“DISPATCHES”
November 2015
Hard to believe but it’s November already...Where did the year go..? And
soon it will be Christmas!!!
So without further
ado...Let’s get down to business...
1.
ON
RELEASE IN NOVEMBER...
A.
“On The Streets of Old Berlin”
The
Nazis were past masters of propaganda publicity and promotion in their rise to
power and throughout their 12 years in power. They used every means at
their disposal...cinema, radio, very early television and, of course,
all kinds of printed materials and posters to get their message
across...especially on the public streets of Germany.
LAH190
“Vote For Hitler!” #1
A
standing “Sturmabteilung” (Stormtrooper) man carries his
political “sandwich board” complete with Nazi posters front and back.
LAH191
“Vote for Hitler!” #2
A
second Stormtrooper stands with his poster of “Der Fuhrer”
looking menacing.
LAH196 “Tall
Poster Column”
All over German towns and cities these kind of tall,
multi poster displays could be seen advertising all kinds of products, goods
and services as well as theatres and cinemas.
In this case Herr Hitler is front and centre
as well as other National Socialist posters.
AVAILABLE: Early November!
B.
“BANZAI!”
Four
additional releases to add to our Imperial Japanese Forces during
WW2 in the Pacific and South East Asia.
JN011
“Imperial Navy Officer-of-the-Watch”
Dressed in tropical whites
and clutching his binoculars this officer is on duty watching his men service
the Mitsubishi “Zeroes” as they prepare to fly off their
carriers.
JN012
“Deck Crew Petty Officer Mechanic”
Holding an aircraft manual in
one hand and his tool kit in the other this Petty Officer goes about his duties
on the flight deck.
JN013
“Aircraft Armourers”
A pair of armourers,
kneeling and standing carrying belts of machine gun ammunition for their
aircraft positioned on the carrier’s flight deck.
JN015
“Japanese Infantryman”
The first of an upcoming series of regular Japanese Army
infantry...marching with his Arisaka rifle on the
shoulder. Based on an actual photograph this soldier is extremely
casual in his dress...even by Japanese standards!
AVAILABLE: Early November!
C.
“ON THE EUROPEAN FRONT”
From the Pacific and South
East Asia during the early part of WW2 we move west to Europe in the months
following D.Day...
DD273
“The Sarge”
Hollywood, both the movies and television, have always loved WW2 and when it
comes to portraying the American GI there has been no shortage of great actors
ready to represent them on the big screen and the little one too...Among those
portrayals there is usually the rough, tough and occasionally gruff sergeant
who is firm but fair with the men under his command...Think of Sgt.
Horvath in “Saving Pvt. Ryan” or Sgt. Rick Saunders
in “COMBAT” and you get the idea.
Here is our little tribute to the fictional “non-coms” as well as
all the real ones!
“Tommy Gun” resting on the hip and watching out for his
men “The Sarge” is ready for combat!
DD274 “The
M36 ‘Jackson’ Tank Destroyer”
Developed towards the end of
WW2 the M36 “Jackson” was the most powerful U.S. tank destroyer
of its time mounting a massive 90mm gun. It replaced the
much weaker M10 which only carried a 76mm gun.
Supplies of the M36
finally began to arrive in the European Theatre of Operations in
September 1944 where it immediately proved to be more than a match against any
of the heavy tanks of the Germans.
It also saw ‘active duty’
in the Korean conflict easily defeating the
Russian-supplied armour used by both the North
Koreans and the Chinese.
Even after Korea, M36’s
turned up in the former Yugoslavia and saw action in the 1990’s!
Our K&C M36 is
painted in typical olive drab finish complete with Allied ‘white star’
and would have certainly took part in The Battle of the Bulge in
December ’44 and the drive into Germany in the first 5 months of 1945.
Dismounted tank crew
figures will be available in a later release.
DD275
“Capt. Dale Dye...Weapons Training”
A
many of you war movie buffs know Capt. Dale Dye USMC ret’d
has carved out a unique place for himself in the film world. He
has worked both behind and in front of the cameras on such outstanding
movies and TV series as “Platoon”...”Born on the Fourth of
July”...”Band of Brothers”...”The Pacific”
and, of course, “Saving Pvt. Ryan” to name but a handful.
He’s also a good friend of myself and K&C and was one of our very special “Guests
of Honour” at the last “Texas Toy Soldier
Show”.
Capt.
Dye’s military contribution to making many of these films and series more
accurate and realistic is considerable and widely praised.
Here at K&C we wanted to say “thank you” for Dale’s work in our own
small way and here it is...
We based our figure on several photos taken during the production of “Saving
Pvt. Ryan” where Capt. Dye was instructing the main actors and
some of the principal extras on the correct use and safe handling of real
weapons...Including in this case the M1 carbine.
Capt.
Dye totally immerses himself in all of the productions he gets involved
with. In this case, he is dressed as a “Ranger” captain and is
wearing the same uniform as the men of Capt. Miller’s squad in the
movie.
DD276
“Colonel Robert F. Sink”
This figure also has a
connection with Dale Dye...The actual Col. Sink was the Commanding
Officer of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st
Airborne Division which of course featured the men of “Easy company”
from “Band of Brothers”.
Capt. Dye, in addition to training all of the actors
and extras for the Television series also played Col. Sink in the series.
Our figure shows the ‘real’ Colonel Robert F. Sink in his jump
suit delivering orders to his men prior to the D. Day Operation.
A regular prewar U.S. Army
officer he had a long and distinguished military career and rose to the rank of
Lieutenant General before retiring in 1961. He died in 1965.
AVAILABLE: Mid to late
November.
D)
“Napoleon’s Gunners”
It’s sometimes forgotten that
Napoleon Bonaparte began his military career as a humble officer of Artillery.
And, throughout his life he
took a great interest in the development and use of artillery on the
battlefield. To that end, here at K&C, we also have a great fondness for
guns and gunners...Here are some of our latest French Foot Artillery
additions...
NA329
“Artillery Officer”
Standing with his telescope this officer
observes his men about to go into action.
NA331
“Gunners Set #1”
A Gunner First Class
with the linstock rod together with another Gunner
carrying the “Charge Pouch” and musket.
NA332
“Gunners Set #2”
Two more gunners...One with
the ‘lantern pole’...the other with the ‘Spone
Rod/Rammer’ and water bucket.
NA336
“The Gribeauval 8-pounder Cannon”
Some of the parts on this gun
were interchangeable with those of the 12-pounder. Almost 1,000 of
these guns were employed by Napoleon’s artillery.
NA337
“Gunner w/Rammer”
A single Artilleryman.
AVAILABLE: Early
November
E) “Pike & Musket”
As we stated when we launched the “Three Musketeers” set a couple
of months back...”Pike & Musket” is a series that encompasses the
Wars of the early-mid 17th Century and extends from English Civil
War to the Thirty Years War and even into the fictional lives of
such legendary characters as D’Artagnan,
Athos, Aramis and Porthos and all points
between!
Here is just a small taste of the vitality and versatility of this colourful and exciting series.
PnM039
“The
Cardinal”
Cardinal Richlieu,
the “Red Eminence”, and the power behind King Louis XIII. Often known as the King’s “First Minister” he wielded enormous
power and influence not just in France but throughout Europe at that time.
He is also a leading
character in Alexander Dumas’ “Three Musketeers” and the Musketeers main
antagonist.
We show him at the height of
his power...sword drawn and wearing a suit of armour
always prepared to defend what he believes is in France’s best interest.
PnM042X
“Captain of Horse Nathaniel Fiennes”
As brave and energetic Parliamentary cavalry officer who before the war was a
Member of Parliament. Here, he sits atop his mount calmly assessing the
situation...Only available through King &
Country.
PnM050
“Standing Ironside Trooper”
A dismounted Parliamentary cavalryman...arms folded.
PnM051
“Le Comte de Rochefort”
The Comte (or Count) de Rochefort is another
villainous character from the Dumas novel and is an accomplice of the
Cardinal and an ally to the beautiful but deadly Milady de Winter.
A skilled swordsman and a ruthless adversary he can be recognized by his eye
patch and a long scar across his cheek.
AVAILABLE:
Mid to Late November.
F) “Wehrmacht In Action”
And now, once more, back to WW2 with these four individual releases...
WH040
“Officer w/Binos”
Standing, observing the enemy and about to issue an order.
WH041
“Kneeling w/Schmeisser”
Taking careful aim with his MP40 machine pistol.
WH042
“Kneeling firing Rifleman”
WH043
“Standing firing Rifleman”
Note:
All of the above figures can be used on either Eastern or Western Fronts...as
the individual collector prefers.
AVAILABLE: Mid-November.
G)
“World of Dickens”
Christmas and Dickens seem to go together
very well and this year they go even better with a family of carol singers.
WOD034 “Carol Singers Set
#1”
A mother and father join together to spread
a little Christmas Cheer by singing traditional old Christmas Carols.
WOD035 “Carol Singers Set
#2”
To accompany Mum and Dad in the festivities
their two children also join in to sing Christmas Carols.
AVAILABLE: Mid-November.
H)
“Read All About IT!”
From the “Streets of Olde
London” to the not-so-old “Streets of Hong Kong” with this new
set...
HK232
“The Second-Hand Book Store”
A young street vendor enjoys one of his own
book collection as he presents a stall-full of “used-books”
for his customers to peruse and...hopefully buy!
AVAILABLE: Mid-November.
I)
“A Very Special Man”
WL001 Lee Kuan Yew (1923-2015) was the first and longest-serving Prime Minister of
Singapore after its independence. He was the visionary leader who can
rightly be said to be the “father of modern Singapore” and almost
single-handedly turned a sleepy, former British colony into one of Asia’s most
successful and dynamic city/states.
Our figure shows him
delivering a speech during the early days of independence in the mid
1960’s. He is simply dressed in white shirt and white trousers
emphasizing that he and his party (the People’s Action Party) are both
clean...and honest...a relative rarity in Asian politics.
J)
“Flight Into Egypt”
This latest “Life of
Jesus” release returns to an earlier time...just after the Nativity
when, under threat of death from King Herod, Mary and Joseph and their small
baby fled into Egypt where they remained until Herod’s death.
LOJ041
“Mary, Joseph & The Infant Jesus”
At dead of night Joseph leads Mary and the
baby on their donkey towards Egypt and temporary safety.
AVAILABLE: Mid-Late November.
K)
“Where Are All The Good Little Girls & Boys..?”
XM015
“Santa & His Globe”
For our Annual Yuletide release we
have another delightful and merry little set...Here, we see Santa with his
magnifying glass in one hand and his little book of “Who’s been good and
Who’s been naughty this year” in the other...Studying a globe of the world
and planning his Christmas Eve departure route.
AVAILABLE: Mid-November.
L)
“Double Trouble”
By popular demand we are re-releasing this
great little set of two Japanese Officers once more...
FOB080
“General Yamashita & Staff Officer Sugita”
“The Tiger of Malaya” and one
of his most trusted Staff Officers on their way to demand the surrender of their
British opponents in Singapore, February 1942.
AVAILABLE: Early
November.
2.
BEING
RETIRED...
Quite a large number this
month and...some great pieces...Grab ‘em while you can!
|
IF010 |
Air Marshal Balbo |
|
LAH170 |
The Fuhrer’s 770K |
|
LW032 |
Opel Maultier Flakwagen |
|
NA227 |
Officer w/
Regimental Color |
|
NA238 |
General Antoine Lasalle |
|
RA019 |
Red Army Soldier
Running |
|
RA020 |
Red Army Soldier
Lying Prone |
|
WS309 |
Winter Tiger #311
(2nd Version) |
|
RTA003 |
Mexican Presidial Lancer |
|
RTA004 |
Mexican Officer w/Sword |
|
RTA005 |
Mexican Flagbearer |
|
RTA006 |
Mexican Drummer |
|
RTA008 |
Mexican Kneeling Firing |
|
RTA009 |
Mexican Standing Firing |
|
RTA010 |
Running Mexican |
|
RTA012 |
Mexican Infantryman Marching |
|
RTA029 |
Mexican Advancing w/Rifle |
|
RTA031 |
Mexican Artillery Officer |
|
RTA033B |
James Butler Bonham, SC
(w/Texas State Flag) |
|
RTA039 |
Naval Cannon & Musket Set |
|
RTA051 |
Mexican Dragoon Officer
Charging w/ Sword |
|
RTA052 |
Dragoon w/ Lance Forward |
|
RTA053 |
Dragoon w/ Lance Thrusting Down |
|
RTA054 |
Dragoon w/ Lance Held Up |
|
RTA057 |
James Nowlan |
|
RTA058 |
Shot Mexican Dragoon |
And that, as they say, is that...All the very best to one and all!
Andy C. Neilson
Co-founder & Creative Director
King
& Country