Richard O’Kane; Medal of Honor Winner

Richard O’Kane, 83, retired rear admiral who won the Medal of Honor for commanding the storied Tang submarine in World War II. Under O’Kane, the Tang sank a Japanese ship every 11 days on five patrols and rescued scores of American fliers off the Japanese base at Truk. On Oct. 25, 1944, the Tang was destroyed when one of its torpedoes malfunctioned, circling back to hit the sub. The commander and eight of his men were taken prisoner and spent the final 10 months of the war in a Japanese prison camp, subjected to forced labor, beatings and starvation rations. O’Kane later commanded the Submarine School in New London, Conn. After his retirement, he wrote two books about his experiences, “Clear the Bridge” in 1977 and “Wahoo” in 1987. On Feb. 16 in Petaluma, Calif., of pneumonia.