The Gunney

glp

Active member
R. Lee Ermey passed away from complications of pneumonia. 74. Way too young!! I watched all his mail call and locn 'n load videos...great presentations. RIP
 
He had the character that made him the type of Gunnery Sgt. troops would love too serve under.

Semper Fi buddy.

Mort
 
Ronald Lee Ermey (March 24, 1944 – April 15, 2018) was an American actor and voice actor. He achieved fame when he played Gunnery Sergeant Hartman in the 1987 film Full Metal Jacket, which earned him a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Ermey was also a United States Marine Corps staff sergeant and an honorary gunnery sergeant. During his tenure in the U.S. Marine Corps, he served as a drill instructor.
 
I have enjoyed R Lee Ermey's acting roles.

I was drafted and went through Basic Training (Army) in 1968 at Ft Bliss Texas. It was hard, both physically and mentally.

I never witnessed a Drill Sgt treat a trainee anything like Ermey's protrayal in the various rolls he played.

Of course, the USMC might be different.
 
I have enjoyed R Lee Ermey's acting roles.

I was drafted and went through Basic Training (Army) in 1968 at Ft Bliss Texas. It was hard, both physically and mentally.

I never witnessed a Drill Sgt treat a trainee anything like Ermey's protrayal in the various rolls he played.

Of course, the USMC might be different.

I've been around Army CBT MOS DI's during the 60's that would have made Ermey seem like a loud mouth choir boy. It's the quiet ones you have to worry about. I have friends from the same time period that thought their Basic and AIT,,, at other training sites,,,, was like a long vacation. Mos, location, and how long your DI's were back from Vietnam, and where they were stationed, had a lot to do with your experience. Today basic is like school. The tactics used during the Vietnam era are no longer tolerated.

R lee created himself by manipulating TV. Personally I think his Gunny dog and pony show went way over the top. In the UK he's known as "Hollywood's greatest drill sergeant". Thankfully this is The USA where having opinions, are encouraged.
 
I've been around Army CBT MOS DI's during the 60's that would have made Ermey seem like a loud mouth choir boy. It's the quiet ones you have to worry about. I have friends from the same time period that thought their Basic and AIT,,, at other training sites,,,, was like a long vacation. Mos, location, and how long your DI's were back from Vietnam, and where they were stationed, had a lot to do with your experience. Today basic is like school. The tactics used during the Vietnam era are no longer tolerated.

R lee created himself by manipulating TV. Personally I think his Gunny dog and pony show went way over the top. In the UK he's known as "Hollywood's greatest drill sergeant". Thankfully this is The USA where having opinions, are encouraged.


God Bless America. I bet he made a good living off his " dog and pony show". To each his own.
 
I went thru Air Force basic in June & July of 1962. It was exceedingly hot & humid in San Antonio ! At that time (if we were scheduled for a Tech School ) we only had 5 weeks of Basic, then finished the rest of our Basic while in Tech school. That 5 weeks were hard, & the DI's constantly told us we wouldn't make IT. One of our DI's was an alcoholic & the other was a MENTAL CASE. He would explode & slap recruits for minor sins. We started with 65 in our flight and after 5 weeks we had 42. Some were set back & the others cracked & were sent home (including one of the two guys I went in with on the buddy system). Those that "cracked" usually disappeared during the middle of the night. "MAGIC", it was called. I think the Air Force had a plan to weed out the weakest before a lot of money was spent on a 6-12 month Tech School. I'm sure things are a lot easier now.
 
Back
Top