The 1980s, Hollywood and the Rambo-ization of American Youth: The A-Team

This one's a little different because it wasn't a film but a television programme. I'm sure most Americans and probably many who aren't, who were around in the early to mid 1980s would remember "The A-Team." For those who don't, "The A-Team" was about a crack military unit who served in Vietnam and were sentenced to ten years in a military prison for a crime they didn't commit. They promptly escaped and made a living as soldiers of fortune.

In each episode, they go around righting any perceived wrong brought to them by the victim. I remember in the first series, they did such things as rescue a rich man's daughter from a nut case religious cult, bust one of the team's friends out of prison while at the same time exposing the warden's illegal fight programme and help some down trodden workers form a union. In each episode there was a lot of bullets flying but rarely did anyone get hit and of course, The A-Team would win the day.

What I liked and what many people agreed made the show so successful was the characters. There was the leader of the team, John 'Hannibal' Smith played by George Peppard. In every epidsode, you could count on him saying the line, "I love it when a plan comes together." Then there was Templeton Peck, played by Dirk Benedict. He had the looks and charm to get anything for the team. Arguably the favourite of many fans was B.A. Barracus played my Mr. T. He was all muscle and power and that was what the group sometimes needed. However, my favourite character was the crazy HM Murdoch played by Dwight Schultz. When I tuned in each week, I couldn't wait to see what crazy caper he was going to get up to in that episode. He made me laugh each week. Some of my favourites are Captain Cab, the Range Rider and Bogie the Bear but the best was when we was in the prison psych unit screaming "Trash bag!" every few minutes.

Now some might be asking how did this film Rambo-ize youth? After all, some of their victories were actually on behalf of caused that might be considered left wing, like the formation of a union. Well, back in 1983, a tv review stated that the reason why the programme was so successful was because at the time, America was looking for heroes. The A-Team provided that. No matter how left or right the cause, the A-Team would solve the problem through tactics, stealth and above all, superior firepower. The show gave many young Americans the impression that problems could be solved by the use of a firearm, even if no one actually got killed and this is why Hollywood used the TV show in their quest to Rambo-ize the youth.

The 1980s, Hollywood and the Rambo-ization of American Youth: First Blood

It could be said that this was the first actual film to Rambo-ize American youth. After all, the main character played by Sylvester Stallone is named John Rambo. "First Blood" would begin a quadrilogy of films featuring war hero John Rambo. Three of these films would be in the 1980s while the fourth would come out twenty years later. For now though, let us content ourselves with the first one.

"First Blood" is about decorated Vietnam war hero John Rambo, now a down on his luck drifter, who has had a tough time in the civilian world. After trying to visit an old army buddy who he learns has died from cancer due to Agent Orange, Rambo drifts to the next town. There he runs foul of the town's sheriff who doesn't want drifters like Rambo in his town.

Rambo is arrested and 'cleaned up' by a couple of the sheriff's deputies who rough him up while in custody. The maltreatment results in Rambo having flashbacks to when he was a prisoner of war. He snaps, beating up the deputies and making his escape. The local police chase him but he gets them using a series of guerrilla tactics. When the police fail to catch him, the national guard is called in. In the mean time, Rambo's former CO is brought in to try to convince Rambo to surrender. However, things erupt into a minor war and the CO is only able to convince Rambo to give himself up at the end after he inflicts a lot of damage on people and the town, some great explosions by the way.

I could sympathize with John Rambo straight away, as I was serving in the military at the time the film came out. His speech at the end of how he went to war, did everything to win but wasn't allowed to win and then came home to indifference and even scorn was heart wrenching for me. This was the first film I saw that actually tried to show some sympathy to those who served in Vietnam. My reaction was that it was about time the country did and I feel that if America apologized every day until the last Vietnam Veteran passed away, it might just be enough to address the damage done to them.

Now here's the but. The Reagan administration was in full favour of films which honoured those who served in Vietnam. Nothing wrong with that except the then president had an alternative motive for doing so. He so badly wanted to go to war in Central America despite cries of it leading to another Vietnam style war. Therefore, if he honoured the veterans and forwarded the belief that America could have won the war, then the country would have been more receptive to his militaristic ideals. The film's success in building sympathy towards the Vietnam Veterans went a way towards this aim.

The 1980s, Hollywood and the Rambo-ization of American Youth: Taps

Unlike "Stripes" which approached things with humour, the late 1981 film "Taps" did so more seriously. The movie is about long standing military school which faces closure and that closure becomes more definite when a local boy is accidentally shot and killed in a fight between students at the school and some local townspeople. Of course, the townspeople are all a bunch of long haired drunken yobs. The students decide that they don't want to lose their beloved school so, they take up arms to defend it. Thus starts a long siege with the state police and then the national guard before it all comes to bloody end.

"Taps" deals with two main topics. From the point of view of the students, they believe in old fashioned traits like duty, honour and country. They see themselves as noble people with an honouralbe cause. However, their sense of honour is truly tested and strained throughout the film. Furthermore, they are further skewed by the view of the peace loving civilians who care little for the noble traits the students have. To them, the students are all brainwashed radical warmongers. What I did like about the film, though the point of this is not to rate it, is how the colonel of the national guard points out that the value system of the students is off base. That a true soldier wants to live and not die for their cause.

While the film comes to a bloody end, it's not full of action packed combat scenes. In fact, the film was slated by critics for having the siege drag on a bit too long. What "Taps" is trying to ram home is that American values like duty, honour, courage and loyalty to one's country aren't something that should go away. It does a good job of building sympathy towards those serving in uniform and serving isn't something bad. That was exactly what the purpose of the film was.

The 1980s: Hollywood and the Rambo-ization of American Youth- Stripes

It may seem odd that the first film I would choose in my look at the Rambo-ization of American youth in the 1980s would be the comedy spoof "Stripes." For those who have never seen this 1981 comedy classic, it stars Bill Murray as the bumbling John Winger who joins the army because he has no other alternatives in life. As soon as he joins, he finds that his antics cause him to fall foul of old time army drill sergeant Sgt. Hulka leading to some hilarious confrontations and mishaps. After comically saving his platoon at basic training graduation, they are all posted to Europe to train with the army's latest combat vehicle, the M150. After Winger and his friend take the vehicle to Germany to spend a romantic weekend with two female MPs, the rest of the platoon, led by the incompetent Captain Stillman, go off to find them and bring them back. The Captain gets lost and they end up in Czechoslovakia and are captured by the Russians. When Murray, his friend and the two ladies discover this, they take the vehicle with all its new weapons and rescue their comrades, which they do and return home as heroes. It is all very comically well done and there are laughs galore throughout the entire film. One of the most famous parts is when Murray responds to a question asked by a general with "That's the fact, Jack!"

Films like "Stripes" prove that Americans have a fantastic sense of humour. Nothing is more funnier than watching watching Bill Murray and pals bumble their way through the film and very comically defeat those nasty Russians. Especially as no one actually gets killed in the film. I have watched this film many times and I still laugh just as loudly as when I saw it for the very first time.

Those of you who have seen "Stripes" maybe asking how a film like this could like this could Rambo-ize youth. The answer is that standing alone, the film doesn't. It's actually quite harmless taken in context. However, many people the world over like to approach things with a bit of humour. Sure, we all laughed through the film and despite what I am writing here will do so should I see it again. The film is quite harmless in a war sense but since the film approaches things with humour, it formed a base for future films when they would become much more serious. What better way to get American youth to think in a more militaristic way than by laughing at the antics of comedy hero Bill Murray while he serves his country and becomes a hero.

Next post: Taps

The 1980s: Hollywood and the Rambo-ization of American Youth

In 1986, when President Reagan was visiting a high school in a town not far from my own, some like minded friends and myself went there to show our disapproval for his policy on Central America. Naturally, the pro- Reagan crowd were highly resentful of our presence there and made their feelings known. Even to the point where one lady told us where we could stick our first amendment rights. There was the one boy, about fifteen or sixteen who called us 'Commies' (original I know) to which I responded with, "It will be you they'll be sending to fight down there." The smart ass replied with, "I wanna go." I mentioned this to one of my fellow protesters who sarcastically, but seriously stated, "Of course he's not going to die, he's Rambo!"

The film "Rambo, First Blood Part II" had been released a year earlier and many Americans, especially males, had taken the character played by Sylvester Stallone to heart. He was America's new hero and everybody wanted to be like him. I have been pondering this over the past thirty years or so and I have come to the conclusion that it wasn't just one film that turned young American boys into wannabe war heroes. In fact, it has been a steady stream of films since the election of Ronald Reagan as president that lead to this.

After nearly three decades of letting this swim around in my brain, I am going to put my theory into words here. I will be looking at the films made in the 1980s and demonstrate that Hollywood played a part in Rambo-izing American youth. I admit that due to many other commitments in my life, I won't be able to post regularly, but will do so whenever I get the chance. Of course, if these posts lead to a lot of response and debate, then I will definitely post more regularly.

Next post: Stripes

Regan's Best Unknown Triumph

Actually, I never thought I would be posting on this particular blog again and though it has been more than four years, here I am. The main reason why I haven't posted here was that the subjects I was covering had little to do with my book, "Rock and Roll Children," which I was trying to plug at the time. However, recently I read an article that pricked my attention and the more I have thought about it, the more I wanted to say something and after giving it some thought, I figured that the Real 80s would be the best place to post it.

In my previous posts, I have talked about the transparent successes of the Regan years. How all his economic "miracle" was that he brought back the same jobs that went away in the opening years of his presidency except only they now paid minimum wage. And because it was my big political hang up back in the 1980s, I wrote a post about his Contra war in Nicaragua. This time, I am going to talk about Regan's one big success that very few people know about, his vilification of the 1960s.

It was a journalist/writer named David, (I can't remember his last name) who first talked about how Ronald Regan vilified the 1960s. That was four years ago and this thought has lingered in the back of my mind ever since. About a month ago, I read an article that explained that the Regan believed the reason the US lost the Vietnam War was down to its lack of commitment to it. He hinted that liberal attitudes and the anti-war protesters contributed to this lack of commitment. The article reminded me of an occurrence back in college in the 1980s when a friend of mine, who was in a political group which embraced far left ideology. Like all college clubs, the group had its own little cubicle where things about the club were hanging all around its walls. One day, my friend was sitting inside the cubicle when a touring group of high school students happened by. Some of them took a look at the cubicle and seeing all of the ant-Regan cartoons and articles prompted one student to remark, "It's because of people like you we lost Vietnam." When my friend questioned "People like who?" the student retorted, "You liberals."

Looking back to the 1980s, I realize that those years were indeed spent vilifying the 1960s or at the very least, making the things which occurred in that decade some sort of fashion trend. As an anti- Contra aid protester, I and my like minded colleagues were often told that the 1960s were over. In the 1980s, it was believed that anyone carrying a sign was in a time warp and living two decades earlier. In my case, it was even more so because I dressed like I was in the 1960s with my long hair and Native American moccasin boots. What made it worse is that the words coming out of the White House back than made many Americans, especially impressionable younger ones, think that the 1960s were bad times. That free love, drugs and protest were all evil things that made America lose its way and that conservative Regan political leadership was going to be the only thing that would save the country. That is why the Regan administration was so keen to vilify the 1960s.

Did Regan's attempt to vilify the sixties actually work? For most of what I can remember back in the eighties, the answer was yes. Many people back then thought that protest, liberal attitudes and hippies lost the Vietnam War for America and set the stage for the moral rot many people associate with the 1970s. Furthermore, there was the added belief, aided by fading memories of the time, that if the US hadn't been swamped with the liberal attitudes of the sixties, it would have won the Vietnam War because the US had won every major battle in the war. This was further exacerbated by films in the late 1980s such as "Platoon," "Full Metal Jacket" and "Hamburger Hill." These films all gave the impression that America could have won Vietnam if it hadn't been for the opposition at home. Therefore, I take my hat off to President Regan's greatest achievement while he was in office, the vilification of the 1960s.

The USA, Great Britain and History

When I first began writing "Rock And Roll Children," I did so with the intention of writing about heavy metal music back in the 80s. While the book is fiction, there are many historical facts both relating to music and not and I went through great pains to insure the historical accuracy of the events mentioned in the book. However, as an American who has lived in the UK for nearly half of his life, I have discovered that the British and Americans view historical work such as books and films in a totally different light from one another.
First, let me address the belief by many British people that all Americans believe that films such as "Saving Private Ryan" is 100% historical fact. They don't. I know the BBC likes to find one redneck who lives in Backwater USA and who believes that the film is actual history to draw the erroneous conclusion that all 280 million Americans think the same, but the truth is, the great majority of Americans don't. Many Americans already know that Hollywood does tend to over romanticise things in films and adhere to the formula that the film or book is 10% fact and 90% fiction. Therefore, when most Americans go to view a "historical" film or read a fictional historical book, they do so with this in mind.
The British, on the other hand, are a totally different kettle of fish. It appears that many British people want the film or book to be in accordance with historical fact and get very upset when Hollywood doesn't do this in films. Their beef with "Saving Private Ryan" was that it was full of historical inaccuarcies such as ignoring the mistakes that lead to the slaughter of so many American soldiers on Omaha Beach and it gave the impression that Britain wasn't involved in the D-Day landings at all. Of course, in the minds of many Britons, the worse atrocity was the film "U571" which shows Americans conducting a raid that was actually carried out by the British. Which is why I won't ever watch that film. In view of the above, most Americans think, "It's only a film, so what's all the fuss?"  and will apply the 10-90 formula.  Many can not see why so many British people got so het up about it and don't realise Britain's love for historical fact.
This brings me to "Rock And Roll Children." Americans will immediately use the 10-90 formula when reading it and early feedback seems to indicate this. The blog who gave me the bad review last month balked when I referred to the book as "an accrate account of heavy metal in the 1980s." He stated that it wasn't a book about heavy metal but a fictional story with heavy metal in it. In many ways, he's right, but what he fails to appreciate is that I went through great pains to ensure accuracy in items such as: when albums were released, concerts- when and how they happened and other events such as the PMRC Congressional Hearings in 1985 and the US bombing of Libya in 1986. Feedback from British readers seems to be more appreciative of my efforts. I remember the reaction of when British reader when I confirmed that my account of a lead singer accepting a canabis joint from someone in the crowd and taking a sly puff on it before handing it back actually happened, his face lit up and he thought that was really cool.
The point of my blog here is that the USA and Great Britain view history and fiction in totally different lights.  Americans accept that a peice of fiction based in a period of history is going to be more fiction than fact and will view or read with such mindset. British people on the other hand, want the producer or writer to "get their facts right" and will not like it if they don't. When I wrote Rock And Roll Children, I was leaning more to the British side and maybe went too far that way in the eyes of many Americans.