He initially received orders to go to the Republic in Korea in 1961, but these orders were rescinded by the Department of the Army and new orders were issued that were quite clandestine.
BACKGROUND
A graduate of Northeastern University in 1961 from the College of Business Administration in Boston, Massachusetts, Norm Katz became a Commissioned Officer in the US Army Signal Corps through Northeastern's ROTC Program. He initially received orders to go to the Republic of Korea in 1961, after graduation, but these orders were rescinded by the Department of the Army and new orders were issued that were quite clandestine and reassigned him to the Military District of Washington, D.C. His new assignment had him working with the US Secret Service as Military Attaché for the Continuity of the US Government (COG) through the White House. Norm worked in the "Special Operations Division", a highly classified area in US Government (USAICA) and he reported directly to James Rowley, the Chief of the US Secret Service during the early 1960's. The US Secret Service during this period was under the Treasury Department until 2002 when The Secret Service became a Division of the Department of Homeland Security.
Norm's tenure at The White House during the JFK Administration brought him into direct activity with key players in the Cuban Missile Crisis. He witnessed, from the Situation Room at the White House, the standoff between the United States and Russia over the Russian installation of intercontinental nuclear missiles in Cuba located 90 miles off the United States coast. Norm also assisted in maintaining stability in the Government during the disaster and trauma of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the ongoing events surrounding it. Of significant importance during this time was his direct involvement with the White House Communications Agency (WHCA), commanded by Major General Jack Alvin Albright. Norm worked along with Major Harold R. Patterson and Chief Warrant Officer William H. (Bill) Elder during the chaotic events that were occurring while attempting to contact the Boeing 707 Aircraft, Air Force 3, one of the presidential jets carrying most of President Kennedy's Cabinet that was over the Pacific on their way to a regional conference in Tokyo, Japan and having it return to the United States. On that aircraft were Secretary of State, Dean Rusk, Secretary of the Treasury, Douglas Dillon, Secretary of the Interior, Stewart Udall, Secretary of Commerce Luther Hodges, Secretary of Agriculture, Orville Freeman, Secretary of Labor, Willard Wirtz and Press Secretary, Pierre Salinger. The difficulties that occurred during the communication process due to the loss of a code book on that flight, the swearing in of Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson as President, the funeral of JFK, the Transition in Office of the White House Principals for the continuity of the US Government and all other activities are now a part of United States history. Norm participated in all of the major actions and activities at that time to make sure that the United States Government went on uninterrupted.
The Federal Government gave Norm clearance to tell his story and relate his experiences during these traumatic times for the United States and the world. Norm's story is not just history in the making, but previously classified history - fascinating and accurate accounts and reports that have never been heard before, by someone who was physically present at the time.
