Marine gunnery sergeant excels in footsteps of legendary dad
By Mark Oliva, Okinawa bureau
Pacific edition, Monday, March 18, 2002
Mark Oliva / S&S
Gunnery Sgt. Carlos N. Hathcock III stands on the 500-yard line of Okinawa's rifle ranges.
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CAMP HANSEN — Marine Gunnery Sgt. Carlos N. Hathcock III braced against the unusually chilly wind blasting the island’s rifle ranges.
"Not a good day for shooting," he said, tilting the brim of his "Smokey Bear" campaign cover, worn on Okinawa only by rifle coaches. His casual observation might be passed off by most, but within Marine circles, Hathcock is a link to a Marine Corps legend — a man he called, "Dad."
To other Marines, Carlos’ father — Gunnery Sgt. Carlos Hathcock II — almost is larger than life.
The elder Hathcock was made famous by the book "Marine Sniper." He is credited with 93 confirmed kills in Vietnam, possibly hundreds more. Although he died more than two years ago, the shadow he cast has yet to fade.
Hathcock shares more than his father’s name.
He wears the same chevrons, three up, two down and crossed rifles in the center. He coaches the same Marine Corps Rifle and Pistol Team where his father once shot. He has the same passion for marksmanship and broods over it in the same office in Quantico, Va., as his father once did.
The shadow his father casts, it seems, is where the younger Hathcock shines.
He’s marched to his own beat through his Marine career. It just so happened that his path and his father’s both wound up behind a rifle.
"It’s never an obligation to the name," Hathcock said. "I go to work and do things Carlos Hathcock needs to do, not what my dad had to do."
Hathcock didn’t start trying to emulate his father. He enjoyed shooting as a teen-ager, a captain of his high school’s Junior Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps marksmanship team. He saw a future in Navy blue, not Marine green, until a chance meeting with a Marine recruiter.
Hathcock said his father never steered his career decisions, until he told his father he wanted to be a grunt and a sniper, just like him. The elder Hathcock insisted he choose a job that would impart a trade skill. He enlisted to be a support equipment mechanic.
"That was the only time he ever said anything about me becoming a Marine," Hathcock said. "It made a definite impression on me."
Hathcock went about his duties as any other second-generation Marine. Some knew his father and some even approached him to shoot competitively.
In 1986, though, it all changed. "Marine Sniper" was published, and Carlos Hathcock II became an overnight sensation.
To the young Hathcock, "Dad" took on new definitions. The man with whom he fished also was a crack shot, making nearly impossible shots against enemy forces.
"I learned more from reading the book than what he ever alluded to," Hathcock explained. "He’d tell the funny stories, but never about the missions."
Hathcock said that early on, there were difficulties. Some expected him to meet the same standards as his father.
"People expected me to be a proficient shooter," Hathcock said. "I was just like any other lance corporal, making lance corporal mistakes."
It wasn’t until about 10 years ago that Hathcock began shooting competitively, a route he chose without his father’s prodding. He joined shooting teams, eventually becoming a Distinguished Marksman, the highest recognition for marksmanship.
His father never set standards too high, Hathcock said.
Most likely because he never thought his influence was widespread, said the elder Hathcock’s wife, Josephine.
"I don’t think his dad ever realized how far-reaching his name had become," Josephine said from the family home in Stafford, Va. "It’s really come full circle. It’s like seeing his dad all over again.
The younger Hathcock’s wife, Suzanne, said that even if the elder Hathcock was worried about his son, he never would have said anything.
"Dad wasn’t big on showing emotions," Suzanne said.
Even so, she said, Hathcock doesn’t dwell in his father’s shadow. People involved in shooting sports still seek him out for the Hathcock name, but more often it’s because of his own accomplishments.
"Especially now that he’s head coach, more people are talking about him and not his dad," Suzanne said.
Hathcock, now in the waning years of his career, also is sharing a crossroads his father once traveled. With more than 18 years in the Marines, he’s considering retirement. It was at this point in his career that his father was medically retired.
His father worked closely with law enforcement agencies, teaching sniper techniques. Like his father, Hathcock is considering a second life in marksmanship.
"I would like to teach marksmanship," Hathcock said. "I’d like to think I’m proficient."
He’s not worried about the Hathcock legacy.
"My dad’s name will go on," he said. "I would like to think I’ve had a good influence."
Some of that influence already is showing up in his own son, David.
He’s watching David, 12, begin to show interest in the shooting sports. David’s been running score cards at Quantico’s ranges for a couple of years, and in the past few months, he’s expressed an interest in shooting, Hathcock said.
As a parent, Hathcock is following his father’s example. He never pushed his son to shoot, even as his own father never pushed him.
"As he shows more intent, I’ll support that as long as I can," he added.
Hathcock admits he keeps his son somewhat sheltered from his grandfather’s mystique. He still has a hard time himself coming to grips with his father’s influence, even when he shoots on ranges bearing his name.
"I have to look back and see what other people see in my dad," Hathcock said. "To me, he’s Dad."
