Original title
Mail Call
Released
8/4/2002
Origin country
US
Genre
Documentary
Status
Ended
Number of seasons
8
Number of episodes
105
Mail Call was a television program that appeared on the History Channel and hosted by R. Lee Ermey, a retired United States Marine Corps Staff Sergeant,. The show debuted on August 4, 2002 as part of the 'Fighting Fridays' lineup. Most episodes were 30 minutes, but from 2007 through the show's end in 2009 some episodes were 60 minutes. During each episode, Ermey read and answered questions submitted by viewers regarding weapons and equipment used by all branches of the U.S. military now or in the past, as well as by other armed forces in history. Ermey often took his viewers on location to military training areas to film demonstrations. When not on location, Ermey broadcast from a set resembling a military outpost, including a tent, a Jeep, and various other pieces of military gear which changed throughout the series. At times, he would also have a bulldog - usually symbolic of Marines, especially drill instructors - on his show as well. Comic relief was provided as Ermey inflicted DI-style verbal abuse on his viewers or tests the effects of various weapons on watermelons and paint cans, as well as occasional appearances of "Mini-Lee", an action figure styled in Ermey's likeness, often seen berating a luckless G.I. Joe figurine. His demeanor as host was similar to the character "Gunnery Sergeant Hartman" portrayed by Ermey in the Stanley Kubrick film Full Metal Jacket, though this attitude was shown only towards his viewers and not the military special guests. Older viewers might compare him to Sergeant Vincent Carter, a character in the Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. television program.
Mail Call The Best of Season 2 Xtra Gunny's Deal of the Day
D-Day Special
Steering a World War II tank; Gatling gun's speed; power of the samurai sword.
Parts of 15th-century armor; World War I infantry backpack; ingredients of a land mine.
Body armor; accuracy of a medieval crossbow; how World War I pilots shot through their propellers.
Aiming Civil War artillery pieces; how night-vision technology works; how to clear a minefield.
Operating the LCAC; cavalry saddles used in the Old West; how gas masks work.
Maneuverable artillery; musket; Navy airships; precision flying team; pirates; depth charges
How to refuel a fighter jet in mid-air; how ships send messages using signal flags; what soldiers eat.
How fast a Revolutionary War soldier could fire a musket; jousting; how to dig a foxhole.
The ancient Roman pilum is designed to penetrate armor; World War II army radios; how rockets were first used on the battlefield.
The weapons of the Japanese Ninja; how flamethrowers work; what military dogs do.
Possible gear for troops on tomorrow's battlefields; Marines design their new camouflage pattern; the Stryker.
Learn how grenade launchers work; how a .30 caliber machine gun compares to a .50 cal; watch Ermey behind the wheel of a Flyer 21; and discover the origin of the word shrapnel.
American Civil War rifles from both sides; the first missile fired from the deck of a sub; deep-sea and crush-proof suits; breaking down a weapon; the Bowie knife; the evolution of a hedgechopper.
The Armored Vehicle Launched Bridge; the Fulton Recovery System; a pilot's survival kit; the ancient Greek warship Trireme; battleship guns; grapeshot.
Simulated marksmanship training; fastest front-line combat jet and World War II tank; Greeks of ancient times use the phalanx; Civil War cavalry gear; dazzle paint.
Medieval catapults; platoons, companies and divisions; the Browning automatic rifle; smart bombs; parachutes; the weapon version of the boomerang.
Light Armored Vehicle; landing craft; World War I Doughboys; training troops; medieval chain mail; the military salute.
Vietnam gun truck; World War II household fat; missile silos; C-17 Loadmaster; Scottish kilts.
full title: Self-Propelled Artillery; Matchlock Musket; Airships; Blue Angels; Pirate Weapons; Depth Charges --------- Maneuverable artillery; musket; Navy airships; precision flying team; pirates; depth charges
The bazooka's replacement; mobile command post; Air Force Pararescuemen; 21-gun salute.
Medieval weapons; World War I Lewis gun; carrier pigeons; gliders; anti-tank missile; ejection seats.
Marines' 26-ton AAV stays afloat; jeeps; battering rams; urban warfare; World War II bombers; pictures on World War II airplanes.
Experimental planes; unidentified aircraft; first combat helicopter; directing artillery fire; commando knife.
Motor lifeboat; carrier battle group; Sherman tanks; futuristic rifle; voice mail.
This episode was live in Kuwait. Gunnery Sgt. Ermey talked to the troops and answered questions.
Helicopters; hazing ritual; building runways in the Pacific; the G-2; battle tank
Rifles; jet-assisted take-off; freefall parachute team; barrage balloons; military jargon.
Rocket-propelled artillery; artillery gun that fires the largest caliber shell; tents; tomahawks; slings.
Military rifles in Vietnam; booby traps; the Ravens; the Wild Weasels; river-patrol boats; the Green Berets.
Rifle; blowgun; floating concrete caissons bridge the English Channel; weapons of the French resistance; improvements in front-line medical care; origins of the word "berserk."
Snipers; hand signals; Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh Trail; motorcycles; tanks; the C-119 Flying Boxcar.
Armored scout cars; water-cooled machine guns; sleeping bag; sleeping on the battlefield; German U-boats; Navy ship invisible to radar.
Anti-personnel mine; 16th-century Scottish sword; early nuclear-powered submarine; how naval vessels resupply at sea; the Patriot missile; cadence songs.
World War II M2A2 half-track; Snow Train; strange weapons used by the Allies in World War II; Navy hydrofoils; Air Force combat controllers; Marine Corps gunnery sergeants.
Training of military pilots; flak; the Doolittle Raid; Sleeping Beauty submarine; radios; foxhole radio.
F-15 Eagle; single-man vertical flight machine; howitzer firing both conventional and nuclear warheads; Army-controlled missile programs; submachine guns; measuring bullets.
Avenger Air Defense System; Stinger and Red Eye missiles; military firefighters; the Triple Nickels; Kiowa scout helicopter; "Kilroy Was Here."
Attack helicopter; AIM Sidewinders; transport plane; military police; flintlock pistols.
Lee jumps with the Golden Knights; history of the U.S. Air Force; Flying Tigers; blood chit; AC-130U Spooky gunship; P-61 Black Widow.
Blimp; aerial reconnaissance during the U.S. Civil War; military shot guns; grapeshot revolver; Navy Graveyard; G.I. jargon: "poop."
Guided Missile Destroyer; World War I aircraft and aces; Marine Corps FAST Teams.
Submachine guns; high-tech aerial command and control centers; fire support bases; slang term "Charlie."
Former U.S. Marines Staff Sgt. R. Lee Ermey returns to Vietnam for the first time since 1969; veterans recall their experiences from the war.
New intro/Best of: M203 Grenade Launcher, Trebuchet, 1895 Colt Machine Gun, MP5 9mm Submachine Gun, M1 Garand Rifle, A4 .30 Cal Machine Gun, Claymore Mines, Knob Creek Gun Range
New intro/Best of: Mid Air Refueling, Cobra Helicopter, Halftrack, The Jeep, Landing Craft Air Cushion Hovercraft (LCAC), Light Armored Vehicle, M5A1 Stuart Tank, 47ft motor life boat, promo - watermelon salesman
R. Lee gets in a little trigger time training with a group of insurgents in an Iraqi Village at the most realistic training facility used by the U.S. Marine Corps w/Roger Cannon, Brian Plescia Capt Steve Coast. An in-depth tour of the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command, dedicated to finding and the remains of all missing and unidentified service men and women w/Lt. Lentfort Mitchell, Dennis Danielson Col Claude Davis. Witness the guns and gear used by the British Red Coats against the American rebels during our War of independence w/George Mack. The story of US troops on Panama w/Rob Lihani Sgt. Patrick Nugent Finally, take a trip to Fort MacArthur in Long Beach, California to re-enact the great L.A. Air Raid of 1942 w/Stephen Nelson
R. Lee Ermey answers viewer questions on location at with a focus on Air Force Special Operations and hardware. Lee tours the Air Force Base and gets a taste of what the officer candidates call "Hell Week"; then, Gunny goes to school and trains in car bomb and explosives detection and fires assault rifles used by terrorists. Finally, Lee takes off in the meanest gunship in the Air Force, the AC-130 and squeezes off a few rounds with its 105 mm cannon
A WWII scout car nicknamed the greyhound. Gunny takes it for a test drive and fires off the M8's 37mm cannon with Bill Kirhkidis; then, Gunny features the Mauser C96 pistol (the pistol of choice for everyone from Winston Churchill to Star Wars' Han Solo) in a live fire demonstration. Gunny gives the gear geeks in the audience a field day with an overview of all the weapons, gear and gadgets used by the average German soldier during World War II with Anders Hudson. K98 Bolt action rifle, MP40, MG34, MG42, Stick Grenade, uniforms, boots, ammo pouch, bread bag, M3, 40, 42 helmet, camo, foodwagon. Gunny's Golf Tournament & Charities in Marriott DC - Young Marines with Shotgun Scramble won by Richard Grieco, Gunny's Ball with Bob Dole, ROTC - Maj Matt Donald, Ross Daly, Lt Col Todd Miller, Ohio State MSgt Dan Whitney, Terrorist Training - Robin Tullercash, War Dogs K( Corp - Sgt. Stubby of D-Dogs for Defense, War Dog Cemetery in Guan, Fort Benning training.
Historic Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio. First, Lee tours the museum and he reveals the fascinating story (and rare footage) of the highest bailout in history from an American aircraft. Then he tells the history of the Lockheed Starlifter, the Vietnam-era cargo plane made famous when one was designated The Hanoi. Lee also attends a reunion of the surviving POWs who flew on the Hanoi Taxi; then, he reveals the truth about UFOs and the Air Force's top secret Project Bluebook. Finally, Lee gets to take the controls for some real stick time in a vintage B-25 Mitchell Bomber.
Gunny visits the United States Armor Center and check out our armored arsenal. We go along on a Recon Officer training course with Special Ops Army scouts; and then, Gunny goes for a flight on an Apache Attack Helicopter. View a profile of George S. Patton, hear the story of George S. Patton's ivory-handled revolver and see other historic relics from the Patton museum. Gunny gets to drive and fire the cannon of the only working vintage Vietnam-era M40 Ontos Tank shredder known as the Road Runner. A trip to the assembly plant to see the M1 Abrams tank built from the ground up.
Tennessee Warbirds Museum of Aviation to see the P-51 Mustangs and P-47 Thunderbirds with R. Neal Melton, Franklin Luckman Jr, R. Nathan Davis.M6 double barrel survival rifle AR7, Scuttlebutt, A trip back in time to see just what kind of gear the WW2 Marines carried into battle - M1941 uniform, pack, boondockers, frog herringbone, 1903A1 rifle. Back to the skies for a one-of-a-kind ride in the Marine Corps' V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor with Maj David Lane, XB70 Valkyrie. Even the Gunny makes mistakes, so R. Lee shows off a few of his most famous SNAFUs. Finally the Gunny gives a fond farewell to the venerable Navy F-14 Tomcat with Capt Bill Seizmore, Cdr Jim Howe, Cdr Curt Seth.
Trigger time with an M4 Carbine and a Beretta M9. Camillus Knives - Woodsman's Pal, Tac Tool and Ermey updates to the latest gear: Spec Ops, Blackhawk, Oakley, CamelBak. Then he torture tests the rugged laptop from VT Miltope by running it over with his jeep and throwing water on it. Plus flashlights from Surefire - M6 combat, Aviator Hellfire.
Gunny talks via satellite one-on-one with troops in Iraq. At the Atlanta, Georgia headquarters of the Digital Video and Imagery Distribution System and gets the scoop on the fight against the insurgency. Run by the US Army, DVIDS receives via satellite the combat camera and public affairs videotape of all operations involving the US armed forces with Ltc William Beckman, Ssgt Amy Forsythe. Iraq - Lt Michael Schulz, Cwl Ty Powell, Sgt. Kurt Edusada, Sgt. Louis Sanchez, Col Joie Stovie, Ssgt Ajeem Pandey, Col Paul Sutherland, Cpl Andrew Ringbloom, 1Lt Douglas Connor, Col James Polo. He also meets civil affairs specialists and engineers installing a water purification system for a remote village. Finally, the Gunny pays tribute to Army Corporal Ozwarthy who was recently killed while serving in Iraq.
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