Ray Benton's guest appearances

Ray Benton

Our Town with host Andy Ockershausen - Homegrown History

Community D.C.

Ron Paul

Doug Duncan

Tom Quinn

Brian Kelly

Mark Russell

Ric Edelman

Ryan Seacrest

Caroline Carter

Jackie Robinson

Dexter Manley

Michael Collins

Monique Samuels

Eric Shuster

Cathy Hughes

Ed Henry

OwlTail

Community DC Ray Benton JTCC for Spreaker

Ray Benton on the current state of Tennis~"A lot more to be done. We've gotta rebuild the base of our sport. I mean, tennis participation's been going down in the United States for 40 years. It's ridiculous."Ray Benton - Mr. Tennis - CEO of Junior Tennis Championship Center (JTCC)Andy Ockershausen:	This is Andy Ockershausen, and this is Our Town. I'm welcoming an old friend who's not old. He's a young man. He's the CEO of the Junior Tennis Championship Center in College Park, Maryland, but before that,  he was Ray Benton and will always be Ray Benton, Mr. Tennis, to me. Ray, welcome to Our Town.Ray Benton:	Thank you Andy. Great to see you.Andy Ockershausen:	Well, you know, you've done so much, Ray, in your career and realized that you're from Iowa. I keep wondering, how did you get connected with all the people you got connected with in Washington? You went to school there. You were born there in Iowa?Ray Benton:	No, but I lived there since I was eight years old.Andy Ockershausen:	Is that it?Ray Benton:	I wish you'd say Iowa with a bit of respect. You're very degrading.Iowa Undergrad and Law School | Vietnam | Wharton Business SchoolAndy Ockershausen:	I remember State Fair was a great movie about Iowa. Now how did you get to Pennsylvania, to Wharton?Ray Benton:	Well, I grew up in Iowa City, where the University is, of course. My parents were actually professors there.Andy Ockershausen:	Wow.Ray Benton:	And so I went to undergraduate and law school there, and then I decided that I'd rather not go to a place called Vietnam. So I went to business school at Wharton and got drafted right out of there.Andy Ockershausen:	Did your time anyway.Ray Benton:	I did my two years.Andy Ockershausen:	But the war was winding down, I'm sure.Ray Benton:	No, no, no, no.Andy Ockershausen:	It was still hot when you-Ray Benton on serving in Army as Legal Clerk in Alabama during Vietnam War Ray Benton:	I was on orders for Vietnam as an infantry rifleman in 1967, which is like a death sentence, but I was very fortunate I had been working as a legal clerk in the legal office at Fort McClellan in Anniston, Alabama.Andy Ockershausen:	Alabama, yeah.Ray Benton:	And I was waiting for my commission in the JAG, and all of a sudden, pending my security clearance, so all of a sudden I was on orders as an infantry rifleman, which I had just taken advanced infantry training. And my commission to JAG came through, which had been four years, and I said, "I really don't wanna spend four years, and I really don't wanna go to Vietnam as an infantry rifleman." And my boss, who was the judge advocate said, "God, I'd like to keep you." I said, "Why don't you make me a legal clerk?" 'cause I was an infantry rifleman just-Andy Ockershausen:	That was your MOS, right?Ray Benton:	My MOS, and 11B10. And I was just waiting for my order to become an officer.Andy Ockershausen:	Right.Ray Benton:	And so he looked in the Regs, and he found 90 days on the job training, I can make you a legal clerk. And I had been there four months. So he made me a legal clerk, which got me off the orders, and I dropped my commission.Andy Ockershausen:	Did you ever get the commission?Ray Benton:	No, no. I dropped it because I didn't wanna spend four years. So by then, I'd been in for, what? Four, eight months, so I can get it out as a  enlisted man for another 16 months.Andy Ockershausen:	And you did?Ray Benton:	I had a great time.Andy Ockershausen:	In Alabama, or they move you around?Ray Benton:	No, no. I was in Alabama the whole time. I'd go to work at five in the morning, be done at one in the afternoon.Andy Ockershausen:	And play golf.Side jobs while in Army in Alabama - Tennis Pro and Subsitute Business Law ProfessorRay Benton:	And after one o'clock, I was the varsity tennis coach at Jacksonville State University. I was the head Tennis Pro at the Anniston, Gadsden Country Clubs and a substitute Business Law Professor.

Ray Benton on the current state of Tennis~ "A lot more to be done. We've gotta rebuild the base of our sport. I mean, tennis participation's been going down in the United States for 40 years. It's ridiculous." Ray Benton - Mr. Tennis - CEO of Junior Tennis Championship Center (JTCC) Andy Ockershausen:	This is Andy Ockershausen, and this is Our Town. I'm welcoming an old friend who's not old. He's a young man. He's the CEO of the Junior Tennis Championship Center in College Park, Maryland, but before that, he was Ray Benton and will always be Ray Benton, Mr. Tennis, to me. Ray, welcome to Our Town. Ray Benton:	Thank you Andy. Great to see you. Andy Ockershausen:	Well, you know, you've done so much, Ray, in your career and realized that you're from Iowa. I keep wondering, how did you get connected with all the people you got connected with in Washington? You went to school there. You were born there in Iowa? Ray Benton:	No, but I lived there since I was eight years old. Andy Ockershausen:	Is that it? Ray Benton:	I wish you'd say Iowa with a bit of respect. You're very degrading. Iowa Undergrad and Law School | Vietnam | Wharton Business School Andy Ockershausen:	I remember State Fair was a great movie about Iowa. Now how did you get to Pennsylvania, to Wharton? Ray Benton:	Well, I grew up in Iowa City, where the University is, of course. My parents were actually professors there. Andy Ockershausen:	Wow. Ray Benton:	And so I went to undergraduate and law school there, and then I decided that I'd rather not go to a place called Vietnam. So I went to business school at Wharton and got drafted right out of there. Andy Ockershausen:	Did your time anyway. Ray Benton:	I did my two years. Andy Ockershausen:	But the war was winding down, I'm sure. Ray Benton:	No, no, no, no. Andy Ockershausen:	It was still hot when you- Ray Benton on serving in Army as Legal Clerk in Alabama during Vietnam War Ray Benton:	I was on orders for Vietnam as an infantry rifleman in 1967, which is like a death sentence, but I was very fortunate I had been working as a legal clerk in the legal office at Fort McClellan in Anniston, Alabama. Andy Ockershausen:	Alabama, yeah. Ray Benton:	And I was waiting for my commission in the JAG, and all of a sudden, pending my security clearance, so all of a sudden I was on orders as an infantry rifleman, which I had just taken advanced infantry training. And my commission to JAG came through, which had been four years, and I said, "I really don't wanna spend four years, and I really don't wanna go to Vietnam as an infantry rifleman." And my boss, who was the judge advocate said, "God, I'd like to keep you." I said, "Why don't you make me a legal clerk?" 'cause I was an infantry rifleman just- Andy Ockershausen:	That was your MOS, right? Ray Benton:	My MOS, and 11B10. And I was just waiting for my order to become an officer. Andy Ockershausen:	Right. Ray Benton:	And so he looked in the Regs, and he found 90 days on the job training, I can make you a legal clerk. And I had been there four months. So he made me a legal clerk, which got me off the orders, and I dropped my commission. Andy Ockershausen:	Did you ever get the commission? Ray Benton:	No, no. I dropped it because I didn't wanna spend four years. So by then, I'd been in for, what? Four, eight months, so I can get it out as a enlisted man for another 16 months. Andy Ockershausen:	And you did? Ray Benton:	I had a great time. Andy Ockershausen:	In Alabama, or they move you around? Ray Benton:	No, no. I was in Alabama the whole time. I'd go to work at five in the morning, be done at one in the afternoon. Andy Ockershausen:	And play golf. Side jobs while in Army in Alabama - Tennis Pro and Subsitute Business Law Professor Ray Benton:	And after one o'clock, I was the varsity tennis coach at Jacksonville State University. I was the head Tennis Pro at the Anniston, Gadsden Country Clubs and a substitute Business Law Professor.

Ray Benton – Mr. Tennis – CEO of JTCC