Hugh Thompson Jr.
This celebrity goo was created by Scott Hardie.
publication date: Saturday, December 20, 2025 (part of December 2025)
category: 
military
clue: Despite strategically landing his helicopter to interrupt a massacre, he considered his distinguished flying to be trash.
explanation: Thompson is credited with ending the Mỹ Lai massacre during the Vietnam War by landing his helicopter so as to block advancing American soldiers from reaching more civilians, then reporting the murders up the command chain until an order was given to stop the killing. He was so disgusted by the Army's cover-up of the incident, including their fabricated explanation for the Distinguished Flying Cross that he was given for his intervention, that he threw away the award. more…
intended difficulty: medium
solved by: Russ Wilhelm, Steve West, Samir Mehta, and Richard Slominsky
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