Photo of the day From the Stripes archives
February 2, 2004
Somalia "wedding"
Dave Casey ©Stars and Stripes
Mogadishu, Somalia, June 18, 1993: Staff Sgt. John Urban and his "bride" are showered with rice as they emerge from a "wedding ceremony" at the U.S. Air Force compound. Urban was to have been married the day before in Delaware, but was sent to Somalia before the ceremony could take place. So his fellow reservists from the 1610th Airlift Support Group (Provisional) surprised him with an ersatz wedding in which Master Sgt. Aaron Maness played the bride and cigar bands replaced wedding rings. "These rings are symbols that a good marriage is like a good cigar," said the "preacher." Added Lt. Col. R.H. "Dick" Robison, on-site mission commander, "I want you both in my office for a counseling session."

RELATED MATERIAL
Click here to read Stripes' story about the "wedding."

Past photos of the day

February, 2004
February 1, 2004: Actress Zsa Zsa Gabor at Rhein-Main, 1964 (With stories)

January, 2004
January 31, 2004: Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia arrives in Bonn, 1954 (With stories)
January 30, 2004: Orson Welles and Eartha Kitt in Germany, 1950 (With story)
January 29, 2004: Gen. Omar Bradley at Rhein-Main AB, 1947 (With stories)
January 28, 2004: James Brown onstage in Ludwigshafen, Germany, 1992 (With story)
January 27, 2004: Korean Army firepower demonstration in Vietnam, 1968 (With additional photos)
January 26, 2004: Muhammad Ali vs. Mac Foster in Tokyo, 1972 (With stories and additional photos)
January 25, 2004: Author-philanthropist Pearl S. Buck in South Korea, 1969 (With story)
January 24, 2004: Health expert Jack LaLanne visits a Sumo stable, 1972 (With story)
January 23, 2004: George H.W. Bush, on his first European trip as president, 1989 (With stories)
January 22, 2004: Siegfried and Roy bring two tigers to a new home in Germany, 1987 (With story)
January 21, 2004: USS Midway battle group returns home, 1991 (With story and additional photos)
January 20, 2004: Prince Charles at RAF Mildenhall, 1982 (With story)
January 19, 2004: Gospel singer Mahalia Jackson in Tokyo, 1971 (With story)
January 18, 2004: Producer Otto Preminger at the Cannes Film Festival, 1974 (With related story)
January 17, 2004: Walt Disney visits Berlin, 1963 (With story)
January 16, 2004: Tanks roll through a German town during Winter Shield exercise, 1961 (With stories)
January 15, 2004: Dick Van Dyke, on the set in Germany, 1967 (With story and additional photos)
January 14, 2004: U.S. servicemembers in Somalia, 1993 (With stories and additional photos)
January 13, 2004: Grand Ole Opry stars bring country music to Europe, 1949 (With additional photos)
January 12, 2004: Football star Joe Namath at Munich American H.S., 1978 (With story)
January 11, 2004: Sen. Edward M. Kennedy at Frankfurt's America House, 1966 (With story)
January 10, 2004: Author and Nobel laureate Thomas Mann, back in Germany, 1949 (With story)
January 9, 2004: Roy Orbison, onstage at RAF Mildenhall, 1982 (With story)
January 8, 2004: President and Mrs. Reagan arrive in London, 1982 (With stories)
January 7, 2004: On the set during the filming of "Dr. Zhivago," 1965 (With story and additional photos)
January 6, 2004: A Chinook helicopter is lifted away by another copter, 1981 (With additional photos)
January 5, 2004: Comedian Chico Marx, on his way to perform for the troops, 1949 (With story)
January 4, 2004: Sen. Barry Goldwater in Saigon, 1969 (With story)
January 3, 2004: Liza Minnelli in concert, 1987 (With story)
January 2, 2004: Actor Ernest Borgnine visits the troops in Germany, 1979 (With story)
January 1, 2004: Bono, on stage at the U2 Festival, 1987 (With story)

(Click here for Photos of the Day from June through December, 2003.)
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