WWII Re-enactment Open to the Public!

[JumpinHowie]

Hey. I want to inform you all that there will be a WWII reenactment Oct 22-44. It will be Held at Fort Ord, in Monterey. You should all try to make it out and watch our battle and come wonder through the town. My Unit is hosting the event so it is going to be great
The Krauts will be using the Tiger Tank from Saving Private Ryan, in the town we will be fighting in, along with two other Panzers.
It is open to the Public on Sat. and the battle starts at 3pm. After the battle you can wonder around thr combat town and talk to the troops and see our encampments... Heres a Pic of the Kraut Tiger to get you interested...

[JumpinHowie]

well here are the other 2 panzers if you wanted to see them
StuGIII Panzer...

[JumpinHowie]

sorry about the 3rd post but I just wanted to show off my handy work and show you 3 of the signs I've made so far to french up our combat town ...

[Andykev]

Not taking sides...

The Germans had the Best Looking uniforms of WWII.

Anyone disagree?

[havershaw]

I think the armbands kind of ruin it for me.

[jamespowers]

Originally posted by Andykev
Not taking sides...

The Germans had the Best Looking uniforms of WWII.

They should. Coco Chanel and Hugo Boss did a good job designing their uniforms. We had a bunch of old guys trying to slap together a uniform that was more utilitarian rather than stylish. They did the job though.

Regards to all,

J

[Andykev]

Originally posted by havershaw
I think the armbands kind of ruin it for me.

Certainly the Nazi's armband and the Swastika represent the darkest (one of) period in history. Evil evil. Bad stuff.

But despite that, the uniforms, removing the "history"...were neat, trim, and classic.

I believe the Germans designed them to intimidate the conquered peoples.

Don't know..just that they looked neat. I have heard some writers support this observation, but making any mention of that today is "politically incorrect".

No doubt about it, the Nazi's sucked, killed, and were evil.

[Kilgour Trout]

I was wondering if anyone knew to what degree the Nazi symbol was derived from the eastern Indian/chinese talisman? I know the Chinese one is a dead ringer but the Indian one is backwards. Being the Superstitious git he was...I wonder what Old Adolf had in mind. Is it a teutonic symbol?

Just wondering out loud
Kilgour Trout

[havershaw]

AndyKev...I know what you mean. I was just yanking your chain about the armbands. (I couldn't help it.)

[dutch101st]

Nope...I disagree...I think that the paratroopers had just a bit more on the ball than anyone else.

Give me a set of M42's or a set of class A's with either tha Ike Jacket or the 4 Pocket Jacket with some highly spitshined russet brown jump boots.

Now that's style.

[dutch101st]

Just wanted to repost this at the top of the heap:

The event is for next weeknd, Saturday the 23rd, 1pm!! Be there or be square Daddy-0!

University of Monterey, a.k.a. For Ord, near Monterey. PM me for directions!!

[MikeyB17]

Would love to go, but it's a bit of a way from the UK...
What chassis is the Tiger based on? I read somewhere it was a T-34. I thought when SPR came out that the Tiger was a pretty accurate copy, but just a little too narrow overall, and the wheels didn't overlap as I recall. Hardly surprising considering there aren't that many Tigers around in running order. I was at Bovington Tank museum in Dorset this year, and had a good look at their Tiger, now fully restored. Would have loved to have seen it on the move! An awesome thing to stand in front of-I'd have hated to have had to face one in anger!
On the subject of uniforms, I have to agree that evil murdering scum though they were, the Nazi uniforms were beautifully designed. I do reckon that the boys in the AAF looked pretty cool too.

[MDFrench]

I always thought the most charming uniforms and, in my humble opinion, the coolest, were the British RAF and Army uniforms. I guess I am a sucker for battledress.

Even Ike liked them so much he created the Ike jacket from the British battledress.

Mike

[anj4de]

Hi Mikey

The Tigers in SPR were in deed based on old T-34s. The look really bad in comparison to the real thing. What I do not understand is that at the price of SPR they could have gotten real PzIV panzers and maybe a Panther or two. Those are availlable in running condition in Europe. Sau More in France and Munster in Germany have them. But since we all know that the movie was made by Americans for Americans...well what can I say. Historicly the second part of the movie sucks anyway. Besides, there wre no Tigers in Normandy during the first days of the battle, they were held back in reserve near Paris.
All in all I think that "Band of Brothers" is a lot a lot better, with all the real caracters contributing to the projcet there was little room for fucking it up...

cheers
Uwe

[MikeyB17]

Hi Uwe,
I have to say I never thought the SPR Tiger looked that bad, just a bit too narrow,with the turret a little too far forward-only sad gits like us know the difference! :-) It's not as bad as the ones in Kelly's Heroes! It is a pity they couldn't get hold of some more authentic armour, especially considering , as you say, it's available-I'm sure Spielberg's budget would've stretched that far!
You're quite right, BOB was a lot better, although I still like SPR. Our tour guide in Normandy last week said he'd spoken to a number of US veterans who said that the landing sequence was EXACTLY how it was. I walked along the path that Ryan takes into the cemetery last week, although in reality, as I expect you know, it runs along the cliff and is not the entrance as it appears in the film. Still knocks you back though...

Mike, BRITISH battledress? Blimey, you must be a sucker for it-I always thought our boys looked like sacks of Sh*t compared to the Germans and the US boys. I would refer you to the late, great Spike Milligan on the subject of British battledress:-

"Words can't describe the wretched appearance of a soldier in a new battle-dress. Size had nothing to do with it. You wore what you got. Some soldiers never left barracks for fear of being seen. Others spent most of their time hiding behind trees. The garments were impregnated with an anti-gas agent that reeked like dead camels, and a waterproofing chemical that gave you false pregnancy and nausea. The smell of 500 newly-kitted rookies could only be likened to an open Hindu sewerage works on a hot summer night by Delius........overcoats were a huge, shapeless dead loss. If you wanted alterations, you took it to a garage."

Hitler-my part in his downfall

If I had a scanner, I'd include the cartoon that goes with this description. I grant you though, the RAF officers looked pretty good. And let's not forget the boys in the Navy (apart from the bellbottoms!)

[MDFrench]

Mikey,

It's funny. While I grew up around Flying Fortresses and becames friends with the pilot of the Memphis Belle and its caretakers, you live across the water where the RAF held the line and around every corner is a reminder of the Battle of Britain and the RAF's exploits.

Yet, four years in Britain left me with a respect and love for the RAF and British forces to the point of obsession and you, on the flip-side, have an equal respect for the USAAF.

It warms my heart to know that even with the global discontent between America and the other nations of the world right now, there are places like the Fedora Lounge where guys and gals from the U.S., the UK, and Europe can come together and realize that there are still individuals among nations, and that those individuals through interaction like this, can to a degree, diffuse such negative feelings.

That being said: You keep the memory of the USAAF alive over there, Mikey, and I'll continue educating people here about the effect that the RAF had on the destiny of the world.

Highest regards,
Mike

[MikeyB17]

Hi Mike
It's funny, as you say, how guys from two different countries can develop obsessions about each other's air forces in WWII. I've racked my brains on numerous occasions, trying to figure out why I have such an interest in the USAAF, and I'm blowed if I can put my finger on it-I have no particular connection with the US, apart from a few distant relatives whom I have had almost no contact. Perhaps it's just an extension of the fairly widespread feeling in this country that things from the US are cool in general, and which I get the impression may be the opposite for a lot of people over there. British culture is awash with American influence, we all wear jeans, baseball caps, 'bomber jackets' and eat burgers and listen to music with its roots in the US-like rock'n'roll. Perhaps growing up in that culture has something to do with it-I don't know. Don't get me wrong, I have the highest regard for the boys in the RAF in all branches of service, and the sight and sound of a Spitfire (or a Lancaster more particularly in my case) is enough to bring a tear to my eye. But for some funny reason, blowed if I know why, if it's a case of, for instance, buying a book on the 8th AF or one on RAF Bomber Command, the book on the 8th will win. There you go, I'm no psychologist. But you are quite right , we should all be doing our bit to keep the memory of these boys and what they did alive, and it's getting more difficult as the veterans sadly pass on, and modern kids don't seem to have a clue, and people like me with an interest in the war are regarded as Anoraks (geeks to you chaps over there). I've heard it more than once, people going to airshows prefer the modern, noisy jets to the old prop-driven beauties-if you can believe that. I've encountered a fair bit of minor annoyance from some people over here when it comes to the USAAF, an impression that I'm being somehow disloyal to our own chaps. I've also been asked 'what's wrong with British flying jackets?' (easy answer there-we only issued one flight jacket for the entire war-the US issued several!) Fact is we need to keep the memory of all the guys who fought and died in WWII alive-the Armies, Navies and Air Forces of all the countries that fought to defeat evil. Blokes like you and me with our particular spheres of interest are al doing our bit. And you're quite right, Mike, it's great that we have forums like this particularly splendid one to help us do it.

Best Regards,

Mike B

P.S. I am pigsick jealous of your association with the Memphis Belle! :-)

[corchel1942]

It amazes me how many Americans(myself included) portray English or Commonwealth from WWII. I grew up loving history, mainly 1940's, and then I married an English girl.

[Zemke Fan]

A 4.5 year old thread! Welcome corchel1942!

I have a love for the RAF, too, but it stems (mostly) from my interest in the flyboys from the USA who flew with the Eagle Squadrons and RAF units in North Africa. I even do an impression where the active duty shoulder patch is XII TAC and the former unit patch is RAF/USAAF Desert Air Force.

Anyway, welcome aboard!

[_RAGNAR_]

BTW German soldiers didn't wear armbands. Political types did.