03/03/03’s illustrious band:

The Old Familiar Enemy

Brought to you by our monthly reading from the Book of Spam.

As American troops again prepare to go to war, it seems appropriate to recall a previous conflict -- WWII -- and the role Spam played in it. By 1944, 90 percent of all Hormel products were being sent to the military.

It wasn’t all Spam, though; Hormel was also making a generic luncheon meat for military use that was higher in salt and contained no ham at all. Unfortunately, many soldiers believed they were one and the same and developed an intense dislike of Spam. They even immortalized their feelings in song, referring to Spam as “the old, familiar enemy.”

This dislike wasn’t restricted to the lower ranks, either. In 1966, former president Dwight D. Eisenhower wrote a letter to Hormel’s retired president on the occasion of Hormel’s 75th anniversary. In it he said, “During World War II, of course, I ate my share of Spam . . . as former Commander in Chief, I believe I can officially forgive you your only sin: sending us so much of it.”

Let’s all hope that today’s fighting forces face an enemy no fiercer than Spam.

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