_ SUN PHONE 699-11 ?
Jaysee Mentor —
_ Enters Marines

F irst Lieutenant’s
Rank Is Given
Mel Griffin

Long Beach lost another of its
leading athletic coaches to the
armed forces yesterday when it
was announced that Mel Griffin,

veteran Long Beach J, C. mentor,
was sworn into the United States
Marine Corps Reserve as a first
lieutenant, Aviation Volunteer
Specialist, Wednesday in Los An-
geles.
Griffin expects to leave within
_ three or four weeks. He’ll attend
a special officers’ training course
either at San Diego or Quantico,
'Va, before being assigned to
‘active duty with the Fleet Marine
Force in the Eleventh Naval Dis-
trict, probably at San Diego.
Griffin is the fourth prominent
‘local coach to receive a commis-
sion in the armed forces and the
second to enter the Marines. The
others are Captain Charles R.
Church of the Marines; Captain
Walter W. Bell of the Army, and
Lieutenant Orian M. Landreth of
the Navy.
The junior college basketball
and baseball coach is enthused
over his appointment, stating it
/ was. just the line of duty he had
hoped for.
“Griff” graduated from the
University of Kansas in 1924
_ and, after coaching a few years
in the midwest, came to Long
Beach. This is his thirteenth
year in the city school system.
Incidentally, the number 13 fig-
urés prominently in the Grif-
_ fin family, Mel having been
sworn in on the thirteenth, his
wife’s birthday falling on Feb-
ruary 13 and his mother-in-law’s
| birthday on January 13.
| In his stay at Long Beach J. C.
Griffin has had four champion-
ship basketball teams and three
championship baseball clubs. He
coached the Viking football team
for one season, in 1935, and the
Norse finished second in the con-
ference race. Mel is best known
for his great 1941 and 1942 hoop
teams. The 742 club of Grant
Denmark, Dick West, Dave Co-
hee, Ed Gillean, Bob Howard and
Don Cecil captured all jaysee
honors, winning the Western
Conference, Southern California
and state titles.