CLIFFORD T. JANZ, LT, USN

Clifford Janz '31

Date of birth: February 19, 1910

Date of death: December 7, 1941

Age: 31

Lucky Bag

From the 1931 Lucky Bag:

Clifford Thurston Janz

Lakewood, New Jersey

"Cliff" "Possum"

The high school gang prophecied admiral's bars for Cliff and they knew too; for besides holding down many outside activities in those days and being valedictorian of his class, he passed the entrance exams without prepping.

Cliff is versatility itself—no one phase of academic life holds him down. Always a true member of the Log staff, he still devotes much time to managing soccer, distinguishing megohms from millivolts in the Juice Gang, and playing class baseball. He can work or play equally well but his idea of play would be somebody else's of work. Maybe he is sacrificing a "star" because of some of his extra outlets of energy but his academics are something most anyone would be proud of.

Patient, generous, and warmhearted, Cliff makes an ideal roommate and a good friend. One reason he takes so well to activities may be to hold as many friends as possible. It's certainly a fact that his contagious smile and humor keep him always with someone around to " talk it over with."

Drum and Bugle Corps 4, 3, 2; Juice Gang 3, 2, 1; Masked N 2; Manager Plebe Varsity Soccer 4; Asst. Manager Varsity Soccer 3, 2, Manager 1, aNp (Mgr.); Battalion Representative; Log 2, Literary Editor 1; Class Baseball 3; 1 P. O.

Clifford Thurston Janz

Lakewood, New Jersey

"Cliff" "Possum"

The high school gang prophecied admiral's bars for Cliff and they knew too; for besides holding down many outside activities in those days and being valedictorian of his class, he passed the entrance exams without prepping.

Cliff is versatility itself—no one phase of academic life holds him down. Always a true member of the Log staff, he still devotes much time to managing soccer, distinguishing megohms from millivolts in the Juice Gang, and playing class baseball. He can work or play equally well but his idea of play would be somebody else's of work. Maybe he is sacrificing a "star" because of some of his extra outlets of energy but his academics are something most anyone would be proud of.

Patient, generous, and warmhearted, Cliff makes an ideal roommate and a good friend. One reason he takes so well to activities may be to hold as many friends as possible. It's certainly a fact that his contagious smile and humor keep him always with someone around to " talk it over with."

Drum and Bugle Corps 4, 3, 2; Juice Gang 3, 2, 1; Masked N 2; Manager Plebe Varsity Soccer 4; Asst. Manager Varsity Soccer 3, 2, Manager 1, aNp (Mgr.); Battalion Representative; Log 2, Literary Editor 1; Class Baseball 3; 1 P. O.

Loss

Cliff was lost in USS Arizona (BB 39) during the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.

From Santa Cruz People:

Lt. C.T. Janz was sending everyone in the vicinity to shelter below the armored deck. I went down with Lt. Janz and about forty enlisted men. Before we could close the hatch there were three violent blasts with flame and powder fumes entering the compartment. I then told all personnel in the vicinity to get out and go topside to avoid the gas. About twenty (20) enlisted personnel and myself went topside. I saw the entire ship forward of #3 turret to be a raging fire. Ensign D. Hein, USN

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

An Eagle scout, Clifford graduated from Lakewood high school in 1927 as valedictorian. Class prophecy, entitled The Prophecy of the Wizard of Oz: “Clifford Janz shall go to sea, With silver buckles on his knee, When he comes back here, he shall be, An Admiral back from victory.” Clifford was named class “Bookworm,” “Has ideals” and “Surely won’t fail.”
He was appointed to the Naval Academy by Congressman Stewart Appleby of Asbury Park, New Jersey, in January, 1927.
In June, 1938, Clifford presented diplomas at the Lakewood junior high school commencement. He charged the students to "recognize authority and to learn to be good shipmates.” (per the Asbury Park Press, New Jersey, June 16, 1938.)
His wife moved from Hawaii to California before the birth of their son, Clifford, Jr., he died before seeing the baby.

Cliff's wife was listed as next of kin; he was also survived by his two-month-old son, and his mother and father.

Photographs

From his high school yearbook

Navy Directories & Officer Registers

The "Register of Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps" was published annually from 1815 through at least the 1970s; it provided rank, command or station, and occasionally billet until the beginning of World War II when command/station was no longer included. Scanned copies were reviewed and data entered from the mid-1840s through 1922, when more-frequent Navy Directories were available.

The Navy Directory was a publication that provided information on the command, billet, and rank of every active and retired naval officer. Single editions have been found online from January 1915 and March 1918, and then from three to six editions per year from 1923 through 1940; the final edition is from April 1941.

The entries in both series of documents are sometimes cryptic and confusing. They are often inconsistent, even within an edition, with the name of commands; this is especially true for aviation squadrons in the 1920s and early 1930s.

Alumni listed at the same command may or may not have had significant interactions; they could have shared a stateroom or workspace, stood many hours of watch together… or, especially at the larger commands, they might not have known each other at all. The information provides the opportunity to draw connections that are otherwise invisible, though, and gives a fuller view of the professional experiences of these alumni in Memorial Hall.