John W. Erpelding, a Pacific Palisades resident for 34 years and former commander of the local American Legion Post 283, died November 3. He was 86. Born in Chicago in 1919, Erpelding grew up in Chicago and attended the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, where he was in ROTC. Initially rejected by the Navy for having flat feet, Erpelding easily passed the physical after the attack on Pearl Harbor. He received his commission as an ensign in July 1943, and taught file control, ordnance, and gunnery until his orders came through in 1945, when he was assigned to the USS Missouri. Almost 900 feet long and more than 200 feet high, the USS Missouri was the last and biggest battleship ever built. Erpelding frequently spoke of his experiences manning the anti-aircraft gun on the fantail of the ship, an area known as Kamikaze Corner because it was so frequently attacked from the air. Erpelding was aboard the Missouri on the morning of September 2, 1945 when the Japanese signed the Instrument of Surrender for Gen. Douglas MacArthur. A longtime attorney, Erpelding specialized in estate law. He moved to the Palisades in 1971, with his late wife Mary Dean, a talented singer. In 2003, on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of Legion Post 283, Erpelding, as incoming Post Commander, was named parade marshal and rode in the town’s annual Fourth of July parade. He is survived by his three daughters, Marian Harris of Manhattan Beach, Victoria Steele of Bel-Air, and Gracia Warde of Tarzana; a step-daughter, Melinda Takeuchi of Half Moon Bay, California; and two grandchildren, Donna Lee Harris and Nicolas Takeuchi. A memorial service will be private. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in his name to the Pacific Palisades Library Association, P.O. Box 2, Pacific Palisades 90272.
This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.
