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GI Jive, you may have resolved this some time ago, but here are some COMBAT! photos of Vic Morrow with a wooden TSMG. Yes black high gloss paint will reflect light.

Vic Morrow with real TSMG. Note the detail of the mag, housing and lettering on TSMG. Vic Morrow Combat.jpg

 

Another "real" TSMG photo. Likewise note mag housing, and holes in mags. vic_morrow 2.jpg

 

Third "real" TSMG. In this photo, look at detail of Magazine, Housing, and sling swivel, 49595475a51c04fed78bff5df1d52e2e.jpg

 

Now the infamous Wooden TSMG. Looks like a fake "wooden" reciever andl lower. 193881__67890.1519607604.500.500.jpg

 

Note the sling swivel placement, and type. Not original, nor in correct location. Note the Magazine. square block of wood with no detail. no witness holes in mag.

 

Real TSMG again unnamed.jpg

 

Wooden TSMG with very obvious misplaced ejection port. ss2900183_-_photograph_of_rick_jason_as_lt_gil_hanley_vic_morrow_as_sgt_chip_saunders_from_combat_available_in_4_sizes_framed_or_unframed_buy_now_at_starstills__82456__61838.1394492376.jpg

 

Y'all may have nailed this before, but here are some good shots that should confirm the "gun is too heavy" lore...

 

S/Fi,

Sandman1957

Edited by Sandman1957
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I thought he carried an M1 variant in the series. Did that change over time?

 

The pilot episode where they land on Omaha Beach during D-Day he had an M1 Garand, after that or very soon it was the '28 from then on.

In the 4th episode from the first season titled "The Squad" Saunders carries an M1 carbine, and does not have his signature parachute silk camo helmet cover on his steel pot. (I have the complete set of DVD's ... Know 'em by heart)

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The wooden "mock-up" shows up primarily in early promotional photos from the 1st Season. During the remainder of the show he carries a real 1921 or 1928 Model. For the shooting scenes usually a Stembridge Colt Model 1921 modified for blanks. In some non-shooting scenes he usually has a Savage Model 1928A1. There were several blank-firing 1921 Thompsons from Stembridge that were used during the entire run of the show. The Colt's gun shown in the photos is Ser# 4090, a documented Stembridge Thompson from the era.

 

Hear No Evil.jpg Hear No Evil-2.jpg Colt # 4090.jpg

Edited by gijive
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Reising MP-40 that MGM studios had seen in at least 2 episodes >i have the series also< had been in town recently in a collection The guy passed who ever got there got the gun now long gone.

 

Don't know who has the Saunders one now.I had the one from the Big House. Never so Few, and Bataan .Robert Taylor version not Wayne. Great movie history and t.v. glad it was posted.RON K.

P.s. #3965 used in those 3 movies that i documented.125 numbers from the other one posted in Combat.

post-504-0-05043300-1620686156.jpg

post-504-0-02846800-1620686508_thumb.jpg

Edited by colt21a
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I thought he carried an M1 variant in the series. Did that change over time?

 

The pilot episode where they land on Omaha Beach during D-Day he had an M1 Garand, after that or very soon it was the '28 from then on.

In the 4th episode from the first season titled "The Squad" Saunders carries an M1 carbine, and does not have his signature parachute silk camo helmet cover on his steel pot. (I have the complete set of DVD's ... Know 'em by heart)

That's a Yankee trick, hiding in a hole and not standing up to fight. Thought I signed up to kill Germans, not hide in a hole. Hey Lt, hope you are okay with me taking out that machine gun nest. No Sgt, you can't have my boots. Any Mississippi Boys?

 

Oh and the name is Lovelace, got a problem with that? One of my favorite episodes..

 

Edited by NFA amnesty
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Rick Jason did some short episode introduction videos for reruns when Combat was around it's 25th Anniversary.
He talked about being offered the Thompson first, but chose the M1 Carbine, because he didn't want to lug the heavy Thompson.
Morrow was soon bothered by the weight of the 28 (ok, 21), and the prop department made up the wood model.
According to Jason, Morrow used the wood model in many of the long shots: "See if you can spot it".
Jason was a real gun person; he said Morrow decidedly was not.
Jason also said he once invited Morrow to go skeet shooting; but, Morrow declined, saying it was "against his religion to shoot clay".

CORRECTION, and acknowledgement of my poor memory: Although I had watched many Combat! original airings, I had viewed the much later combat reruns on VHS before gaining more Thompson knowledge, and thought the episode with Jeffrey Hunter as a Tank Commander featured M1's. Was fooled by the L sights and low resolution TV of the time. Won't happen again. Thanks to those who corrected me. I only remembered it was Jeffery Hunter because he was Kirk in the original Star Trek Pilot.
I also can clearly blame Frank, Tracie, and Tom, for not having published their books that long ago.

Edited by mnshooter
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Rick Jason did some short episode introduction videos for reruns when Combat was around it's 25th Anniversary.

He talked about being offered the Thompson first, but chose the M1 Carbine, because he didn't want to lug the heavy Thompson.

Morrow was soon bothered by the weight of the 28 (ok, 21), and the prop department made up the wood model.

According to Jason, Morrow used the wood model in many of the long shots: "See if you can spot it".

Jason was a real gun person; he said Morrow decidedly was not.

Jason also said he once invited Morrow to go skeet shooting; but, Morrow declined, saying it was "against his religion to shoot clay".

 

The only episode I'm aware of that clearly featured M1/M1A1's was the one with Jeffrey Hunter as a Tank Commander.

Don't recall the title; maybe Oldtrooper can name it.

"Lost Sheep, Lost Shepherd" ... I think he was carrying a M1928A1 ... I'll have to dig out the DVD's to check.

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mnshooter,

Check again. I believe Jeffrey Hunter used a 28 with a stamped rear sight, M1 style.

Jim C

Jim and Old Trooper are correct. The episode is "Lost Sheep, Lost Shepherd", and Jeffrey Hunter wields a 1928A1 model with a stamped rear sight. The same Thompson with the stamped rear sight is seen in another 1st Season episode, "The Walking Wounded". Saunders has his regular 1928A1 with the adjustable Lyman sight throughout the episode (I believe it is actually one of the Colt-made Stembridge guns), but uses the 1928A1 with the stamped rear sight halfway through the episode when he guns down some Germans from a barn loft pushing the ambulance out of the mud. I believe that gun was actually one of the MGM guns that Ron Kovar mentions. For the first four seasons Combat was filmed primarily on the MGM Studio Lots. A look at one of J. Curtis Earl's old advertisements shows the guns that came from MGM and one of them was a 1928A1 with a stamped rear sight. No M1 or M1A1 Thompsons ever made an appearance on Combat.

 

A few shots of one of the Stembridge Gun Rental Colt's with the faux compensator with the large opening for ease in getting at the restrictor for blank firing.

 

Saunders-1.jpg Saunders-2.jpg Saunders-3.jpg

 

Short clip from "The Walking Wounded" showing Saunders with 1928A1 with stamped "L" rear sight. The gun changes back and forth from a 1928A1 with a Lyman adjustable sight to a stamped L sight.

 

The Walking Wounded.jpg

 

Edited by gijive
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That was an interesting clip, haven't watched one in decades.

Makes me proud to me a Georgia boy :-)

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COMBAT ! Great TV show from the 1960's. Lots of Hollywood legends as guest stars. Robert Duvall, Tab Hunter, Charles Bronson, James Coburn.

As a boy was allowed to stay up late and watch it sometimes :-)

 

The BAR man usually carried a wood model except for scenes when actually firing it. The way the character Kirby tosses it around and carries it you can tell it ain't a 20 lb Browning Automatic Rifle !

 

Lots of different firearms too. Sometimes the " Krauts" were using G41s and G43 rifles. Do not recall ever seeing a MP44 however.

 

Some gun mistakes too. British soldiers armed with 03 Springfields for instance.

 

The converted Reisings were used in early episodes IIRC as props, never recall one actually being fired though.

 

Vic Morrow was an underappreciated actor, too bad his tragic death (along with 2 young children) cut his career short.

 

There was talk of a COMBAT ! movie remake. I hope not. Hollywood these days would make it so PC that you would puke.

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I thought the same thing . We were prob'ly brain-washed my our Mattel " Combat " M1s with the side cocking Rat-ta -tat-tat action .

:wub:

Chris

The start of my interest in Thompsons, Christmas 1962. Combat had just come out and I never missed an episode. Got the Mattel Tommy gun and some extra accoutrements for gifts. It was good time to be a kid.

 

Mike Hammer

Mike Dec 1962 retouch.jpg

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About the same year and time as Hammer spoke of,6-7 years old, begging parents to stay up later. I had one of those Mattel Tommies. I remember ( I think) it having a Cutts on the barrel, but having the cocking knob on the side. You pulled it back and pulled the trigger, it would rattle foward for a couple of seconds. I would lay in the living room floor in front of the t.v. that got all of 2 channels and help Sgt. Saunders shoot Germans. What a time to be a kid. Seemed like every dad on the block was a WW2 Vet.

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About the same year and time as Hammer spoke of,6-7 years old, begging parents to stay up later. I had one of those Mattel Tommies. I remember ( I think) it having a Cutts on the barrel, but having the cocking knob on the side. You pulled it back and pulled the trigger, it would rattle foward for a couple of seconds. I would lay in the living room floor in front of the t.v. that got all of 2 channels and help Sgt. Saunders shoot Germans. What a time to be a kid. Seemed like every dad on the block was a WW2 Vet.

And if you remember you could shoot roll caps with it, inserted from where the fake magazine was. I can't tell you how many boxes of caps I went through but I recall looking at that toy gun years later and the inside where the caps went off was corroded severely from the powder bursts reacting with the pot metal. Here's a website that might bring back a few memories for you other kids from the 60's.

 

http://www.60smemories.com/mattel-toy-machine-gun.html

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Rick Jason did some short episode introduction videos for reruns when Combat was around it's 25th Anniversary.

He talked about being offered the Thompson first, but chose the M1 Carbine, because he didn't want to lug the heavy Thompson.

Morrow was soon bothered by the weight of the 28 (ok, 21), and the prop department made up the wood model.

According to Jason, Morrow used the wood model in many of the long shots: "See if you can spot it".

Jason was a real gun person; he said Morrow decidedly was not.

Jason also said he once invited Morrow to go skeet shooting; but, Morrow declined, saying it was "against his religion to shoot clay".

 

The only episode I'm aware of that clearly featured M1/M1A1's was the one with Jeffrey Hunter as a Tank Commander.

Don't recall the title; maybe Oldtrooper can name it.

 

I was told by a gentleman that worked on the set was that the wood gun was an attempt to reduce the amount of cleaning required and prevent the jamming do to the gun being thrown into the dirt on some shots. Sometimes 4 or 5 cleaning per take with some of the directors and actors wanting it a certain way. Also when the gun went into water, that was another problem. The wood gun was tried, but it floated, it was weighted, but floating was still not natural.

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Vic also didn't like wearing a real steel pot helmet because of the weight, ( I don't blame him, they are heavy) so they made him a fiberglass one to use for the rest of the series. Jason was a cool dude, I still find it hard to believe that he took his own life, but then he may have had his reasons, who knows. After the series ended, Jason gave his M1 carbine to comedian Charlie Callas, don't know what happened to it since. Not too many of the original cast still with us. Possibly, Jack Hogan, (BAR man) and Conlan Carter, (Doc). Great series, obviously didn't have the big production values and budget like today's series, it relied on the stories and the actors themselves.

 

MH

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That's funny. I did the same thing, helped Saunders kill the Germans!
"Combat!" and "The Untouchables" got my Thompson interest going.

About the same year and time as Hammer spoke of,6-7 years old, begging parents to stay up later. I had one of those Mattel Tommies. I remember ( I think) it having a Cutts on the barrel, but having the cocking knob on the side. You pulled it back and pulled the trigger, it would rattle foward for a couple of seconds. I would lay in the living room floor in front of the t.v. that got all of 2 channels and help Sgt. Saunders shoot Germans. What a time to be a kid. Seemed like every dad on the block was a WW2 Vet.

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  • 3 weeks later...

It was a good time to be a kid,And i think any kid who's parents could afford a Thompson bought one for their son.along with a fanner and the Dick Tracy detective rig. And what kid on the block did not have the wood and metal bolt action 1903, And the pirate musket in wood and metal and the fencing sword set.Zorro. it was Good times.

 

Now we have the Memory.RON K.

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