R. Lee Ermey is gone

TRocket

Line Up and Wait
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Nov 10, 2014
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Uncle Jesse
For those of you who remember Gunnery Sergeant Hartman from Full Metal Jacket (and plenty of stuff since). Today is a sad day, the guy was a great American (and all around badass). He will be missed.
 
Sad to hear. Saw him one time at the Reading WW2 airshow once. He did a lot for recruiting.
 
His videos I'll miss. God's speed, enjoy your reward.
 
Here is a bit of humor to lighten the mood: back in the day, at OCS at Newport Rhode Island, the senior class marches around the “indocs”. We do not have Marine drill Instructors and at that point are exactly 8 weeks out of college. So you fall back on every single drill instructor portrayal you have ever seen in movies to develop your style. This was before Ermey created the apotheosis of DIs in FMJ. I can only imagine how much better we would have been, had we had him as an example.
 
Here is a bit of humor to lighten the mood: back in the day, at OCS at Newport Rhode Island, the senior class marches around the “indocs”. We do not have Marine drill Instructors and at that point are exactly 8 weeks out of college. So you fall back on every single drill instructor portrayal you have ever seen in movies to develop your style. This was before Ermey created the apotheosis of DIs in FMJ. I can only imagine how much better we would have been, had we had him as an example.
Ermey had it down, because he lived it. I didn’t realize until today that he actually was a USMC DI during Vietnam.

Along the lines of your example, I remember when I was a ‘Midshipmen Training Officer’ responsible for running the INDOC of new freshmen at the maritime academy. We stayed up the night before INDOC started watching the first half of FMJ to help get into character.

He’ll be missed.
 
Loved his portrayal in FMJ. Liked his tv show Mail Call, too. Definitely one of a kind.



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What the hell? they couldn't cure that?

In a statement posted on Twitter, Bill Rogin said Ermey had died due to complications from pneumonia
 
What the hell? they couldn't cure that?

In a statement posted on Twitter, Bill Rogin said Ermey had died due to complications from pneumonia

Pneumonia kills a lot of seniors every year, even in hospitals. Make sure you don't catch it.

RIP gunny.
 
So you fall back on every single drill instructor portrayal you have ever seen in movies to develop your style. This was before Ermey created the apotheosis of DIs in FMJ. I can only imagine how much better we would have been, had we had him as an example.

We had some prior enlisteds who were pretty damned good at calling Jodies when we were marching. None of them can be repeated here ;-)

I remember when I was a ‘Midshipmen Training Officer’ responsible for running the INDOC of new freshmen at the maritime academy. We stayed up the night before INDOC started watching the first half of FMJ to help get into character.

Yeah, the two weeks between when the seniors left and the new indocs arrived was fun, we came up with all kinds of crap to unleash on the unsuspecting new indocs. If we could get the officers to crack up we knew we were doing a good job.

Yeah, February on the shores of the Narragansett, fun times.
 
The pneumonia kinda surprised me too, seems like a dumb thing for a 74 to die of. Then again, Jim Henson died from the same thing.
 
My son is a a Marine, and some years back I was with him and some other Marines at a rooftop party at the NC shore. They were young, and they were relaxing "hard'! So, they had Full Metal Jacket on the TV, and every now and then they'd rewind it, and chant the Gunny's opening monologue in unison with him - make a mistake, shotgun a beer, if I recall right. . to this day I can just about recite that speech perfectly.

it was a good night, and I've had a soft spot for the Gunny ever since. . .
 
Folks younger than 74 here are dying from the new flu and pneumonia.

Both hospitals are full to the brim right now.
 
They say that once you've had pneumonia, you'll always have it. As a baby, I almost died from it having to spend quite a few days in an oxygen tent. It's probably how I'll go if the man upstairs allows me to go "naturally."
 
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