arpella72 Posted December 4, 2013 Share Posted December 4, 2013 Few days ago I watched again the movie Kelly's Heroes that I haven't watched for ages.It's a good and funny movie with some remarkable combat scenes.I didn't remember that the shermans used in the movie were genuine shermans and not M-48 or other post-WWII tanks that appear in many other war movies.After some research I found that the movie was filmed in former Yugoslavia and the tanks belonged to the Yugoslavian Army.Were they from the Lend & Lease program?.As far I'm concern they were M4A3 models upgunned with a 76mm gun.Anybody has more information about it? The Tigers,in the other hand,were T-34 in disguise but they made a very good job. P.S: I know where the "that's my other dog imitation" comes from. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lt Belenko Posted December 4, 2013 Share Posted December 4, 2013 They are Shermans. The scene where Oddball says they put pipe on the barrel to make it appear they were 90mm guns. He just said that to hide the fact that by the time the movie was made many old shermans were fitted 90s. The old Avalon Hill Arab Israeli Wars game had Shermans with 90's as game counters. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Los Posted December 4, 2013 Share Posted December 4, 2013 Speaking of Tank movies, Here's an early forties movie called "The Tanks are Coming" (1941). While it has all the hallmarks of your typical cheesy movie there are many tank scenes, and many tanks (mostly Stuarts) training etc. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1GkSAJ_zr8 Then there's another "The Tanks Are Coming" (1951) a full length movie about a tank bn from the 3rd Armored Div fighting in Normandy around ST Lo. Another, in some way cheesy war movie of the time, but lots a Shermans, crew interaction, tanks in assembly areas, advancing to contact. There are some good tank battles. They used modified US tanks to look like Panthers. .its a movie about tanks in combat and there are not too many of them out there. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEclRhE4eDU 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjkerner Posted December 4, 2013 Share Posted December 4, 2013 Los, I thought I'd seen every WWII movie ever made when I was a kid, but I never saw The Tanks Are Coming. Thanks for the link. At about 9:00 minutes, two CMBN truths are verified: Tanks spot infantry first; and (when I'm playing them anyway) German anti-tank troops can't hit the broadside of a barn or a Sherman! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arpella72 Posted December 4, 2013 Author Share Posted December 4, 2013 Looks like the Israelis didn´t use the sherman with a 90mm gun.They used upgraded versions with French guns,one with a 75mm gun,the M-50,and another with a 105mm gun,the M-51.Out of Israel they are usually known as Supershermans. The tanks in Kelly's don't look to be the ones with the 90mm gun if I'm not mistaked. What's more,I found this in Wikipedia: The 90 mm gun developed by U.S. Ordnance could not be easily installed on the M4, but was installed on the open turreted M36 tank destroyer, and was the main gun for the T26 tank project (which eventually became the M26 Pershing). An attempt to upgrade the M4 Sherman by installing the 90 mm T26 turret on a M4A3 hull in April 1944 was halted after realizing it could not go into production sooner than the T26 and would likely delay T26 development. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Los Posted December 4, 2013 Share Posted December 4, 2013 Yeah as soon as I heard about this film (dont remember where) I had to find it, luckily it was on ebay in VHS. Now its on you tube. Its actually not a bad flick. Switching tracks I found another good war movie I had not heard of previously and had to order it from obscure corners: Retreat Hell!(1952) I found a Spanish release of it on eBay (Paralelo 38). Black & White, It has a sort of Sands of Iwo Jima vibe about it, in that it mixes lots of real combat footage with well shot acted scenes and they go well together. Typical Marine flag waving stuff but lots of good combat scenes.It follows a Marine Rifle battalion from Inchon through to Chosin. Could only find a small part (the last 3 minutes!) on you tube: 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slysniper Posted December 4, 2013 Share Posted December 4, 2013 Los, I thought I'd seen every WWII movie ever made when I was a kid, but I never saw The Tanks Are Coming. Thanks for the link. At about 9:00 minutes, two CMBN truths are verified: Tanks spot infantry first; and (when I'm playing them anyway) German anti-tank troops can't hit the broadside of a barn or a Sherman! Yes, same here. Watching it now, Its like finding a lost relic 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjkerner Posted December 4, 2013 Share Posted December 4, 2013 Switching tracks I found another good war movie I had not heard of previously and had to order it from obscure corners: Retreat Hell!(1952) I found a Spanish release of it on eBay (Paralelo 38). Black & White, It has a sort of Sands of Iwo Jima vibe about it, in that it mixes lots of real combat footage with well shot acted scenes and they go well together. Typical Marine flag waving stuff but lots of good combat scenes.It follows a Marine Rifle battalion from Inchon through to Chosin. Could only find a small part (the last 3 minutes!) on you tube: That one I do remember seeing in the theater when it came out, and on TV later ('70s maybe?). IRRC, it has a scene where a Marine is lying in the snow and then gets stitched across the back by a ChiCom mg. That has stuck in my head for 50+ years, for some reason. Pretty good action scenes overall as I recall, and I think it may be the movie footage used a lot in the relatively recent documentary "Chosin". Edit: Just watched the youtube scene...yep, Frank Lovejoy...it's the one I remember. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Emrys Posted December 4, 2013 Share Posted December 4, 2013 The old Avalon Hill Arab Israeli Wars game had Shermans with 90's as game counters. You sure about that? I haven't looked at my copy of the game in a long, long time, but the Israelis upgunned their Shermans with 105mm guns and I think the counters reflect that. Michael 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pak40 Posted December 5, 2013 Share Posted December 5, 2013 Few days ago I watched again the movie Kelly's Heroes Were they from the Lend & Lease program?.As far I'm concern they were M4A3 models upgunned with a 76mm gun.Anybody has more information about it? I don't think they were Lend Lease. Probably they were sold to Yugo after WWII or Korean or whenever the U.S. took the Shermans out of their OOB. I know some U.S. AFVs have been used by several other nations throughout the years after the war. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kanonier Reichmann Posted December 5, 2013 Share Posted December 5, 2013 I would have thought it unusual to say the least for a communist country like Yugoslavia was after the war to purchase western tanks when they were very much under Soviet bloc influence. Wouldn't there have been heaps of T34's available from the good ol' USSR? Regards KR 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gubu Posted December 5, 2013 Share Posted December 5, 2013 I would have thought it unusual to say the least for a communist country like Yugoslavia was after the war to purchase western tanks when they were very much under Soviet bloc influence. Wouldn't there have been heaps of T34's available from the good ol' USSR? Regards KR Tito remained outside the soviet union's influence due to political differences and because of his army's success against the Germans. He then availed of allied aid while remaining independent. Tito to Stalin - "Stop sending people to kill me. We've already captured five of them, one of them with a bomb and another with a rifle. If you don't stop sending killers, I'll send one to Moscow, and I won't have to send a second." 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Emrys Posted December 5, 2013 Share Posted December 5, 2013 I would have thought it unusual to say the least for a communist country like Yugoslavia was after the war to purchase western tanks when they were very much under Soviet bloc influence. Wouldn't there have been heaps of T34's available from the good ol' USSR? There would have been and Tito received some. But he might have received some leftover Lend-Lease Shermans after the war from the same source. The Soviets would have been interested in divesting themselves of non-Soviet equipment as soon as they could do without it and may have made a good offer to the Yugoslavs. One clue would be if they were diesel powered. Michael 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fenris Posted December 5, 2013 Share Posted December 5, 2013 From the little I know Tito did manage to walk a line between the two blocks. The then Yugoslavian airforce also used a mix of western allied and soviet aircraft for a while post war. There's a P-47, P-80 and F-86 as well as a Yak-3 and an IL-2 at the aero museum in Belgrade all sporting their colours (not including the Bf109G2, the Spit5 and the Hurricane which got left there during the war IIRC). -F 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaeger Jonzo Posted December 5, 2013 Share Posted December 5, 2013 do any of you grogs know the name of the movie made to commemorate the paras/ re-enact the battle at Arnhem? I used to have it on vhs but lost it over time and house moves. They used real Panthers and other German AFV's and I think filmed over the real terrain/urban area of Arnhem. It was pretty good from what I remember, showing Paras assaulting buildings, dodging the panzers etc and I would like to see it again. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomm Posted December 5, 2013 Share Posted December 5, 2013 do any of you grogs know the name of the movie made to commemorate the paras/ re-enact the battle at Arnhem? I used to have it on vhs but lost it over time and house moves. They used real Panthers and other German AFV's and I think filmed over the real terrain/urban area of Arnhem. It was pretty good from what I remember, showing Paras assaulting buildings, dodging the panzers etc and I would like to see it again. I am not a grog, but I am quite certain that you are looking for "Theirs is the Glory". It should be downloadable as a .mp4 file somewhere on the internet. Best regards, Thomm 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seedorf81 Posted December 5, 2013 Share Posted December 5, 2013 Few days ago I watched again the movie Kelly's Heroes that I haven't watched for ages.It's a good and funny movie with some remarkable combat scenes.I didn't remember that the shermans used in the movie were genuine shermans and not M-48 or other post-WWII tanks that appear in many other war movies.After some research I found that the movie was filmed in former Yugoslavia and the tanks belonged to the Yugoslavian Army.Were they from the Lend & Lease program?.As far I'm concern they were M4A3 models upgunned with a 76mm gun.Anybody has more information about it? (..) From the magnificent Dutch site www.strijdbewijs.nl (partially translated in English, they're busy with the rest, I believe): The tanks in the movie, provided by the Yugoslav army, are a little odd. In the 1950's 630 Sherman M4's, recovery tanks included, were delivered to the Yugoslav Army. All of them were M4A3-E4 76 mm's with M34A1 (sic) turrets meant for the 75mm gun, but adapted to house the 76mm. (My translation from the Dutch article.) 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fenris Posted December 5, 2013 Share Posted December 5, 2013 do any of you grogs know the name of the movie made to commemorate the paras/ re-enact the battle at Arnhem? I used to have it on vhs but lost it over time and house moves. They used real Panthers and other German AFV's and I think filmed over the real terrain/urban area of Arnhem. It was pretty good from what I remember, showing Paras assaulting buildings, dodging the panzers etc and I would like to see it again. https://archive.org/details/TheirsIsTheGlory1946Wwii Download link on left side of page. Think I've seen it on youtube as well. -F 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lt Belenko Posted December 5, 2013 Share Posted December 5, 2013 You sure about that? I haven't looked at my copy of the game in a long, long time, but the Israelis upgunned their Shermans with 105mm guns and I think the counters reflect that. Michael Nope not sure at all. I haven't looked at mine since 1981 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kettler Posted December 6, 2013 Share Posted December 6, 2013 The Tanks Are Coming (1951) not only has lots Shermans in just about every condition, but part of the story line is one tanker who's personally promised the first Pershing. Prepare to lose your mind over all the depicted 3rd AD AFV and other goodness (Stuarts, M32, Priests, Sherman Flail, M4 Gun Tractors, halftracks, jeeps, ambulance jeeps, Panthers made from interesting chasses, etc.) ! Of course, the tankers are all ridiculously old, save for the kid who desperately wants to drive a tank. Watching the movie now--with War Movie Lighting! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEclRhE4eDU Regards, John Kettler 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arpella72 Posted December 6, 2013 Author Share Posted December 6, 2013 From the magnificent Dutch site www.strijdbewijs.nl (partially translated in English, they're busy with the rest, I believe): The tanks in the movie, provided by the Yugoslav army, are a little odd. In the 1950's 630 Sherman M4's, recovery tanks included, were delivered to the Yugoslav Army. All of them were M4A3-E4 76 mm's with M34A1 (sic) turrets meant for the 75mm gun, but adapted to house the 76mm. (My translation from the Dutch article.) Thanks very much for the information.Didn't know that Yugoslavia received weapons from the West. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seedorf81 Posted December 6, 2013 Share Posted December 6, 2013 Well, I bet they paid for 'm, one way or the other. But anyone who was against "the Commies" in those days was a big friend of the USA. The US Army realized that if the Eastern Block forces would attack Western Europe, they needed all the time they could get to mobilize and get enough troops and equipment across the Atlantic ocean to stop 'm. Therefore they made Tito (a "socialist dictator", if that is a possible qualification) an ally so that he, and his with nice Shermans equipped Army, could be used as a delaying force. Tito on the other hand knew that his chances of keeping his independent state Yugoslavia would be greater if he had the USA as a friend. The threat of an Russian invasion, followed by annexation, hung over his head for years. It has always been the same throughout history: my enemy's enemy is my friend. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaeger Jonzo Posted December 6, 2013 Share Posted December 6, 2013 I am not a grog, but I am quite certain that you are looking for "Theirs is the Glory". It should be downloadable as a .mp4 file somewhere on the internet. Best regards, Thomm Thank you very much Thomm, I found it on YouTube and thoroughly enjoyed watching it again after all these years. A powerful stirring story. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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