Gen. Douglas MacArthur preceded me to Japan by 18 years. He was determined to be Japan's savior, even if he had to protect them from themselves. To help control the inflationary impact of United States currency on the economy of Japan, the military printed its own money, called Military Payment Certificates.  And, to prevent black marketeering, the MPC scrip was changed periodically, without notice. One day there would be an announcement that the MPC would be changing, and someone would come to the base to exchange money.  This always created an absolute panic outside the gates, because the Japanese locals needed to immediately find someone to buy their old money, often at fantastic discounts, in order that they might salvage something.  It was illegal to carry greenbacks.

We used Series 541 MPC from 27 May 1958 through 26 May 1961 (see how I used military dates there?), and .. wouldn't you just know it?? I was never there for the changeover. I'm sure, as I got bolder with age, I would've been right in the thick of some Silas Marner scheme to offer ten cents on the dollar to Japanese nationals stuck with old MPC. My first year, I was petrified of doing anything remotely illegal. But .. doncha know? .. it was downright pocket-draining to have such habits as pachinko, the occasional (hah! frequent!) Kirin or Asahi biiruu, the nudie movies, houses of ill repute and the general lifestyle required of sophisticated men-about-town, such as ourselves.

So, after consulting with the entire defense team from the O.J. Simpson trial, I've been assured that 38 years is sufficient time to elapse, and if they haven't come after me by now, they never will.  And, Kenneth Starr, if you're reading this, I was a juvenile .. still am, for that matter.  All this prelude to the mea culpa was required, said my counsel, Mr. Cochran, before I can come clean to the court of public opinion.  I dealt with the yakuza. (*GASP!*)  The four-fingered Capone wanna-bes were a major source of my pachinko spending cash.  Maybe it was less times than I remember, I'm not sure.  I do know that every time I did it, it gave me such a charge, it was like an electric wire up my butt.  Of course, I knew where to find the gangster hangouts.  A 60 Yen cab ride to the closest one.  The yakuza were always in the market for MPC so they could buy American cigarettes, either through GI's or through on-base contacts they had.  It was easier for me to leave the base hiding a roll of MPC than it was cartons of cigarettes.  I could usually make a 25% profit on the trade, sometimes less.  I did this by myself, since my buddies were usually in trouble enough .. but, then again .. maybe I just wanted to keep the dealings to myself .. greed was one of my early positive attributes.  
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"My first assignment in the Army (right after basic training and my skill training) was Korea.  Luckily for me, I was assigned to a unit in Seoul.  We are talking 1962 here .. so
if you were assigned anywhere north of Seoul, it was practically a hardship post.  Anyway .. the black market was running rampant, and one of the ways they would try and clean up the profiteering was to change the style (color, design, etc.) of the MPC, and have everyone turn in the MPC they had on them, and issue the new style to them in kind.

"This was no big deal to the G.I.s (maybe an inconvenience, but no big deal), but for the Korean Mamasan (who wasn't supposed to have MPC anyway), this was a crippling blow, unless they could find someone to exchange the MPC for them.  Of course, the MPC exchange was TOP SECRET information, and was sprung on you early in the morning, usually in conjunction with an alert condition.  The gates were sealed .. no one in or out .. this meant that if you had decided to shack up the night before, you not only would miss formation for the alert and be considered AWOL ... you also would end up with a bunch of useless MPC.

"Anyway...when word of the exchange reached the Mamasans they were all along the fence line trying to get G.I.s to take huge bundles of MPC to exchange for them (in return for a percentage, or trade).  I am talking sheets filled with MPC being tied up and thrown over the fence .. sheer craziness.  Even though I was usually in an alcoholic haze in those days, I can remember that scene as clearly as if it were yesterday.  It would make a great take in some movie .. hell, I could write a screenplay about my days as a single G.I. that would probably be of interest to some nutso producer.

"That is what the MPC brought to the front of my somewhat warped mind.

"By the way .. Korea in 1962 was one hell of a place to send an 18 year old G.I. .. my hormones were in charge of everything I did in those days. Leaning forward in the foxhole, defending America from the Commies."
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