Wow! Seems like I just wrote the wrap up for October. I need to pick up the slack as this is only the third post for the month –but anyway, here are some of the more interesting Foreign Legion items I collected up during this past month.
1. Ortiz: To Live a Man’s Life. Yep, another book. This time a biography of U.S. Marine Corps legend and former French Foreign Legionnaire Peter J. Ortiz. Written by Laura Homan Lacy this book fills a gap on the exploits of one of World War Two’s little known heroes. Ortiz joined the Foreign Legion in 1931. He quickly made sergeant and temporary commander of an armored platoon and could have been commissioned as a full Lieutenant had he stayed on an additional five years. Instead, in 1937, he left the Legion to return to the United States and began to work in Hollywood. When the war broke out he returned to the Foreign Legion and eventually was captured by the Germans. He escaped the following year and made his way back to the United States were he joined the Marine Corps and eventually went on to fight in Europe as one of the few Marines in the OSS. You can read a good article about this book at the Leatherneck website or download it here. There is lots more about Ortiz on the web but this link has a good synopsis of his remarkable career and adventurous life.
2. Thomas Gunn Foreign Legion Miniatures. This is the third addition to Thomas Gunn’s very fine series of Foreign Legion 1/30th scale miniatures. These poses expand on two earlier releases and seem to have some poses in the tropical khaki campaign hat or wearing the kepi. There seems to be over 20 different unique figures though I would have to take some time to make sure of the exact count.
3. Trailquest Morocco Expedition 2013. The intrepid motorbike explorers of Trailquest Adventures completed another expedition to Morocco this year to survey abandoned forts of the Foreign Legion. You can see a short movie here and a slide show here. This year they searched out the remains of a small Legion outpost at Atchana located about 20+ km north of the fort at Tazzouguert (their 2012 survey). This fort appears to be in a very poor state. Attached are two write ups of the fort and the expedition plan.
In Search of the Foreign Legion – Travel Information
6. My Little Margie – Foreign Legion. My Little Margie was an American situation comedy made for radio that alternated between CBS and NBC from 1952 to 1955. This episode is a screwball situation that features a bit where the not-so-bright boyfriend of Margie gets himself enlisted into the Foreign Legion. I know I’m really stretching this blog’s focus with this radio show but I really, really love oldies be they westerns, serials, comics, paperbacks, television, books, toys, magazines and radio. …and I thought this was pretty funny. You can listen below or download directly from the Old Time Radio Researchers Library.
5. To the Walls! A short wargame on the nice LZ Bravo blog involving the Foreign Legion fighting off the attacking “Sons of the Desert”. Link.
Mon Legionnaire 
Jack, just came by your website in November and it has really piqued my interest. Retired Marine myself. Wanted to encourage you to keep on posting about the Legion, it’s very interesting reading.
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Thanks Shawn. I appreciate the comment. It keeps me busy and out of trouble–God knows there is a bar on every corner and two in the middle of every block in my town.
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