In a bid to rectify his years of criminal misdeeds and bad behaviour, McQueen joined the United States Marine Corps in 1947 as a tank driver and mechanic, a role which fuelled his lifelong obsession with machines. At first, he struggled with adhering to the military discipline, frequently clashing with authority and being demoted to the rank of Private seven times. Ever the rebel, he was AWOL on more than one occasion and spent 41 days in the brig. Evidently, he was 'The Cooler King' long before 1963's The Great Escape. Following his punishment, McQueen tried hard to improve his behaviour, and received a commendation following an Arctic training exercise. Moments before a tank broke through ice and plummeted to its watery doom, he pulled all of the occupants from inside and saved their lives. He also saved a teenage girl from being raped when he pulled a gun on her group of attackers while on leave. After taking her home, she told him that "If I had a brother, I'd want him to be like you," to which McQueen replied, "You don't want me as a brother 'cos I'm kinda wild."
