MovieChat Forums > The Boys in Company C (1978) Discussion > about the real boys of Company C

about the real boys of Company C


This movie is based on a marine corp company during vietnam. I have been trying to research the people who was in C company, 2nd batallion, 3rd marines (I cannot even confirm this unit was the unit the film was based on). Can anyone (Ex Marine) point me in the right direction?

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I can't help you with the info you're seeking,since I was a kid at that time, and didn't become a marine until the 80's, but can give you some advice on asking. The only exmarine is Lee Harvey Oswald, all others are former marines or old marines, or just marines.
Semper Fi, me and my, friends until the day we die.

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What he's trying to say is that there are no ex-Marines; once a Marine always a Marine. If you are trying to research a particular unit I suggest contacting the Marine Baracks in Washington D.C.

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I actually suggest you pay a visit to Qunatico, there's a library with all kinds of old records in it. You can even check out the Marine Museum that newly opened across from the front gate.

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Thank you, fellas for you help. I did finally find the info I was seeking.

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If I remember correctly this movie was about Charlie Company 9th marines. At the end of the original movie I remember it stating the fact that the Company had to be disbanded. The new movie comming out called " American Gangster" that deals with a part of this. One of the scenes in this( boys in co. C)movie deals with smuggling herion in with the bodies of dead servicemen being shipped home and that's what American Gangster is about.

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Hi Dbusdriver, can you maybe give us a quick rundown of what your research found out? I've always been drawn to this movie and would enjoy reading about what their actual fate may have been.

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Sorry I didn't get back to you sooner. I never checked back until now; talk about a long wait. I went to camp pennelton, in el toro in calif. I was directed to a liason officer (ret.) who directed me to some old wartime marine corp publications and documents. The movie was based on the experiences of marines during the vietnam war. The units mentioned in the movie; some were real but the events portrayed in the movie are based on other experiences from other marine corp units. The movie was basically based a ficticious unit with all the vietnam experience in an hour-and-half movie; no one unit went thru all of this during one tour of duty. The endings that stated the fates of individuals marines are also ficticious. I have not, yet to date, found any factual documents thru the freedom of info act stating real names matching any name mentioned in the movie, like jerome washington, or alvin foster for example. It is still a great movie based on the reallife experiences of so many marvolous marines, some still with us, and some are not. God bless all of those marvolous marines alive and dead.

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