Search found 51 matches

by Orville H. Larson
Tue Mar 18, 2008 6:21 am
Forum: Movies, Films, Documentaries and Games
Topic: Kormoran
Replies: 13
Views: 6571

Now that KORMORAN and SYDNEY have been found. . . .

As you know, the wrecks of SYDNEY and KORMORAN have been found, some 10-14 nautical miles apart, and at depths of 8,100 feet and 8,400 feet, respectively.

Let's hope that the Australian government releases whatever it has in its archives about this battle.
by Orville H. Larson
Mon Jan 28, 2008 7:48 am
Forum: Naval History (1922-1945)
Topic: Discovery of WW2 sub USS LAGARTO (SS-371)
Replies: 0
Views: 1818

Discovery of WW2 sub USS LAGARTO (SS-371)

On May 3, 1945, USS LAGARTO (Commander Frank D. Latta, USN) was sunk while attacking a Japanese convoy in the Gulf of Thailand. Sixty years later, in May 2005, a British diver discovered her wreck. Here are two articles pertaining to LAGARTO's sinking and discovery: http://www.thaiwreckdiver.com/uss...
by Orville H. Larson
Mon Jan 14, 2008 12:27 pm
Forum: Movies, Films, Documentaries and Games
Topic: Portrayal of Vice Admiral Holland, RN in a new movie
Replies: 7
Views: 4186

Portrayal of Vice Admiral Holland, RN in a new movie

If a new BISMARCK movie is ever made, how should Vice Admiral Holland, RN be portrayed? There's a bit of a problem with Holland: Neither he nor any of HOOD's officers survived, so we have no after-action reports, no letters, no interviews, no memoirs in later life by the men involved. It's comparati...
by Orville H. Larson
Mon Aug 27, 2007 8:04 am
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: Search for WW2 sub USS GRUNION (SS-216)
Replies: 1
Views: 1929

Search for WW2 sub USS GRUNION (SS-216)

On or about July 30, 1942, the submarine USS GRUNION
(Lieutenant Commander Mannert L. Abele, USN) disappeared during her patrol in the Aleutians.

Now, GRUNION may have been located. Go to http://www.csp.navy.mil/ww2boats/grunion.htm for further
information.
by Orville H. Larson
Thu Aug 09, 2007 10:08 am
Forum: World War II
Topic: Colonel Stauffenberg and Tom Cruise´s movie
Replies: 56
Views: 18593

Thanks, Karl, for this interesting site on the Tiger tank. The men mentioned here were tough, up-and-at-'em types indeed. From Franz Staudegger with his 35 tank kills to Kurt Knispel with his 168 (!), these men knew how to handle tanks in battle. (I'm glad I wasn't in a Sherman or a Churchill that h...
by Orville H. Larson
Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:41 am
Forum: World War II
Topic: Colonel Stauffenberg and Tom Cruise´s movie
Replies: 56
Views: 18593

So near, and yet so far. . . . After Stauffenberg placed his briefcase as close to Hitler as possible, he left the room (which raised some eyebrows; not even a Field Marshal would leave the room while Hitler was present). Unfortunately, a Colonel Brandt pushed the briefcase under the heavy oak table...
by Orville H. Larson
Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:16 am
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: Imperial Russian Navy VARJAG
Replies: 1
Views: 2137

Interesting item about this Russian vessel. Is BISMARCK in danger of being "cannibalized," so to speak? If I'm not mistaken, she's at a depth of 15,500 feet, so it's not as if scuba divers will be going down to her (as they have to the Italian liner ANDREA DORIA, which lies at a depth of a...
by Orville H. Larson
Wed Jun 13, 2007 9:58 am
Forum: Military History and Technology
Topic: World best soldiers ever
Replies: 120
Views: 84479

I notice that in all this discussion so far the WW2 Japanese have not been mentioned. One thing that does stand out from Allied, particulary British and Australian squaddie assessments of enemy forces, were that the Japanese were not only the most ruthless but also the bravest foe, feared far more ...
by Orville H. Larson
Wed Jun 13, 2007 9:47 am
Forum: Military History and Technology
Topic: World best soldiers ever
Replies: 120
Views: 84479

About Operation Barbarossa, it seems everyone knew about it beforehand except the Russians! The British knew about it, and the Russians should have. One of the greatest spies of WW2--Richard Sorge, the Russian agent who operated in Tokyo as a German journalist--told the Russians months (!) before th...
by Orville H. Larson
Wed Jun 13, 2007 8:23 am
Forum: World War II
Topic: WW2 movies theme music
Replies: 0
Views: 2538

WW2 movies theme music

Go to http://www.victoryatseaonline.com , and look for the World War Two movie index page. You can listen to the theme music of a number of movies--"Patton," "The Great Escape," "633 Squadron," "Midway," "Battle of Britain" et al.

Enjoy!
by Orville H. Larson
Tue Jun 05, 2007 7:42 am
Forum: Military History and Technology
Topic: World best soldiers ever
Replies: 120
Views: 84479

Was it an intelligence failure? Maybe--and maybe not. Divining the enemy's intentions isn't an exact science. You've got to take a mass of disparate information and try to make sense of it. And, of course, if the enemy isn't giving you much--if he's maintaining tight security, or if he's feeding you...
by Orville H. Larson
Sun Jun 03, 2007 9:26 am
Forum: Military History and Technology
Topic: World best soldiers ever
Replies: 120
Views: 84479

Orville, Was it not the case that the 106th was an entirely new and untrained outfit, placed in the Ardennes precisely because it was the quietest part of the front and where there would be no trouble - exactly as Gamelin had thought in 1940? That's right, RF. The 106th Infantry Division had reliev...
by Orville H. Larson
Tue May 29, 2007 9:15 am
Forum: Movies, Films, Documentaries and Games
Topic: Best war movie ever?
Replies: 132
Views: 72294

My favorite "war" movies both have an antiwar premise: "All Quiet on the Western Front" (1930) "Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb" (1964) "All Quiet on the Western Front" (made only 12 years after WW1) portrays war as exactly...
by Orville H. Larson
Tue May 22, 2007 10:08 am
Forum: Bismarck General Discussion
Topic: Rodney chase salvo
Replies: 15
Views: 7476

Well, it wasn't necessary for RODNEY to "chase salvos"--the threat from BISMARCK didn't last that long. The British battlewagons cut loose at 0847. BISMARCK replied. The British didn't obtain a hit until 0902, when one of RODNEY's shells hit BISMARCK forward. BISMARCK's third salvo straddl...
by Orville H. Larson
Fri May 18, 2007 8:58 pm
Forum: Military History and Technology
Topic: World best soldiers ever
Replies: 120
Views: 84479

Orville: Maybe the Roman legions were the world's best infantry. Their iron discipline and harsh training made them virtually unbeatable (and they were rarely defeated, if I'm not mistaken). American infantry in WW2 was of uneven quality. Our mass army had to be assembled quickly, and the qualilty ...