"Short History of Little Green Army Men" Topic

"Little green army men evolved from the metal and lead toy soldiers of previous generations and have been manufactured of molded plastic since the 1930s."

From The Strong National Museum of Play

link

I think everyone on this page has a fondness for "little green army men". I do. Some of my happiest memories are getting them for Christmas and my birthday, giant battles in the dirt patch under the giant oak tree in our front yard. I smile a nostalgic grin just thinking about it.

One of my favorite mini's games is the game I wrote, and self-published, back in 1998, for Army Men figures. It uses CRT's, not balls, nor clumps of dirt.

I still play it, whenever I can. It is a blast! Our last big game was several years ago, but it was on a raised table, 12 feet wide by 30 feet long, with access up the middle. We played the scenario out over a weekend. In the end, the invading Green's eked out a pyrrhic victory over the defending Tan's. It was epic; it was also a childhood dream come true, for me. Cheers!

One mystery to me has always been: when the "standard" design for "US Army Men" changed back in the Vietnam era, to show them firing the M16 rifle (or stabbing overhead with the bayonet!) the machine-gunner was shown with this strange weapon unlike anything the US Army ever had in its inventory – a semi-circular magazine on top like a Bren gun, with long bipod legs nearer the gun's midpoint rather than the muzzle. What in the world was that weapon supposed to be, and what possessed the figure sculptor to depict it?

Army Men RTS

YouTube link

Armand