IMO, one of the best, if not the best, episode was a 2-parter called 'Hills Are for Heroes', (Season 4). It was directed by Vic Morrow, thus the featured star for this show was Rick Jason. It was unusual in that it was an episode that had the whole platoon in action attempting to take/knockout a pair of pillboxes that sat on some hills. Lots of intense action and American casualties. Another great episode which co-stared Nick Adams was called 'Bridgehead', (Season 2), which was about capturing a bridge that was protected by a German occupied house. It has some very good action and one of the highlights is the German use of actual Panzerfaust in the defense. There is also an outstanding episode called 'Anatomy of a Patrol', (Season 2), that co-starred James Caan as a German sergeant matching wits with Saunders. Again, lots of good action with a look into the German side of things. -- Al
Combat! (1 Viewer)
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Warrior
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Awhile back in this thread I mentioned I picked up a plastic set of character figures from the Combat series at the OTSN show several years ago; Bobby Moore asked me to post a picture, so here it is.
Been so long since I looked at them, I forgot they were painted; any guesses as to who is who?
Been so long since I looked at them, I forgot they were painted; any guesses as to who is who?
I'll take a shot. The GI in the back with the Thompson has to be Saunders. The GI in the black beret is Caje. The guy on the radio is Lt. Hanley. The Doc is the Doc. Kirby is on the ground with the BAR. I'm guessing the big GI throwing the grenade is Little John. If the wounded guy has an ID, i'd guess Billy. That's my guess and I'm sticking to it. -- AlAwhile back in this thread I mentioned I picked up a plastic set of character figures from the Combat series at the OTSN show several years ago; Bobby Moore asked me to post a picture, so here it is.
Been so long since I looked at them, I forgot they were painted; any guesses as to who is who?
Warrior
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Excellent Al, the only one wrong is the wounded guy, he's referred to in the set as "the weekly celebrity added to the squad who ends up getting wounded".....................:wink2:
Doh! Shoulda known that. What fooled me was that the wounded guy wasn't dead. Had he been dead, I woulda guessed 'celebrity guest star'!^&grin^&grin^&grin -- Al
Go for Broke
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I just finished reading a book on the battle for Tarawa. Eddie Albert drove a landing craft there. This was one of the toughest beach landings in the Pacific war.
Tarawa was a true bloodbath. I don't know which book you read but Eric Hammel's '76 Hours' is outstanding with great research and detail. -- Al
Go for Broke
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The book I read was, One Square Mile of Hell, by John Wukovits. My recollection was that Eddie Albert was quite brave and in the thick of things.
maddadicus
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Bob, being a Sgt. Rock comic fan, that WW1 vet script was also in the comics. Not sure who stole material from whom. but it seemed like many of the comic issues were similar to the TV series plots. Michael
Go for Broke
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I don't remember that Sgt Rock comic episode, but I vaguely remember a comic, maybe Haunted Tank, could be Sgt Rock, where this old French WWI veteran or older prior war, sat in his chair year after year looking out his window. When he saw the Americans in danger, he took his old rifle and shot the church bell to warn them and then calmly resumed watching the world go by. Sounds boring, but it was a good story. Last year my roof leaked and ruined a whole box of comics. Bummer.
I remember reading in the letters section of one of my OAAW Sgt. Rock comics where they talked about some of the COMBAT! and Sgt. Rock stories being alike. From what I remember, they indicated that there was an understanding and mutual respect for eachother that allowed the barrowing of story plots. I have noticed some Sgt. Rock stories that came after, (sometimes years after), a simular COMBAT! story and COMBAT! stories that came after a Sgt. Rock story.
COMBAT even today stands the test of time and I still find myself drawn into the stories and watching with interest. It is hard to beat a great COMBAT! episode or a great Sgt. Rock story. If only MARX had made plastic character figures of them.
BOBBYGMOORE
COMBAT even today stands the test of time and I still find myself drawn into the stories and watching with interest. It is hard to beat a great COMBAT! episode or a great Sgt. Rock story. If only MARX had made plastic character figures of them.
BOBBYGMOORE
One of the interesting technical points of 'Combat!' is the use of the weapons. I always wondered why the Germans used Allied Mg's so often when the show had access to and used authentic weapons, like the Mg 42. Still, one sees the Vickers used by Germans in many shows. There are also many instances of German use of the famous US M-2 heavy Mg. Another interesting weapon use is the 1903 Springfield which is used for British troops and some partisans. My favorite weapon is the converted Reising submachine gun that is built to look like an MP-40. It is a non-firing conversion and is carried by German soldiers in scenes where no shooting is needed. There are many episodes where authentic MP-40s are used, so many that I have often wondered why they bothered with the Reising conversion. The only thing I can think of is the weight factor, or maybe a weapons handling issue, because the Reising conversion is painfully obvious once you spot it and start looking for it. It is not a horrible conversion job, as it does resemble an Mp-40, but it is obviously a fake in many details. In the episode 'Anatomy of a Patrol', for instance, the German Sgt., played by James Caan, is often seen with the Reising in one scene, and then with an authentic MP-40 in another scene when shooting is needed. Like I said, I don't know why they just didn't use the real MP-40 all the time. And on the subject of fake weapons, Vic Morrow didn't appreciate the weight of the real Thompson, so a wooden dummy was made for him to carry when shooting wasn't necessary or when the gun wasn't front and center to the camera. He apparently carried the wooden dummy on screen quite often, but it is so well made, and camera work so well done, that it is extremely hard to spot. I really can't claim to have spotted the dummy in any particular scene, but I know it saw heavy use. The German use of all the US Army vehicles, tanks, truck, half-tracks, is not worth getting into because of availability, cost, etc. -- Al
This list needs updating as Pierre Jalbert, who played Caje, passed away in January, 2014, just past his 89th birthday.
This leaves Jack Hogan (86 y.o.) and Conlan Carter (81 y.o.) as the only surviving main cast members. "Kirby, shut up!"
There are 2 other semi-regulars that you all might remember:
William Bryant joined the squad as McCall in the final season and was in several, but not all, episodes. He passed away in 2001 at age 77.
Paul Busch played numerous different German soldiers over the run of the show, 1st season thru last. He passed in 1993 at age 68.
-- Al
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