BAAAAAAAD Reenactment...stories/pics please

[ukali1066]

There's a lot of reenactors out there who do a sterling job and really capture the period look and correct equipment etc...

And there's those that don't...

German Fallschirmjager [ Paratroopers ] some of the fittest, toughest and most respected combatants in WW2...

 

[Widebrim]

Well, maybe he's re-enacting a paratrooper who was drafted in early '45, as part of a last-ditch push...lol

 

[ukali1066]

Hahaha not even Goering was that well fed....

 

[Smithy]

I'm with you there Ukali. I must admit that I find it a bit ridiculous when you have these chaps reenacting frontline troops (and by that I mean not Home Guard, Volkssturm, etc) and they are either hugely oversize or hugely overage.

That's not the best of looks.

 

[ukali1066]

It's a thing that really gets my goat...and I find it quite insulting to the real veterans...I was at Beltring this year and some of the reenactors there were embarrassing to say the least...

My good friend Tony is an English civil war reenactor and is SO strict, especially on himself...as he's now in his fifties he's stopped portaying pikemen/musketeers and frontline soldiers....he only goes for roles that suit his age, clergy etc...

Seeing where you fit in is something a lot of these guys need to do....and if you don't fit anywhere....don't bother

 

[reetpleat]

Well, I am a bit more tolerant of age and physical appearance. You can't change that and if you want to be pilot or a paratrooper or a 101st infantryman, go for it.

As for getting the clothing right, well, i am a little pickier, as well as probably would look down my nose a little at the encampment with coolers of beer.

But if they are trying, I give them respect.

But age race, size and weight they can't do much about, so I cut them a little slack.

I bet that guy would have rather played Goering if they would have let him.

 

[ukali1066]

Let's put it in perspective...if you were a casting agent you wouldn't hire Donald Sutherland to play a 20 year old romantic lead...

 

[DutchIndo]

Re-enactors always look too heavy and soft. If I was to cast Paratroopers they would all be Cross Country runners. The real Troopers I've met were all 5'10 and under. Just last week I met a 82nd 505th man he was all of 5'9 140-150 lbs. He told me he made the Sicily, Normandy jumps but missed Holland. Soldiers were stressed out, jumpy and went some days without food.

 

[Drew B]

Let's put it in perspective...if you were a casting agent you wouldn't hire Donald Sutherland to play a 20 year old romantic lead...

lol :eusa_clap

 

[KilroyCD]

I'm kind of like "Sgt Schultz" in the first post...

I'll admit that I'm far too overweight to even consider portraying a front line troop. For over ten years my WWII impression was homefront - an Air Raid Warden mostly. All the while I had been harbouring a desire to do a military, and specifically RAF impression. But I felt I could not do an accurate portayal due to my size.
That all changed one day while I was looking through a book on RAF Biggin Hill. I found a photo that showed many of the ground echelon staff posing for a group photo in front of a building, and right in the center were two of me. There were two "ground wallahs" (both officers) who were built very much like me (let's just say "well fed"). So I decided to go ahead and put together my RAF impression, which in the group I belong to (Airman's Preservation Society) is an RAF Liaison Officer. My character was an Observer (Air Gunner) in WWI who stayed on in the service, and in the second unpleasantness "flies a desk" as a Liaison Officer to a USAAF Bomb Group.
It's a neat role, as I get to help with the pilot's briefings (amongst other things) and I'm happy to be able to do it. But I'm not about to go play "Walter Mitty"...

 

[ukali1066]

See ..that's great...you researched where you'd "fit" and went with it...there should be more like you Sir...

 

[cco23i]

This is why I started a ground crew unit, heck we are all getting older and slightly heavier so why not do a little known and under apreciated impression like Army air force ground crew. (And of course I've been one for 26 years in the Air force).

Scott

 

[ukali1066]

Like Clint said...A man's gotta know his limitations

I often think I'd make a decent German U boat Officer, nothing much else would work for WW2 with a full beard...[ Chindits or LRDG too ]
I'm thin and pasty enough but maybe a little old at 35 ?

But without a 1/1 scale U boat it'd all be pretty damn lame

 

[cmjordan77]

Reply

Hey,

Thats the KRAUT off Hogan's Heros.

He looks like he dropped a few LB's lol

 

[Atterbury Dodd]

Big fat men with beer and coolers--oh no here they comelol lol lol

I guess we Civil War reenactors are not the only ones haunted by this problem. I feel for ya!

I vividly remember taking part in the capture of a FAT Yankee in the middle of the night after they made a raid on us--how do they eat so well? He very much resembled the figure above. The worst thing--we had to feed him.

 

[Smithy]

I'll admit that I'm far too overweight to even consider portraying a front line troop. For over ten years my WWII impression was homefront - an Air Raid Warden mostly. All the while I had been harbouring a desire to do a military, and specifically RAF impression. But I felt I could not do an accurate portayal due to my size.
That all changed one day while I was looking through a book on RAF Biggin Hill. I found a photo that showed many of the ground echelon staff posing for a group photo in front of a building, and right in the center were two of me. There were two "ground wallahs" (both officers) who were built very much like me (let's just say "well fed"). So I decided to go ahead and put together my RAF impression, which in the group I belong to (Airman's Preservation Society) is an RAF Liaison Officer. My character was an Observer (Air Gunner) in WWI who stayed on in the service, and in the second unpleasantness "flies a desk" as a Liaison Officer to a USAAF Bomb Group.
It's a neat role, as I get to help with the pilot's briefings (amongst other things) and I'm happy to be able to do it. But I'm not about to go play "Walter Mitty"...

Good job Kilroy :eusa_clap

 

[Cobden]

Like Clint said...A man's gotta know his limitations

I often think I'd make a decent German U boat Officer, nothing much else would work for WW2 with a full beard...[ Chindits or LRDG too ]
I'm thin and pasty enough but maybe a little old at 35 ?

But without a 1/1 scale U boat it'd all be pretty damn lame

If you fancy doing Chindit (who very definately wore beards), let me know - I'm a member of a chindit group lol (35 most certain;y isn't too old...the unit we portray was made more or less exclusively up of pre-war regulars. The cut off age for Chindits was 40, though we do ignore that as long as it's not OTT)

The other option is Royal Navy, who were permitted full beards (or nothing)

That said, there was a group portraying a U boat crew at an event this year - they did indeed have a 1:1 scale u-boat...(okay, just the conning tower!)

 

[alden405]

maybe he is meat on the hoof for a company of FJ?

 

[KilroyCD]

Ukali1066 and Smithy, thanks much for your kind words. I don't begrudge other overweight reenactors portraying front line troops, as not everyone is blessed with a trim frame. I just would not have felt right portraying one.
It even took me a while to convince myself after seeing the photo (below). I will say that in my post above I did not quite remember the photo correctly. I remembered both chaps as standing in the middle, but they are in fact second and fifth from right in the rear row. The chap who is second from right appears to have a tunic that has grown a bit too tight for him, the material appears to be pulled tight at the buttons.

Ukali1066, I think either the Chindit or Kreigsmarine role would be work well for you. I'm sure if fellow member Prien runs across this thread he'll give good advice regarding the U-Boat officer role.

 

[Smithy]

Aha Kilroy! I see your photo is from "Biggin on the Bump"

Very good book, by coincidence I was thumbing through my copy today.