The Short-Timers
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The Short-Timers
''The Short-Timers'' is a 1979 semi-autobiographical novel by U.S. Marine Corps veteran Gustav Hasford, about his experience in the Vietnam War. Hasford served as a combat correspondent with the 1st Marine Division during the Tet Offensive of 1968. As a military journalist, he wrote stories for ''Leatherneck Magazine'', ''Pacific Stars and Stripes'', and ''Sea Tiger''. The novel was adapted into the film ''Full Metal Jacket'' (1987) by Hasford, Michael Herr, and Stanley Kubrick. In 1990, Hasford published the sequel '' The Phantom Blooper: A Novel of Vietnam''. The two books were supposed to be part of a "Vietnam Trilogy", but Hasford died before writing the third installment. Plot summary The book is divided into three sections, written in completely different styles of prose, and follows James T. "Joker" Davis through his enlistment in the United States Marine Corps and deployment to Vietnam. Joker and his fellow Marines refer to military personnel in various ways. A "shor ...
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Gustav Hasford
Jerry Gustave Hasford (November 28, 1947 – January 29, 1993), also known under his pen name Gustav Hasford was an American novelist, journalist and poet. His semi-autobiographical novel ''The Short-Timers'' (1979) was the basis of the film '' Full Metal Jacket'' (1987). He was a United States Marine Corps veteran, who served as a war correspondent during the Vietnam War. Biography Early life Born in Russellville, Alabama, Hasford joined the United States Marine Corps in 1966 and served as a combat correspondent during the Vietnam War. As a military journalist, he wrote stories for ''Leatherneck Magazine'', ''Pacific Stars and Stripes'', and ''Sea Tiger''. During his tour in Vietnam, Hasford was awarded the Navy & Marine Corps Achievement Medal with Valor Device, during the Battle of Huế in 1968. Early literary career Hasford attended the Clarion Workshop and associated with various science fiction writers of the 1970s, including Arthur Byron Cover and David J. Skal. ...
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Full Metal Jacket
''Full Metal Jacket'' is a 1987 war drama film directed and produced by Stanley Kubrick, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Michael Herr and Gustav Hasford. The film is based on Hasford's 1979 novel ''The Short-Timers'' and stars Matthew Modine, Lee Ermey, Vincent D'Onofrio and Adam Baldwin. The storyline follows a platoon of U.S. Marines through their boot camp training in Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, South Carolina, primarily focusing in the first half of the film on privates J.T. Davis and Leonard Lawrence, nicknamed ''Joker'' and ''Pyle'', who struggle under their abusive drill instructor Gunnery Sergeant Hartman. The second half portrays the experiences of Joker and one other of the platoon's Marines in Vietnamese cities Da Nang and Huế during the Tet Offensive of the Vietnam War. The film's title refers to the full metal jacket bullet used by military servicemen. Warner Bros. released ''Full Metal Jacket'' in the United States on June 26, 1987. It w ...
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Phu Bai Combat Base
Phu Bai Combat Base (also known as Phu Bai Airfield and Camp Hochmuth) is a former U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps base south of Huế, in central Vietnam. History 1962-5 The Army Security Agency, operating under cover of the 3rd Radio Research Unit (3rd RRU), established a radio facility at Phu Bai in 1963, 12 km southeast of Huế on Highway 1. The operational unit was later redesignated as the 8th Radio Research Field Station (8th RRFS). 1965-7 On 10 April 1965 Task Force Alpha of 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marines was landed by helicopter from Da Nang Air Base to secure the area. On 13 April a detachment of ten UH-34D helicopters from HMM-162 was established at Phu Bai. On 14 April Battalion Landing Team 3rd Battalion, 4th Marines replaced Task Force Alpha at Phu Bai. In late 1965, The 3rd Marine Division established its headquarters at Phu Bai and would remain there until late 1967, when it was moved forward to Đông Hà. On 30 August 1967 a People's Army of Vietnam ...
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Da Nang
Nang or DanangSee also Danang Dragons ( ; vi, Đà Nẵng, ) is a class-1 municipality and the fifth-largest city in Vietnam by municipal population. It lies on the coast of the East Sea of Vietnam at the mouth of the Hàn River, and is one of Vietnam's most important port cities. As one of the country's five direct-controlled municipalities, it falls under the administration of the central government. Da Nang is the commercial and educational centre of Central Vietnam and is the largest city in the region. It has a well-sheltered, easily accessible port, and its location on National Route 1 and the North–South Railway makes it a transport hub. It is within of several UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including the Imperial City of Huế, the Old Town of Hội An, and the Mỹ Sơn ruins. The city was known as during early Đại Việt settlement, and as (or ''Turon'') during French colonial rule. Before 1997, the city was part of Quang Nam - Da Nang Province. On 1 Janua ...
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Drill Instructor
A drill instructor is a non-commissioned officer in the armed forces, fire department, or police forces with specific duties that vary by country. Foot drill, military step, and marching are typically taught by drill instructors. Australia Australian Army In the Australian Army, the staff responsible for training recruits are known as Recruit Instructors. They teach recruits discipline, fieldcraft, marksmanship, service knowledge and drill. Each recruit platoon is commanded by Recruit Instructors usually consisting of a Lieutenant, a Sergeant and up to four instructors of the Corporal or Bombardier rank. A Recruit Instructor can be identified by a 1st Recruit Training Battalion colour patch on his or her slouch hat and a small Recruit Instructor badge worn on the right breast pocket, if the position has been held long enough. Members from all Corps in the Army are eligible to become Recruit Instructors, including females. Experience as a Recruit Instructor is often a prerequi ...
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Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island
Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island (often abbreviated as MCRD PI) is an military installation located within Port Royal, South Carolina, approximately south of Beaufort, the community that is typically associated with the installation. MCRD Parris Island is used for United States Marine Corps Recruit Training of enlisted United States Marines. Recruits living east of the Mississippi River report there to receive initial training. Recruits living west of the Mississippi River receive training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, California, but may train at MCRD Parris Island by special request. Initial settlements A French Huguenot expedition led by Jean Ribault in 1562, was the first European group to attempt to colonize Parris Island. Earlier Spanish expeditions had sighted the area and named it "Punta de Santa Elena", which now remains one of the oldest continuously used European place names in the United States. The French expedition built an outpost named Charl ...
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Recruit Training
Military recruit training, commonly known as basic training or boot camp, refers to the initial instruction of new military personnel. It is a physically and psychologically intensive process, which resocializes its subjects for the unique demands of military employment. Major characteristics Initial military training is an intensive residential programme commonly lasting several weeks or months, which aims to induct newly recruited military personnel into the social norms and essential tasks of the armed forces. Common features include foot drill, inspections, physical training, weapons training, and a graduation parade. The training process resocializes recruits to the demands made of them by military life. Psychological conditioning techniques are used to shape attitudes and behaviours, so that recruits will obey all orders, face mortal danger, and kill their opponents in battle. According to an expert in United States military training methods, Dave Grossman, recruit ...
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Pogue
Pogue is American pejorative military slang for non-infantry MOS (military occupational specialty) staff, and other rear-echelon or support units. History and etymology The term was used as early as the First World War by US Marines to refer to a male homosexual. At the beginning of World War II, "pogue" was used by Marine drill instructors to refer to trainees believed not to meet the expected standards or failing to display the appropriate ''esprit de corps''. Linda Reinberg includes it as being in general use in Vietnam to refer to rear echelon support personnel. This meaning, as well as the "substandard performance" connotation, continued into the beginning of the Global War on Terror. During Desert Storm in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, "pog" referred to anyone who arrived in theater after the speaker. "Pogey bait" is a reference to sweets or candy, which was in usage in the military as early as 1918. The term alludes to food (and other luxuries) rarely afforded to grunts ...
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Tour Of Duty
For military personnel, a tour of duty is usually a period of time spent in combat or in a hostile environment. In an army, for instance, soldiers on active duty serve 24 hours a day, seven days a week for the length of their service commitment. Soldiers in World War II were deployed for the entire war and could be in active service for 4–5 years. Air force In World War II, Royal Air Force doctors had started to notice symptoms of battle fatigue in their pilots. Before 1942, there was no official limit for an operational tour. Some pilots had been flying over 200 missions with only a short break. Then the Senior Medical Officer of the RAF station Biggin Hill intervened, after asking one flight sergeant how many missions he had done and was surprised to hear 200 over 2 years. A tour system was then adopted; the length of it varied, depending on the period, theatre, and Command requirements of the time. In Western Europe, it was set at 200 hours operational flying. In 1944 in ...
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United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combined arms, implementing its own infantry, artillery, aerial, and special operations forces. The U.S. Marine Corps is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. The Marine Corps has been part of the U.S. Department of the Navy since 30 June 1834 with its sister service, the United States Navy. The USMC operates installations on land and aboard sea-going amphibious warfare ships around the world. Additionally, several of the Marines' tactical aviation squadrons, primarily Marine Fighter Attack squadrons, are also embedded in Navy carrier air wings and operate from the aircraft carriers. The history of the Marine Corps began when two battalions of Continental Marines were formed on 10 November 1775 in Philadelphia as ...
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