The Islamic State group is trying to work on its special forces prowess. Well, they’ve got their work cut out for them, according to combat vets that viewed a recently released promotional video by the extremist group. The video, first posted by news site Vocativ, features a dozen scenes of training, door breaching and amphibious sneak attacks. There are countless reasons why this whole thing is a giant soup sandwich, a former Navy SEAL told Navy Times in a Wednesday interview. Starting with: Why kind of special ops mission happens in broad daylight? “Well, the only thing that they had…
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If you’re looking for some cinematic firefights after Christmas Day presents and brunch, you’re in luck. The film version of former Navy SEAL Chief Special Operator Chris Kyle’s best-selling American Sniper memoir is coming to theaters Christmas Day, the tale of his path toward 160 confirmed kills, the most of any shooter in American history. Actor Bradley Cooper was able to meet with Kyle once before the SEAL was murdered in 2013. “Thank God I got to talk to him once on the phone. It was a very quick conversation. But I did tell him how serious I was about…
Tens of thousands of Iraqis served as translators for coalition forces during the Iraq War. But only one was deemed a “bad ass” by America’s deadliest sniper. “Code Name: Johnny Walker,” the story of that translator’s journey — catching on with U.S. forces as a way to feed his family, serving alongside Navy SEALs, and beating the odds (click the link above) to reach the U.S. — will be turned into a movie, according to multiple reports. The book, co-written by “Walker” and Jim DeFelice, is on the tail end of the New York Times best-seller list for hardcover nonfiction. DeFelice…
A movie based on the ambush of a Navy SEAL team in Afghanistan has generated Academy Award buzz for its lead actor, Mark Wahlberg. After the premiere of “Lone Survivor” on Tuesday night in Hollywood, Wahlberg generated some buzz of his own. Asked about preparing for the role of Marcus Luttrell, whose book recounting the 2005 mission served as the basis of the film, Wahlberg offered a profanity-filled tirade aimed at actors who compare their jobs to those of service members. Various entertainment-media outlets reported the speech. Here’s a cleaned-up version of the remarks, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter:…
Recent cinematic efforts involving Navy SEAL units have included the dramatized takedown of a terrorist mastermind and real-life special operators lending their talents to Hollywood. Later this year, an adaptation of a SEAL’s story of a 2005 ambush in Afghanistan will hit theaters, with Academy Award buzz likely. Also, “The Rock” is going to kill some monsters. The Hollywood Reporter reported yesterday that the wrestler-turned-actor-turned-sometimes-wrestler Dwayne Johnson will star in “SEAL Team 666,” in which special operators will “battle demons” as they do in the Weston Ochse novel of the same name. A brief passage: “While one of the SEALs…
The trailer for “Lone Survivor,” Hollywood’s take on a 2005 SEAL mission in Afghanistan that ended in ambush, tragedy and acts of valor that stand out even among the nation’s elite special warriors, is below. It hit YouTube yesterday and already has almost 175,000 views. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMFLzf-DXXU[/youtube] This adaptation of former Special Operator 1st Class (SEAL) Marcus Luttrell’s book was directed by Peter Berg, whose last Navy-themed film had a decidedly different tone. Stars include Mark Wahlberg, Taylor Kitsch, Ben Foster and Eric Bana. It’ll have a limited release Dec. 27, according to Entertainment Weekly, which will make it eligible for…
The video says it all, but read on below for a bit more background: [HTML1] That’s SEAL Cmdr. Chris Cassidy aboard the International Space Station, giving a quick glimpse (very quick, thanks to sped-up video with an appropriately lighthearted soundtrack) at how to shave one’s head in zero gravity. Key quote: “I don’t think I’ve looked like this since Plebe Summer.” The 1993 Naval Academy grad shed his hair late last month in anticipation of the arrival of Luca Parmitano, an Italian astronaut who, well … who saves on barbershop bills. Parmitano and two other flight engineers arrived aboard the…
A White House petition to name a Navy ship after former SEAL Chris Kyle currently has more than 2,500 signatures. The petition for the USS Chris Kyle was created Feb. 5 on the White House’s petition site “We the People.” You can sign it here. Kyle, the author of “American Sniper,” claimed to be the most deadly sniper in history, though those reports are unconfirmed by the Pentagon. He was killed Feb. 2 at a gun range in Texas. A public memorial for Kyle was held today at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Petitions on “We the People” will get…
Last week, Americans were far more interested in war than love. “No Easy Day,” a former SEAL’s account of the bin Laden raid, pushed “Fifty Shades of Grey,” a sultry romance, out of the No. 1 bestselling spot, according to Publisher’s Weekly. “No Easy Day,” by Mark Owen, sold 253,000 copies in its first week at outlets tracked by Nielsen BookScan, the website reported, topping the list of overall bestsellers. “Fifty Shades of Grey,” the story of a college-grad who enters into a dominant-submissive relationship with a business exec, had been the top seller since the week ending April 22.…
If you see posts floating around the Twittersphere that the Navy SEAL who killed Osama bin Laden is dead, don’t believe it. The hoax claims that “Navy SEAL Todd Jones,” the man responsible for bin Laden’s death, has now been killed in combat. First off, the name of the SEAL who shot Osama has never been released. Second, an official from Navy Personnel Command told Navy Times that there is no SEAL named Todd Jones in their database. It’s unclear exactly where the hoax started. But it could be from this tweet by Deep Wizdom, a “teen speaking his mind,”…
