Comedian and retired Marine Reserve officer Rob Riggle takes to the skies in this “Top Gun 2 audition tape” skit for popular comedy website Funny Or Die. In it, Riggle posits that he’s a dead ringer for the supporting actor post beside the famed character Maverick. When he mounts up and begins to practice his lines, the Blue Angels pilot goes full throttle. Spoiler alert: Riggle lets out some kind of squeal, and then passes out. Watch: [HTML1] In addition to his career as a comedian featured in movies including The Hangover, The Other Guys and Step Brothers, Riggle served…
Browsing: Reserve
The head of the Army Reserve said Tuesday that the Army should be more like the Marine Corps — at least in the way the Marine Corps cultivates a strong life-long brotherhood. Although Marines and soldiers usually boast about being better than the other, Lt. Gen. Jack C. Stultz, head of the Army Reserve, said at this year’s Reserve Officers Association symposium in Washington, D.C., that the Marine Corps does a good job inculcating the idea of “once a Marine, always a Marine.” That helps them pull active duty Marines into the Reserve at the end of their service. The…
[HTML1] CBS’ “60 Minutes” offered an uplifting portrait last night of families sacrificing together. Five sets of brothers were members of 1st Battalion, 23rd Marines, out of Houston, Texas, during the unit’s deployment to Afghanistan last year. The decision wasn’t reached lightly: Battalion commander Lt. Col. Todd Zink had to be convinced it was a good idea, he told CBS’s Lara Logan. The quick comparison made, of course, is to the Sullivan brothers of World War II. Five Sullivan brothers famously served together on the cruiser Juneau, dying together after the Japanese torpedoed their ship. This story had a much…
There are no easy ways to explain the individual tragedies of war. We all got a reminder of that this weekend as the Houston Chronicle published a touching story about members of 1st Battalion, 23rd Marines, out of Houston, returning the wedding ring of a fallen friend, Staff Sgt. Jeremy Smith, 26, to his wife. Rachel Smith, 25, received the keepsake on Saturday from Sgt. Jarred Hammonds, who is credited with rooting through the dirt where Smith died April 6 for a long period of time to find it. Staff Sgt. Smith and Hospitalman Benjamin Rast were reportedly killed by…
As they say in the sports world, it’s time for a homer alert. The unit from my home state — 1st Battalion, 25th Marines, out of Fort Devens, Mass. — has deployed to Afghanistan, taking over this week for 1st Battalion, 23rd Marines, out of Houston. The Massachusetts battalion is part of the Marine Corps Reserve, and includes Marines from across New England. It has companies based out of Topsham, Maine; Londonderry, N.H.; Plainville, Conn.; and Fort Devens. The unit will take over 1/23’s missions, which included providing security at a variety of forward operating bases, including Camp Leatherneck, the…
Marjah, Afghanistan – It started with two bursts of gunfire outside the Hesco walls of the patrol base, a small square in the center of town at the governor’s compound. Within moments, the 3rd Platoon Marines of Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 23rd Marines, were mustered by their vehicles wearing the required uniform: shoes, pants and weapon. It was about midnight. After a quick head count, and a determination that the gunfire had come from unknown activity between Afghan police, the Marines were told by platoon sergeant Staff Sgt. Chad Cada they could stand down and resume their sleep. But something…
Patrol Base Boldak, Afghanistan – A casual conversation with an infantryman, who’s had a few deployments here and in Iraq, reveals a happy history of heat, cold and general discomfort along the lines of “I lived in my vehicle for seven months.” That is still par for the course — and a form of shared misery preferred by many Marines. But the procurement system has brought some smart comfort to enhance existing structures, such as these insulating tent liners I watched being installed here. They’re made by HDT for the 100, 200 and 300 series shelters and can bring the…
Patrol Base Boldak, Afghanistan — Much has been made of the deftness with which some Marine officers have been able to form productive ties and friendships with local tribal leaders in Helmand province. They meet in weekly “shuras,” or consultations, to discuss needs, problems and ideas. The tribal leaders get to report things that have happened as a result of the presence of the Marines, both good and bad, such as “your tanks rolled over my crop field,” (even though the Marines in this area don’t have tanks) and “we like you better than the British unit that comes down…
This is how the store manager, Orvin Smith, tells it in the Augusta Chronicle. Cpl. Phillip Duggan, 24, was stabbed in the back around 1:15 pm Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, as he and three other Marines in their dress blues collected festive holiday gift items for the Toys for Tots program in front of the Best Buy store in Augusta, Ga. Surveillance cameras caught a shoplifter stuffing a laptop under his coat and when he was approached by store clerks to drop it, a scuffle ensued. The robber let go of the laptop then ran toward the front door.…
Marines with 1st Battalion, 24th Marines will head back to their Selfridge, Mich., headquarters Saturday after working their seats off for two weeks in Javeline Thrust 2010. More than 4,500 Marines from air, ground and logistics units participated in the exercise, the largest Marine Forces Reserve exercise of the year. It took place between the Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center in Bridgeport, Calif., and the Hawathorn Weapons Army Depot in Hawthorn, Nev. The terrain, with elevations ranging from 4,000 to 10,000 feet over a 180-square-mile area, simulated conditions in Afghanistan, minus actual Taliban fighters.
