Maybe I missed it but I noticed when Zack tells his father he is joining the Navy he walks out of their apartment and you see the military base, so either he was still in the Navy or he lived nearby. He did look old enough he could have been retired from the military.
shareCareer guy still in the navy. Logia is a great actor but may have been miscast due to age.
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Logia is a great actor but may have been miscast due to age.
Yes, but, I thought the oddness of the age/condition/the entire introductory scene lent keen interest to the beginning of this film. Set it off on a course that quite frankly it failed to sustain.
shareMaybe he was living off his pension nearby. Then again, Zack warned him that he might have to salute him one day. Do vets have to salute officers? Maybe at cermonial events? I think it is implied that he was still in the Navy. High ranking officers and Navy doctors are often over 50. I think the age limit for active duty seamen is somewhere below 40.
shareBoth of the actors portraying Zack and Byron Mayo were too old for their parts; Gere was 33 in 1982 and Loggia was 52.
Let's say Zack Mayo was 22 in 1982. People going to Officer Candidate school must have a 4 year college degree. This would make Zack born in about 1960. If his father was 20 when Zack was born, then Byron would be 42 in 1982.
There is high year tenure for enlisted personnel. For an E-6 like Byron Mayo, the high year tenure was 20 years, E-7 is 24 years, E-8 is 26 years and E-9 is 30 years.
If Byron Mayo was already in the Navy when his son was born, and unless he advanced or received a waiver, he would on his way out of the Navy when Zack entered OCS.