Burnett Peter Van Deusen
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Burnett Peter Van Deusen (1913-1993) was a magnetic ink salesman at Sun Chemical in Jersey City, New Jersey. He always went by the name "Pete Van Deusen." (b. November 10, 1913, Albany, Albany County, New York, USA - d. October 31, 1993, Montville, Morris County, New Jersey, USA)
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[edit]- ... You just act. The thing happens and you jump, or do whatever you have to do. I believe you have to think later, you don't have time to think. Its like when your playing ball, I guess, and if your pitching and the batter hits one straight back at the box. Its an instinctive thing to put the glove up to protect yourself, you don't have time to think, you just act first. … I don't feel like I'm a hero. I mean there were a lot of people mixed up in this. There was the woman that hollered, the man that gave him mouth to mouth, the rescue squad. It took a lot of us to really do the job. I just happened to be the one that was in the pool.
- "Rescue Child From Pool.". 6 July 1965.
- Talking about his rescue of Si Simmons from drowning in a hotel swimming pool in Atlanta.