last year for his record-setting rope climb at the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles: 6.7 seconds up an 8-meter rope. The event was never again held at an Olympics. ''Even up into my 50's,'' Admiral Bass said, ''they would call me out of the crowd without notice, drop a rope and make me climb it.'' He was the only American submarine skipper to survive two missions into the Sea of Japan in World War II. He had been scheduled for a third mission when the war ended. He was awarded two Navy Crosses, two Legion of Merit awards, as well as Silver and Bronze Stars. He retired from the Navy in 1959 and joined Bendix Electrodynamics in the San Fernando Valley. When he retired from Bendix in 1972, he became a real estate agent in Glendale. He is survived by his wife, Marjorie; two sons, Raymond Jr. and Robert, and a daughter, Elena.
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Bassett Family Association Database
1910 - 1997 (87 years)