From a bitter Korean War veteran in Gran Torino to a hard-nosed Recon Marine in Heartbreak Ridge, Clint Eastwood has made a career of portraying tough guys. His on-screen persona is often that of a gun-toting vigilante with no patience for the “pussy ...
Col. Dave Severance, Commander of Marines Who Raised Flag on Iwo Jima, Dies at 102
Col. Dave Severance, commander of the Marines who famously planted the American flag on Iwo Jima and became an iconic representation of America’s military might, passed away Aug. 2 at his home in La Jolla, California. He was 102 years ...
Afghanistan’s Top Media Official Killed Amid Taliban Effort To Control Press
Taliban forces assassinated Afghanistan’s top media and information officer Friday in the capital city of Kabul, an alarming milestone in the Taliban’s ongoing effort to silence journalists in the country. Dawa Khan Menapal, head of the Government ...
Amazon Teased Its New ‘Lord of the Rings’ Series, so We Ranked the Originals
After years of repeatedly rewatching Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies, J.R.R. Tolkien fans can celebrate now that fresh tales from Middle-earth are finally on the way. Amazon just released a first look at its upcoming ...
These Acclaimed War Movies Took Realistic Preparation to Extreme Levels
In 1986, director Oliver Stone famously took a bunch of pampered actors into the Philippine jungles and treated them like dog shi — er, like soldiers, to prepare them for his passion project, Platoon. Actor Tom Berenger reportedly lost nearly a pound ...
Quentin Tarantino Says This Actor Saved ‘Inglourious Basterds’
Quentin Tarantino’s best movie — Inglourious Basterds — almost didn’t get made. Tarantino has said that Nazi Col. Hans Landa was “the greatest character I’ve ever written,” and Tarantino refused to make Inglourious Basterds until he found the ...
‘Man Down’: Teammate Recalls Losing Marc Lee, the 1st SEAL Killed in Iraq
“Our run of invincibility had ended, and the close calls that foreshadowed August 2 would haunt us long after.” Kevin Lacz, a former Navy SEAL sniper and corpsman, wrote those words in his memoir, The Last Punisher: A SEAL Team Three Sniper’s ...
J.R.R. Tolkien Started Building His Lord of the Rings Universe as a Soldier in WWI
For five months in 1916, German artillery shells rained down on British trenches, contributing to the more than 1 million casualties incurred at the Somme. Futile attempts to seize ground were traded back and forth until England finally claimed one ...
‘I Don’t Know What Quit Is’: Navy Vet Who Directed ‘Fury’ Defends His Cut of ‘Suicide Squad’
Navy veteran and acclaimed filmmaker David Ayer, best known for writing or directing popular films such as Fury, Training Day, and End of Watch, took to Twitter Thursday to declare the 2016 Suicide Squad film he wrote and directed for Warner Bros. ...
‘The Hill’ Captures the Essence of Being a Grunt During Afghan War
Sitting at a table full of empty chairs in a pub, Aaron Kirk and another Marine veteran set pints of beer on napkins bearing the names of fallen comrades. The empty seats and the beers are for men they fought alongside in Afghanistan. “Nobody in ...
How Cherokee Actor Wes Studi Taps Vietnam Experience for Performances
Magua simultaneously draws his tomahawk and dagger with the ease of movements practiced a thousand times. Unlike most depictions of Native Americans, the Huron warrior isn’t adorned in a feather headdress or riding a painted stallion across the Great ...
‘Born in the U.S.A.’: America’s Most Misunderstood Rock Anthem
The catchy refrain of bluesy rock guitar and The Boss’s ragged baritone voice make Bruce Springsteen’s "Born in the U.S.A." a go-to jam for many Americans during patriotic events and celebrations. Ironically, the hit song actually isn’t the ...
Before Creating Willy Wonka, Roald Dahl Was a Nazi-Killing Spy in World War II
With classics like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach, and Fantastic Mr. Fox under his name, it might come as a surprise that before Roald Dahl was a beloved children’s author, he was an accomplished World War II fighter ...
3 War-Movie Actors Who Took Method Acting to a Whole New Level
The best war movies of all time usually have one thing in common: realism. Whether it’s Saving Private Ryan, Black Hawk Down, or Platoon, good war movies require actors to commit to authentically portraying service members. Technical advisers can ...
Before Stephen King, America’s ‘King of Horror’ Was a Civil War Vet With TBI
Seldom do literary giants lead lives as interesting as their stories. Hemingway may have personified the hyper-masculine lifestyle of bull-fighting and binge drinking he often wrote about, and Edgar Allan Poe’s untimely death might be equally as ...
Race to the Moon: A Very ‘Drunk History’ of Space Exploration
Whether out of a desire to clap back at conspiracy theorists or to sound smart on their uncle’s Facebook post, herds of keyboard warriors regularly take to the internet in an attempt to become armchair historians in space exploration. It's been more ...
Military’s Top NCO Confronts Mental Health Stigmas, Promotes Better Care on Podcast
The senior enlisted adviser to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is a rank some service members don’t even know exists. It’s the top-ranking enlisted position in the entire Armed Forces, complete with its own insignia. The current SEAC, Ramón ...
‘The Last Battle’: The Time US and German Soldiers Joined Forces in World War II
Less than a week after Adolf Hitler committed suicide, American and German soldiers formed an unlikely alliance and fought together in World War II. As Allied forces marched toward victory and the Nazi war machine crumbled into pockets of resistance, ...
Virtual Reality YouTube Series Puts Viewers in Civil War Trenches, Front Lines
A 2015 survey from the American Council of Trustees and Alumni found that half of all Americans are unaware of when the Civil War took place. In an innovative effort to educate Americans and promote deeper understanding of that conflict, the American ...
WATCH: Coffee or Die Gives Viewers an Inside Look at the Marines’ New Recon Sniper Course
From the “fighting tops” of continental ships to the streets of Iraq, the Marine Corps has a long and proud tradition of lethal marksmanship. Nowhere is that tradition more evident than among the Corps’ elite Scout Sniper community. Since World ...
Coffee or Die Launches Print Magazine With Exclusive Content
The first-ever print edition of Coffee or Die Magazine became available for purchase Monday. Founded in 2018 as an online lifestyle magazine, Coffee or Die has seen enough success in the digital space to expand to a quarterly print publication ...
Steve McQueen Was a Brig-Rat Marine Legend Before He Became Hollywood’s ‘King of Cool’
Steve McQueen had a rough childhood. Between two abusive stepfathers, an alcoholic mother who abandoned him, and growing up in a reform school, it’s no surprise the famous actor viewed the Marine Corps as a great escape from life’s ...
Why America’s 2nd Highest-Ranking Officer Isn’t Losing Sleep Over China or Russia
As the 11th Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force Gen. John E. Hyten is the one of the highest-ranking officers in the Department of Defense — second only to JCS Chairman Army Gen. Mark Milley. Hyten pursued a military career ...
Chris Pratt’s ‘The Tomorrow War’ Breaks Streaming Records in Opening Weekend
The Tomorrow War delivers exactly what it promises: satisfying alien combat mixed with lighthearted Chris Pratt one-liners. But if you’re hoping for a fresh take on the save-humanity-from-aliens storyline or a deeply moving cinematic experience, look ...
Gone But Not Forgotten: Here Are 5 of Richard Donner’s Most Iconic Films
Richard Donner — the genre-jumping director behind the Lethal Weapon franchise and The Goonies — died Monday at 91 years old. Donner began his career directing the King of Cool, Steve McQueen, in the Western TV series Wanted Dead or Alive. He ...
USO Tour Concludes With Massive Show in Texas
After a week of visiting military bases across the US (and one in Cuba), the 2021 Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff USO Tour ended with a bang, or rather, with 20 minutes of bangs in the form of an extended fireworks display. The grand ...
‘Don’t Call Them Anything Other Than Patriots’: USO Tour Lands in San Antonio
The 2021 Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff USO Tour members started their visit to Joint Base San Antonio (JBSA) with instructors screaming in their faces. As the tour’s entertainers scurried off the bus on Thursday, military training ...
‘Huge Morale Boost’: USO Tour Hits San Diego Bases, Miramar
Gen. John E. Hyten and Senior Enlisted Adviser to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Ramon Colon-Lopez landed in Southern California for the 2021 Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff USO Tour on Tuesday. The tour, marking the first ...
‘A Break From the Grind’: USO Tour Visits NAS Whidbey Island
The 2021 Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff USO Tour has been moving at a breakneck pace to visit as many service members as possible during its weeklong tour. On Tuesday, the tour members landed at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island off the ...
‘So Others May Live’: USO Tour Hits NAS Pensacola, Rescue Swimmer School
The 2021 Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff's USO Tour landed at Naval Air Station Pensacola on Sunday after a brief stop at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Despite fresh sunburns from the Caribbean sun, the tour members showed up ready to rock. ...