Combat Veteran to TV Star

View Online Combat Veteran to TV Star Sept. 23, 2025 | By David Vergun Actor Larry Wilcox, best known for his leading role as a California Highway Patrol motorcycle officer and later as a CHP captain in the TV series CHiPs, which aired from 1977 to 1983 on NBC, was also a Marine Corps combat veteran. In May 1967, Wilcox went to boot camp at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego.  From 1967 to 1970, as a field artilleryman, he served with the 2nd Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment. Those years included a 13-month deployment to South Vietnam, where he served in the northernmost region of the country in places that include Dong Ha, Con Thien and the demilitarized zone bordering North Vietnam.   Also, he fought in the Tet Offensive, which started Jan. 30, 1968, and lasted until September 1968. Like many Vietnam War veterans, his homecoming was not joyous.  "My memories of my returning home to San Francisco were ugly and I did not understand why people spat on you for risking your life," he said, referring to people at the airport.  His final year was at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms, California, where he was honorably discharged with the rank of staff sergeant in 1973.  Wilcox, born Aug. 8, 1947, in San Diego, still lives there.  His older brother Randy also served in the Marine Corps, including during the 1962 Cuban missile crisis.

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