Waldo Sisson Jr.

Waldo LeRoy Sisson Jr. "Wally" passed away September 24 at the California Veterans Home in Fresno, California at age 91. He died of complications from pneumonia. He was born May 21, 1925 to Celia Juanita Sisson (nee Elwell) of Santa Paula, Ventura County, and Waldo L. Sisson (Sr.) born in Chicago, then living in Los Angeles. His mother was a film cutter (assistant editor) in the movie industry, and his father a movie projectionist and musician.
Wally followed his fathers footsteps, working as a motion picture projectionist by age 15. He was employed (surreptitiously) at the Vogue Theater in South Gate, California. At age 17 he left high school to serve in the U.S. Navy in the Pacific Theater of War during WWII. He editied films and operated projectors to run movies on deck for his ship's crewmembers during WWII. One officer told him that if he could run movies he must be able to photograph movies. So he was placed on deck on his destroyer to photograph incoming Kamikaze fighter planes as they tried to dive into the U.S. fleet like guided bombs (Think 9/11 as a modern example)
He was involved in the fighting to liberate the Philippines. Wally's ship was offshore several miles when he saw the first atomic bomb exploding over Hiroshima. At a later time he was part of the shore patrol that went into Tokyo and adjacent areas to assess Japan's postwar status.
He made motion pictures and film technology his life interest. After the war he worked as a film television technician, coordinating and running "on-air" anything that was on film and slated for broadcast. (This was in the days before tape recording or DVD technology) He was privileged to meet some of Hollywood's famous entertainers, such as Dorothy Malone, Hattie McDaniel, and Gene Kelly. He was a friend of "Weegee" (Arthur Fellig) the crime photographer and author of The Naked City. Wally worked for affiliate stations of NBC, ABC and CBS in San Francisco, Stockton and Sacramento, as well as in Hollywood.
Wally loved watching old movies and was a human encyclopedia of information about them and their actors.
And he loved animals, especially dogs.
After he retired from KTTV (Channel 11) in Los Angeles, he was invited to live with his half brother Vincent Nowell and his wife, Carole, in Simi Valley, CA. He spent a pleasant 20 years here before deciding he wanted a change. The California Department of Veterans Affairs offers California Veteran retirement homes. The first one with an opening for Wally was in Lancaster. He lived there for nearly three years until a stroke impaired his ability to walk. That resulted in his being transferred in 2014 to a Fresno Veteran's Home that provides skilled nursing care.
Immediate arrangements are being handled by Reardon Simi Valley Funeral Home. There are no plans yet for services. The family will advise everyone at a later date of any such arrangements for his cremains.
Your prayers for Wally and good wishes in Wally's memory are appreciated. At long last he will be able to meet some of his celluloid heroes, such as Laurel and Hardy and Charlie Chaplin and be reunited with his childhood playmate, Norma Jean Baker (aka Marylin Monroe) He lived a good life and will have a great time in the afterlife.