What was Louis Zamperini’s childhood like? How did it help him become the man that was overcome incredible odds later in life?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Louis Zamperini’s childhood was marked by his rebellious nature and troublemaking. He was considered a terror by people who knew him. However, Louis Zamperini’s childhood was changed by his older brother Pete’s faith in him, and Louis’s natural defiance became his greatest asset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Long before Louis Silvie Zamperini was an Olympic athlete and soldier in WWII, he was a child criminal no one knew how to handle. Born to Italian immigrants in New York in January 1917, he was the second of what would become four children. His parents were Anthony, a coal miner and boxer, and Louise, who had Louis when she was 18. After Louis came down with pneumonia at the age of two, the family moved to Southern California to live in warmer weather. Louis Zamperini’s childhood was spent mainly in California. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The family moved to the town of Torrance just south of Los Angeles. In Torrance, Louis\u2019s antics earned him the reputation of being the town terror.<\/strong> He once ran across a busy highway and was almost run over. At five, he started smoking cigarette butts found on the street. At family dinners, he climbed under the table and stole his parents\u2019 glasses of wine. One night, he grew so inebriated, he fell into a rosebush in the yard. On another, he almost drowned in a refinery well after diving off the top of an oil rig. When they pulled him out, he was covered in oil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mostly, Louis Zamperini’s childhood was spent as a a thief. He learned how to pick locks with wire and broke into neighbors\u2019 homes to steal their dinner off the tables. The sight of Louis sprinting down an alley carrying a whole cake was not infrequent. He stole a keg of beer from a local party and pies from the local bakery. He was always on the run, with enraged community members trailing behind, two of which threatened to shoot him if he came by again.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Louis also ran random money-making rackets. He jammed up pay phones and returned later to collect the lodged change. He stole copper from a scrap lot and returned to sell it back to the owner the next day. He staged fights with other kids so adults would pay them to stop. It seemed no behavior was off limits for Louis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Although a terror, Louis was brazen, clever, capable, and fearless. These traits would serve him well as an adult in the war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During Louis Zamperini’s childhood, he was an outcast, not only for his mischievous ways, but also for his looks.<\/strong> He was scrawny and still struggled with his lungs because of the childhood pneumonia. He had big ears and unruly hair. Louis also spoke little English as a young boy because of the Italian spoken at home, and he stayed quiet through most of kindergarten and first grade. Thinking he was slow, the teachers held him back a grade. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Louis was often bullied, but he never reacted to anything that happened to him. Other boys would punch and kick him, and he\u2019d be bruised and bloody. But he never ran away, cried, or complained. He\u2019d simply cover his face and wait for the abuse to be over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As he got older, Louis grew more broody and brutal. He started hanging out with a rough crowd, but although he acted tough, he was crippled by shyness inside. He asked his father to teach him how to box and started lifting weights. He was able to fight his offenders now, but his rage was growing and turning toward everyone.<\/strong> On separate occasions, he punched a girl, shoved a teacher, and threw tomatoes at police officers. He even broke one kid\u2019s nose and beat another unconscious. <\/p>\n\n\n\n His parents didn\u2019t know what to do with him. They were always required to make amends to the neighbors either through apologies or payment for damaged or stolen items. His father\u2019s salary barely supported the family for the week, and the extra money was a burden. Anthony often punished Louis with spankings, but Louis never faltered. Like with the bullies, he took the beatings and continued his behavior.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nothing anyone did worked. Louis was untameable and becoming more destructive.<\/strong> He was failing school and showed no skills other than mischief. If he continued to follow this path, there would be no real future for him. <\/p>\n\n\n\nThe Downward Spiral<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
An Effort to Change<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n